This spicy Korean cucumber salad has a refreshing crunch in every bite, coated with a delicious sauce that’s garlicky, savory, and tangy with a touch of sweetness. This quick & easy side dish comes together in a single bowl and makes for the perfect dish to add to your dinner table.
What is Korean Cucumber Salad?
Korean cucumber salad (Oi Muchim/오이무침) is a banchan (side dish) staple in Korean cuisine that is especially popular during the summer months.
Its popularity spans across the world and is now one of the most commonly found side dishes in Korean restaurants, especially in a Korean BBQ setting.
Oi Muchim, which translates to “seasoned cucumber” in Korean, is light and refreshing, yet loaded with a burst of flavor that is the perfect balance of spicy, savory, tangy, and slightly sweet, that is truly appetizing to have as an accompaniment to any main dish.
With respect to its name, this Korean cucumber side dish is just as quick & easy as preparing a salad or if not easier, and the result is absolutely remarkable despite the concise list of ingredients.
It’s truly amazing how at times a few simple and humble ingredients are all you need to create such perfect harmony of flavors, and this dish is the epitome of just that.
With a handful of simple pantry ingredients and fresh cucumber, you can easily make your own spicy cucumber salad in the comfort of your home, and I guarantee you will be hooked at the first bite!
What do I need to make Korean Cucumber Salad?
This spicy cucumber salad, despite its rich and bold flavors, only calls for a handful of simple ingredients to put together. Here is a list of ingredients you will need:
- Cucumber of choice: this recipe is based on the measurements of one medium-sized English cucumber, but you can use any cucumber that you have at your local market, and portion it to your needs.
- If you want the best possible results, you can aim for seedless/low-seed varieties such as Kirby, English, Persian, or Korean, or Japanese cucumbers that are ideal for pickling.
- If your cucumber has a lot of seeds, you may prefer removing them as they can make the salad very watery, or draining out excess liquid with salt as demonstrated in the recipe notes.
- This same step can be applied when making this dish in advance, to ensure that the cucumber stays crunchy over a long period of time.
- Onion, green onion + garlic: for the aromatics and the extra crunch.
- To reduce the bitterness of the onion, you can soak them in cold water for about 10 minutes before adding them to the salad.
- Soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, sesame oil, Gochugaru (Korean red chili flakes), toasted sesame seeds + salt: for the dressing.
- I personally like the taste of rice vinegar in salads, but you can also opt for regular white vinegar if that’s all you have at hand.
And that’s it! All the ingredients you’ll need to make to make your own fresh batch of Korean cucumber salad.
Can you make Korean Cucumber Salad in advance?
If you’re looking for an easy make-ahead side dish, Oi Muchim is a great option as they store incredibly well over time.
The best way to prepare this dish in advance is to take the preliminary step in draining the extra moisture from the cucumber by sprinkling some salt all over and setting them aside for 10-15 minutes, rinsing with water, and squeezing out any excess water before mixing in the marinade.
This will ensure that the cucumbers will remain crunchy over time, and stored in an airtight container, it will last for up to 3-4 days in the fridge.
Please keep in mind that even with the salting process, the cucumbers will release some more liquid over time, but this is perfectly normal. The flavors will be just as bright, if not more flavorful and delicious on the next day!
The versatile and sustainable elements of this dish make it to be the ideal dish for any time of the day – for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or even as a late-night snack.
I hope you enjoy this delicious recipe as it is easily one of my favorite side dishes of all time! Please leave me a comment below or message me on Instagram if you have any questions. Happy cooking!
Other easy Korean recipes you may like:
- Korean Potato Salad (Gamja Salad)
- 5-Minute Silken Tofu
- Korean Marinated Eggs (Mayak Eggs)
- Korean Braised Potatoes (Gamja Jorim)
- Easy Dubu Jorim (Korean Braised Tofu)
Easy Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim)
Ingredients
- 1 (260g) English cucumber or 3 small cucumbers
- 1/4 onion sliced
- 1 green onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
Dressing
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar or white vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp Gochugaru or to taste
- 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
Instructions
- Thinly slice the cucumber to about 1/4 inch thickness. Combine all dressing ingredients in a bowl.
- Add the sliced cucumbers to a large mixing bowl. Add onion, green onion, garlic, and dressing over the cucumbers.
- Toss well with your hands or a pair of tongs until the cucumbers are evenly coated, about 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
♥ Did you make this recipe? Please give it a 5-star rating or leave a comment below to share your experience, or tag @cookerru on Instagram to showcase your creations!
