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Close up of a bowl of smashed cucumbers mixed with avocado and served over quinoa and topped with roasted chickpeas.

Smashed Cucumber Avocado Salad

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  • Author: Catherine Perez
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 3 servings 1x
  • Category: Salad
  • Method: One Bowl
  • Cuisine: Chinese Inspired
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

This smashed cucumber avocado salad is fresh and flavored with a delicious cilantro lime sauce. A quick and easy to make dinner side.


Ingredients

Scale

Roasted Old Bay Chickpeas

  • 1, 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1 tbsp avocado oil
  • 1 tsp Old Bay Seasoning
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp garlic powder

Cucumber Avocado Salad

  • 6 Persian cucumbers, cut in half lengthwise
  • 1 avocado, cubed
  • 1/3 cup cilantro, stems removed and minced
  • 1 scallion, finely sliced
  • 1 clove garlic, grated
  • Juice and zest of one lime
  • 1 1/2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce
  • 2 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, optional
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
  • Kosher salt

Serving

  • Grain of choice (quinoa, rice, farro, etc.)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 425F. Place the rinsed chickpeas on a clean kitchen towel and pat dry, discarding any chickpea skins that rub off on their own.
  2. Transfer the chickpeas to a parchment lined baking tray then top with the oil, Old Bay seasoning, smoked paprika, garlic powder, and a pinch of salt. Toss the chickpeas to evenly coat then spread out into a single layer on the tray. Place in the oven to bake for 25-30 minutes, tossing them half way through.
  3. Place your halved cucumbers cut side down on a flat cutting board then with the flat side of your knife, smack down along the length of the cucumber until it splits. Slice the cucumbers diagonally into 1/2 inch pieces.
  4. Transfer the cut cucumbers to a strainer propped on top of a bowl. Top the cucumbers with a generous sprinkle of salt and allow to sit and drain for 10-15 minutes.
  5. Discard the excess water at the bottom of the bowl then add the drained cucumbers to it. Top the cucumbers with the avocado, cilantro, scallion, garlic, lime zest and juice, tamari, syrup, sesame oil and seeds, and red pepper flakes. Toss the salad to combine and adjust seasonings to taste.
  6. To serve, add your grain of choice to a serving dish and top with the cucumber avocado salad, then the chickpeas and extra scallions, cilantro and sesame seeds as desired.

Notes

Make it gluten-free. To make this gluten-free, simply swap out your soy sauce. Soy sauce contains wheat, so you can opt for a wheat-free tamari, coconut aminos or Bragg’s liquid aminos.

Fold your avocado into the salad when ready to eat. If you aren’t planning to eat the salad right away, you can always wait to fold in your avocado prior to eating. This will help keep it fresher longer.

Add some heat. I used a small amount of red pepper flakes in this, but I always love to top with extra spicy options like gochugaru, gochujang, sriracha, or chili oil.

Use cucumbers that have tender seeds. The best type of cucumbers to use in this salad are Japanese cucumbers, English cucumbers and Persian cucumbers. They are less watery and stay crunchier than regular cucumbers.