I was introduced to a new vegetable today, Dragon’s Egg Cucumber, a Croatian variety. It was a gift from Augusta’s boyfriend Julian’s family, and came with a couple of English cucumbers, so I combined the two with a Lebanese cucumber for a triple cuke salad with some dill, mint, white balsamic and olive oil. Really nice, with surprisingly distinct flavours. Lovely end-of-summer salad. The remaining Dragon’s Egg Cucumber is pictured alongside.
Ingredients
1 Dragons Egg Cucumber, thinly sliced
1 small English Cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small Lebanese Cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tsp fresh dill, chopped
1 tsp fresh mint, finely chopped
1 tbsp whaite balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
Method
1. On a large platter, arrange a layer of the Dragons Egg Cucumber slices to cover the whole base of the dish.
2. On top of that, arrange a layer of the English Cucumber slices, leaving an outer edge of about 2cm of the Dragons Egg Cucumber exposed.
3. On top of that, arrange a layer of the Lebanese Cucumber slices, leaving an outer edge of about 2cm of the English Cucumber exposed.
4. Drizzle the balsamic and the oil over the cucumber.
5. Top with mint and dill.
6. Serve by using a spatula to lift out a “slice” with all three layers on to a serving plate.
Notes
The skin of the Dragons Egg Cucumber is thin and soft so there’s no need to peel.
I don’t actually have a large platter so I used two smaller flat bowsl.
I didn’t find the need to add any seasoning – this approach emphasises the differetn cucumber flavours and freshness of the dish.