Cucumber, green onion, lemon and rice salad | Super easy vegan recipe

I’m a terrible cook. Okay, that’s probably the worst possible way to persuade people to follow my recipes. But wait! There are a few dishes I make reasonably well. And these recipes have one thing in common: they’re so easy my cat could make them in his sleep.

This cucumber, green onion and lemon salad is one example of a dish that requires zero cooking skills. You can use it as an accompaniment to a more elaborate meal, use it as your meat-free contribution to a pot luck or simply eat it on its own as a full meal, which is what I do since I’m lazy.

This dish is served cold and offers some respite from the summer heat. I like to stick it in the fridge for an hour or so before eating to really cool it down.

Ingredients (2 servings)

• 1 large cucumber
• 4 green onions (you can substitute with spring onions or scallions)
• 1 shallot (skip this if you intend to also use the bulbs of your green onions)
• 1 lemon
• 1.5 cups of rice
• 0.5 cups of olive oil
• 0.5 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
• Grater

Step 1

Cook the rice on a stove or in a rice cooker.

Step 2

While the rice is cooking, mince the leaves of the green onions. Next, peel and mince the shallot. (You can also choose to substitute the shallot with the white part and bulbs of your green onions, but I prefer to regrow them in water—here’s how.)

Step 3

If the cucumber has seeds that are bitter or you just don’t like eating them, scoop them out with a spoon and discard. Next, cut the cucumber into half-moon shapes.

Step 4

Squeeze the lemon until you have about 1/8 cup of juice.

Step 5

Grate the lemon peel using the cheese grater until you have about 1 teaspoon of lemon rind. (Tip: use a spoon to scrape the rind from behind the grating surface as that’s where a lot of it ends up). Add the rind to the lemon juice.

Step 6

Mix the olive oil with the lemon juice and rind. Add salt and pepper and your salad dressing is done!

Step 7

When the rice is cooked, put it in a colander or sieve and rinse it with cold water.

Step 8

Put the rice in a salad bowl and combine with cucumbers, scallions and shallots. Pour in the salad dressing and toss.

Step 9

You don’t absolutely have to do this, but I like to stick the salad in the fridge for an hour or two to let the sauce soak in nicely.

Tip: If you find the sauce too sour or acidic, reduce the amount of lemon juice and add more olive oil.