No-Cook Crisp Asian Quick Pickled Cucumbers with Ginger and Garlic

You'll love our Quick Asian Pickled Cucumbers recipe, a delightful blend of flavors and textures. Using thin-skinned cucumbers as the crisp canvas, these quick and easy Asian pickle slices are seasoned with a harmonious combination of salt, rice vinegar, lite soy sauce, sesame oil, agave syrup, minced ginger, garlic, and a touch of red pepper flakes. The result is a zesty, sweet, and tangy profile that enhances the cucumbers' natural freshness. Enjoy these pickles on sandwiches, plant-based bowls, as a side dish, or simply as a satisfying snack, adding a burst of Asian-inspired goodness to every bite.

Prep time: PT30M

Total time: PT60M

Rating

5 stars (11 reviews)

Keywords

Asian Pickeled Cucumbers

Ingredients

12 ounces thin-skinned cucumbers (see notes)
2 Tablespoons salt
1 cup rice vinegar
2 Tablespoons lite soy sauce
2 Tablespoons sesame oil
1½ Tablespoons agave syrup
1 Tablespoon ginger paste (or use 1-inch fresh ginger)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
½-1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
½-1 cup cold water
optional sesame seeds, more red pepper flakes, sliced shallots, green onions

Cuisine

American
Asian Fusion

Steps

Wash the cucumbers and cut off the ends. Do not peel the cucumbers. You can run a fork down the sides for an interesting look. See the blog post for a photo.
Slice the cucumbers thinly using a knife, mandoline slicer, or vegetable peeler. The slices should be no more than one-quarter inch thick.
Place the cucumber slices in a bowl and sprinkle them with salt. Toss to evenly distribute the salt. Let them sit for about 15-20 minutes to release excess moisture.
While the cucumbers are resting, prepare the pickling marinade. In a separate bowl, mix rice vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, agave, ginger paste, and minced garlic. Add the red pepper flakes if you will be using them.
After the cucumbers have released moisture, do NOT rinse the salt off, but lift them out of the bowl with a slotted spoon and place the cucumbers into the vinegar mixture. You will be discarding 3-4 tablespoons of salty water from the cucumbers.
After adding the cucumbers to the marinade, toss to coat them evenly. Place the prepared cucumbers in a container with a lid. Pour 1/2-1 cup cold water over the top just to cover the cucumbers. Give it a little stir. Allow the cucumbers to marinate in the mixture for at least 30 minutes to an hour, or refrigerate for a few hours to intensify the flavors.
Top with optional sliced red chili, sesame seeds, and shallots or chopped green onions for an extra kick and visual appeal.

Nutitrion

Serving Size: 0.5 cups
Calories: 60 kcal
Carbohydrates: 5 g
Protein: 1 g
Fat: 4 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Sodium: 1891 mg
Sugar: 3 g
Unsaturated Fat: 2 g

Reviews

Larraine on 2025-09-23 (5 stars):
My gaden cucumbers were ready so I wanted to find something especially good to do with them. Oh my goodness! This was definitely 5 star!!!!!! I love this recipe!!! The sesame oil really makes them smooth. Easy, healthy , pretty and delicious!
Cp on 2025-07-19 (5 stars):
How long would these keep in the fridge once made?
Yvonne on 2025-07-05 (5 stars):
Nice flavors but I used half the sesame oil and salt. I used 1/2 tsp. of ground pepper flakes and it was spicy enough for all types of eaters. I used a small coffee grinder that I only use for spices to grind a fine texture. It's great to have the heat and the seeds disappear. Put it in a salt shaker to add to pizza, coconut shrimp and wherever you want to control the amount of spice with an even application. I like to lay the cucumber slices on paper towels and add more layers of paper towels of cucumbers on top. Works well to absorb excess juices in a short time. I used about 3 paper towels and am happy to avoid the salt. Family loved the pickle cucumber flavors!
Chef Michael ..aspiring "Master" on 2025-06-24 (5 stars):
My Mom made a version of this recipe! It was always a staple at summer cookouts!! I subbed some things; added others i thought appropriate; veggie base for a richer flavor, EVOO! ..no sesame oil in pantry, Damn!, large green tomatoes ..from the garden, white onion chunks, & Rosemary.., sugar instead of Agave.., pepper corns, and a little Chinese hot mustard! What an explosion of flavors!! Thanks for sharing!
Kay on 2025-06-09 (5 stars):
This was delicious! I ate a whole bowl of it for dinner. I didn’t have agave, so I substituted it with honey. I also got busy while making this, so my baby cucumbers had been soaking in salt for quite a bit. I had to squeeze out the salted water from the cucumber, but maybe the extra soaking is probably what made it more flavorful! Don’t skip the grated ginger folks!
Dax on 2025-05-29 (5 stars):
Thanks Cindy, exactly what I was looking for and it came out great!