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Salad

Marinated Cucumber

A cucumber dish marinated with salt, sugar replacement, vinegar, pepper, and optional garlic.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 7 ingredients
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Why it works: Cucumber and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,556 recipes. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. The science ↓

Marinated Cucumber

Time30 minutes or more

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Score cucumbers with tines of a fork.

  2. Cut into very thin slices.

  3. Sprinkle with salt.

  4. Chill for 2 hours.

  5. Drain well.

Marinate

  1. Sprinkle with sugar replacement.

  2. Add vinegar and pepper.

  3. Marinate for 30 minutes or more before serving.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

78Calories
1 gProtein
0 gFat
19 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Cucumber1/2 cup sliced (52g)16
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cucumber + garlictop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,556 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  2. Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,090 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  3. Cucumber + vinegartop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,734 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).

  4. Vinegar + garlictop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,115 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

  5. Cucumber + peppertop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,991 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Cucumbers
Provide the crisp, watery base that the marinade flavours and softens slightly.
Salt
Draws water out of the cucumber slices, seasoning them and making them less watery.
Vinegar
Adds acidity that gives the cucumbers their tangy, sharp flavour.
Sugar replacement
Adds sweetness to balance the acidity of the vinegar.

The step that matters

Drain well. Salted cucumbers release a lot of liquid. Draining thoroughly before adding vinegar keeps the marinade from becoming diluted and watery, so the flavour stays concentrated and the slices stay crisp.

Swap the garlic

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cucumber, sugar, vinegar, pepper):

  1. Tarragonfits better
  2. Dillfits better
  3. Peppermintfits about as well
  4. Garlicthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against cucumber, sugar, vinegar, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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