cucumber salad with peanut-jalepeno dressing

This salad is loosely based on one in Deborah Madision’s Local Flavors, but she uses roasted peanut oil instead of peanut butter. I love that roasted peanut oil, but given a choice, I love the extra-creamy flavor and texture of peanut butter even more in a dressing. Although this salad has slightly Asian flavors, it tastes great as a side to most things—or as a first course for just about anything you’d like to serve. Wouldn’t this taste great alongside some grilled Alaskan shrimp?

2 large cucumbers
1 bunch scallions
1 jalepeno chile, stemmed, seeded with a spoon, and finely diced
Grated zest and juice of 2 limes
1-2 tablespoons light soy sauce (I like Nama Shoyu—you can get it at Natural Pantry)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/3 cup natural peanut butter (crunchy or creamy)
10 or so mint leaves, chopped finely (optional, but very tasty if you have it)
¼ cup roasted peanuts, chopped (optional, especially if you used crunchy peanut butter)

1. Halve the cucumbers lengthwise, scoop out the seeds with a spoon, and cut into long strips. Or remove long thin strips with a vegetable peeler. Or julienne it on a mandoline slicer into linguine-shaped pieces, scooping out the seeds when you slice down to the middle. (Slicing cucumbers into linguine on a mandoline is very fun, but also dangerous—don’t cut yourself!) Thinly slice the scallions on the diagonal, making them long and thin.

2. Combine the cucumbers and scallions in a bowl.

3. Combine the jalepeno chiles, lime zest, juice, soy sauce, sugar, and peanut butter in another bowl, whisking to make it smooth. You may want to microwave the peanut butter in a separate dish for a minute to make it easier to stir.

4. Toss the vegetables with the dressing, then top with optional mint and peanuts. Serve immediately.