26 comments
Love this! But it was a tad too spicy… would suggest to reduce the amount of gochujang used
Yes! You can definitely adjust the Gochugaru to taste :) Glad you enjoyed it Clara!
I love making this recipe!! Everyone enjoys it!
I’ve tried many cucumber kimchi recipes but this one was by far the best. So simple to make and so much flavor. Thank you for sharing!
I am so thrilled to hear that! Thanks for sharing your experience with us Eva! :)
Made this just now. Sooo delicious, thanks for another fantastic recipe!
My pleasure always!! ♡
Mouthwateringly good, best oi muchim recipe I’ve tried! Perfectly balanced flavors, and so umami-packed!
So happy you enjoyed it J! Thanks so much for sharing ♡
Love walking in the door hungry and mixing this up. Perfect balance. I didn’t add the garlic. And a bit less gochugaru.
My family loves it. Thank you so much!
I paired this with a Korean BBQ pork chop and jasmine rice. The compliments of the spice really tied everything together. Reading other comments, I did only use 3 tsp instead which was plenty for someone with digestive challenges. Will be making it again and again. Thank you!
I love this recipe! I up the sugar and rice vinegar cause that’s just how I like it but even without these changes it’s super tasty!! I make this all the time. I personally love the full tbsp of gochugaru and wouldn’t say it’s too spicy but I also love spicy food. 100/10
I’m currently on a Korean food kick and have tried a few different cucumber salad recipes.
This one is DELICIOUS! It’s so savoury and umami with just the right amount of sweetness. YUMMMM! Thank you for sharing!
Looking forward to trying this, but was wondering if I don’t have gochugaru, what would you recommend for a replacement?? Thanks so much.
Delicious. I love it. I don’t have spring onion right now. But it’s still taste so good.
I miss living in South Korea so so much and this really hit the spot! It tastes exactly like the delicious side dish that would be served with meals. Thank you so much for this recipe! It’s beyond perfect and will be a staple in my fridge from now on!
This was delicious! I didn’t have white onion so I subbed shallots and it was delicious! I also left out the sugar cause I’m not the biggest fan of sweet rhings! Really amazing!
Easy, quick and so flavorful. Gochagaru new to me, now I’m searching more dishes to use it in, like Korean glazed swordfish which is Delicious! It’s not too spicy, but just imparts depth and thickness to glaze. The cucumber dressing in this recipe I double, keep in a jar, and use as I go. Why are recipes still written for 4-8 people? Thankfully the amount of people being served this dish doesn’t really apply. I hope to see more recipes like this!! Thank you!
OUTSTANDING recipe for cucumber salad that tastes as good or better than what is available in K-Town in NYC. I love this so much that I prepare a large bowl of the veggies, but keep the dressing in a jar to dress only the amount of salad to be eaten in one sitting. I didn’t have Gochugaru the first time I made this, so I used a bit of Sriracha sauce and red pepper flakes, but the Korean chili sauce is much better – now available at Trader Joe’s.
Thank you for this recipe!!!
I’m so glad I came across your recipe. It is absolutely delicious! It is one of my favorite Korean side dishes to make.
O.M.G. I’ve finally found THE recipe I was looking for!! I tried some other ones but they never gave the taste I was trying to find again and wanted the right recipe to make it at home!
thank you for sharing ❤️
Thank you for this lovely recipe. Me and my twin sister really appreciate and love Korean cuisine and this cucumber salad goes so well with Yachaejeon.
Greetings from winter wonderland Finland.
While I did not make the recipe, (my friend brought it over for gameday) I will be making it. I got to taste a small
serving and it was Absolutely Delicious…sweet, bit spicy, but I like that ..I will up the spice level a bit when I make it. I think I will also attempt the Chicken Bulgogi.
Thank You Elle,
Sam
Dear Elle!
Thank you so much for this recipe! Me and my twinsister love your Oi Muchim and 5-minute silken tofu recipe. Especially with Oi Muchim, to be honest, we have tried several recipes, but we always come back to your korean cucumber salad! It has perfect flavour combination. It’s summer here in northern Europe, so we make it now from field-grown cucumbers which are fresh and crunchy, with a slightly stronger flavor than greenhouse cucumbers. They are also more aromatic, so to our opinion they fit perfectly with this lovely salad. Greetings from Finland!
This is a keeper! it’s spicy but once you get through that, the coolness of the cucumber comes in! Than you!