This Cucumber Melon Salad with a Yuzu Dressing is exploding with fresh, sweet and tangy flavors. It’s a delightful and refreshing first course or light lunch.
Remember the Sugar Kiss melon that I fell in love with? Ah . . . the love affair continues: Sugar Kiss melons just melt in your mouth and are right up there with desserts in the sweetness department!
Well, once I had the Sugar Kiss, I had to try the Honey Kiss and the Golden Kiss, right? All of these melons come from Savor Fresh Farms, and let me just tell you these folks do not disappoint! Both of these melons were a touch less sweet than the Sugar Kiss, but still wonderful and delicious! A true treat!
The Honey Kiss is so delicious in this Cucumber Melon Salad.
I chose he Honey Kiss melon for this recipe because it’s slightly crisp flesh holds the flavors of the Yuzu Dressing so well. And the heat of the jalapeño is balanced perfectly with the sweetness of the melon.
As a starter for dinner, a meal at lunch — any which way you serve it up, it’ll be well received.
I love creating recipes like this Cucumber Melon Salad with these sweet treasures, but simply sliced on a platter is great, too.
What is the “Yuzu” in Yuzu Dressing?
Yuzu is a citrus fruit and plant from East Asia. The fruit looks like a small grapefruit with slightly uneven skin. They can can be either yellow or green depending on the degree of ripeness. They’re very aromatic and have a sweet n’ sour flavor, with overtones of Mandarin orange.
I love serving this as a side with grilled steak or chicken at summer barbecues, and I also love it as a first course or light lunch.
Enjoy this refreshing summer Cucumber Melon Salad and the Yuzu dressing — you can whip it up in only twenty minutes!
This Cucumber Melon Salad with a Yuzu Dressing is exploding with fresh, sweet and tangy flavors. It's a delightful and refreshing first course or light lunch.
- 1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper, seeds removed, super finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons Yuzu juice
- 2 tablespoons Mirin
- 1 large cucumber (see instruction no. 3)
- 1/2 of a large Honey Kiss Melon
- about 1/3 cup red onion, thinly sliced
- sprinkling of sea salt
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For the dressing: Simply combine all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve.
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For the salad: Cut the melon in half, remove the seeds, and slice it into fairly thick wedges. Use a paring knife to remove the skin and then use a vegetable peeler to make very thin slices from each wedge. (You'll likely end up with a thicker slice that you can no longer make slices with -- just eat it!)
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Cut a sliver off one side of the cucumber to make a flat edge. From this flat edge, use the vegetable peeler to create thin slices again.
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In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the onion with the melon and cucumber slices. Pour the dressing on and toss it lightly. Add a bit of sea salt to each plate as you serve. This salad is best served chilled and within at least 15 minutes of adding the dressing.
Mirin is a sweetened rice wine. Both Mirin and Yuzu can be found is most Japanese markets.
amee says
July 13, 2011 at 4:04 pmHow do you post so many recipes so often??? 🙂 I will have to get acquainted with Yuzu b/c I love grapefruit.
valentina says
July 14, 2011 at 5:50 amYuzu juice is delicious! I try to post 3X/wk – cook and photograph mostly on weekends and write late night when the kiddos are sleeping. 😉
Lana says
July 15, 2011 at 5:29 amI tried yuzu recently for the first time, and fell in love with it. But, I love citrus:)
I am really amazed by this salad, the combination of flavors and contrasts – it has to taste good!
And just like Amee i want to know how you do it! I try to do everything on my two days off, but I have a hard time posting more often than twice a week (and usually once every 4-5 days).
Have a great weekend!
Andrea says
May 9, 2015 at 2:25 pmCan you share alternatives that are not spicy? Like the cucumber melon recipe? I am really excited to try but I have a medical condition that makes it impossible to get near spicy foods and spicy peppers etc.
valentina says
May 9, 2015 at 11:23 pmHi Andrea, For this recipe you would simply leave out the jalapeño peppers. The Yuzu a bit tangy/sour and the Mirin balances it out with its sweetness. Enjoy! 🙂