A Tested Recipe
Chinese Smashed Cucumber Salad (Liangban Huanggua).
Smash cucumbers, toss with garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, and sesame oil. The smashing is the whole point — it creates rough edges that soak up the dressing. Ready in 20 minutes.
By jackTao · Dec 18, 2025
Hands in the dough?
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The Mise en Place
Ingredients
Adjust portions
Main Ingredients
- 200 g cucumber
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
Seasonings
- 11.5 ml vinegar
- 7.5 ml soy sauce
- 0.6 g salt
- 5 ml oyster sauce
- 7 ml sesame oil
The Method
Instructions
- Step 1
- Step 2
- Step 3
- Step 4
Prepare the Cucumbers
- Wash the cucumbers. If you prefer a cleaner texture, peel them.
- Smash the cucumbers with the flat side of a knife, then chop into roughly 3cm pieces.
- Put the cucumber pieces into a bowl.
- 01
Prepare the Cucumbers
- Wash the cucumbers. If you prefer a cleaner texture, peel them.
- Smash the cucumbers with the flat side of a knife, then chop into roughly 3cm pieces.
- Put the cucumber pieces into a bowl.
- 02
Prepare the Garlic
- Smash the garlic and mince it finely.
- 03
Season and Marinate
- Add vinegar, soy sauce, salt, oyster sauce, and minced garlic to the bowl.
- Mix well and let it marinate for .
- 04
Finish
- Add sesame oil and mix evenly.
- Serve immediately.
Cook's Notes
Notes
Sometimes the ends of cucumbers can taste bitter—trim a bit off and taste-check if needed.
Note Nº 01
This salad is best eaten right after mixing. You can also refrigerate it (do not freeze) and serve it chilled.
Note Nº 02
If refrigerating, cover tightly with plastic wrap and finish within 8 hours—over-marinating will make the cucumbers lose their crunch.
Note Nº 03
For better texture, peeling the cucumber is recommended.
Note Nº 04
Scaling reference from the original recipe: cucumber = 200g × servings; vinegar = 7.5ml + (4ml × servings); soy sauce = 5ml + (2.5ml × servings); salt = 0.4g + (0.2g × servings); sesame oil = 5ml + (2ml × servings); garlic = 3 cloves × servings.
Note Nº 05
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