Cucumber Dill Salad with Dijon Mustard

The menu just said "cucumbers and mustard". When I saw it, I thought to myself, "this description must be missing something, because there's no way that tastes good". The server confirmed that the dish was indeed a cucumber dill salad dressed with nothing but Dijon mustard, but she also assured me that it was delicious. Maybe it was the genuine smile on her face when she said it, or her confidence in the combination's merits, but I ended up ordering it… and she was right.

The part the menu description was missing is that the cucumbers are salted first. This not only seasons them, but also quick-pickles them, giving them a nice crunchy texture. Other than that, they were just slathered in a muted ochre layer of Dijon and topped with some feathery fronds of dill.

The combo tastes like a fresh dill pickle. This makes them a great appetizer salad on their own, or a condiment that goes beautifully with rich dishes like braised meats, or a cheeseboard. I've been so enamored with this dill-and-Dijon mustard combo that I've been using it with everything from blanched broccoli to green beans to baby turnips.

If you're using cucumbers, it works best with a thin-skinned cultivar like Japanese, Lebanese, Persian, or English. Peeling them in alternating strips exposes more flesh, allowing them to salt faster, and creates a nice pattern on each piece of cucumber.