Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim 오이무침)
Korean Cucumber Salad – is the only name I could come up with in English. Funny thing is, I also had a hard time with the Korean name too -is it Oi Muchim (오이무침) or is it Oi Saengche (오이생채)? As you can probably guess, “oi” means cucumber. But then the next word comes from different origins…
So, here’s a short Korean language lesson. Did you know that the Korean language vocabulary is made up of two different sets of words? One that originates from the Chinese characters (한자 Hanja) which is called Sino-Korean vocabulary and then another that is “pure” Korean that originates from Korean characters called Hangeul(한글). The great King Sejong created this phonetically based Korean alphabet Hangeul in 1443 because Koreans have their own spoken language but were borrowing Chinese characters to write. “King Sejong explained that the Korean language was fundamentally different from Chinese; using Chinese characters (known as hanja) to write was so difficult for the common people that only privileged aristocrats (yangban, 양반) could read and write fluently. The majority of Koreans were effectively illiterate before the invention of Hangul.”(Wikipedia) I think that’s pretty awesome.. don’t you? 🙂
So, Muchim means to ‘coat/toss in sauce” in pure Korean. Whereas Saengche comes from chinese word 生菜 which means ‘live vegetables’ as opposed to dead=cooked. Haha.. Well, anyway, so my Korean cucumber salad recipe can go by both, oi muchim or oi saengche. I have to let you you know that my recipe is not the common Korean cucumber side dish recipe where it is heavily coated in yangnyeom of chili powder and garlic. Those are really good too but I like my Korean cucumber salad to have a lighter seasoning which allows the refreshing taste of cucumbers to come through.
This Korean cucumber salad or side dish is great as a last minute kind of a side dish since it takes less than 5 minutes to make (depends on how fast you can cut! haha). This cucumber salad or muchim can be a great side dish to a BBQ or for lunch boxes. I actually got the idea to do this post after seeing one a recent post from a blog I follow. She has some really cute ideas for dosirak or lunchboxes so check her out!
Simple Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim) Recipe
Servings: 2 Cooking Time: 5 min Difficulty: EASY
Ingredients are listed in Recipe Card below – and it’s adjustable too!
Step-by-step instructions for Korean Cucumber Salad
- Slice cucumbers into thin slices. Around 1/8 inch (3 mm).
whole Japanese cucumber 
Cucumber slices for Oi Muchim (Korean cucumber salad or side dish) - Mix soy sauce, vinegar and sugar in a bowl. Pour soy vinegar into the bowl with cucumbers.
- Then, add 1/2 tsp chili powder and sesame seeds. Mix and taste. If you like spicy stuff, add more chili powder. Doing it in this order allows you to taste and control the amount of chili powder based on how spicy you want it.
korean cucumber salad in soy vinegar dressing with chili powder - Add chopped green onions and mix again.
- YOU ARE DONE!! Serve immediately for the most fresh and crunchy cucumber flavor. You can also let it sit for 10-15 minutes for the cucumbers to absorb the dressing.
Korean cucumber salad or Oi Muchim
Cook’s Tips
- You can refrigerate for few days and can be served cold. Just freshen it up with some fresh green onions and sesame seeds.
- My Korean cucumber salad or Oi Muchim recipe is more like a salad than the common, heavier seasoned, more spicy, and garlicky Oi Muchim that you see on most online recipes. The heavier seasoned Korean cucumber salad or Oi Muchim is good also but I kind of like this one because you can really taste the freshness of cucumbers.
If you have tried this Korean Cucumber Salad or any other recipe on my blog then please don’t forget to rate the recipe (top right of the recipe card below) and leave me a comment to let me know how you like it! I’d LOVE to hear from you! 😍
You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, PINTEREST and INSTAGRAM or join my FACEBOOK GROUP to see other Korean recipes to ask and share everything about Korean food with others just like you!
Korean Cucumber Salad (Oi Muchim 오이무침)
Ingredients
- 1 cucumber (Japanese, English, Persian, Pickling are all good) – about 1 1/2 cup sliced for 1 cucumber
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce (Jin Ganjang)
- 2 Tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp Korean red chili powder
- 1/4 tsp sesame seeds
- 2 green onions , chopped
Instructions
- Slice cucumbers into thin slices. Around 1/8 inch (3 mm).
- Mix soy sauce, vinegar and sugar in a bowl. Pour soy vinegar into the bowl with cucumbers.
- Then, add 1/2 tsp chili powder and sesame seeds. Mix and taste. Add more chili powder if you want. Doing it in this order allows you to taste and control the amount of chili powder based on how spicy you want it.
- Add chopped green onions and mix again.
- YOU ARE DONE!! Serve immediately for the most fresh and crunchy cucumber flavor. You can also let it sit for 10-15 minutes for the cucumbers to absorb the dressing before serving.
Tips & Notes:
My Korean cucumber salad or Oi Muchim recipe is more like a salad than the common, heavier seasoned, more spicy, and garlicky Oi Muchim that you see on most online recipes. The heavier seasoned Korean cucumber salad or Oi Muchim stands up well to heavier Korean BBQs whereas mine is more appropriate for lighter meals as sides to fried rice, fish, noodles, etc.
Nutrition Information:
If you don’t want or like soy sauce, you can make my Spicy Asian Cucumber Salad without Soy Sauce recipe – one of my followers told me she loves it so much that she makes it even with non-Korean meals.
Enjoy~ ❤
JinJoo
I made this yesterday to have with hot honey beef bowls. Three mini snacking cucumbers added up to 1.5 cups. I wish I had doubled the recipe – it’s so good! I wasn’t able to find Korean chili powder at the regular grocery store, and didn’t have time to run to the Asian market, so I used togarashi. I will definitely be making this weekly!
Using Togarashi was smart!! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed it and thank you so much for your detailed feedback. Appreciate it!
I am new to Korean cooking as I have always loved it, I knew was time to learn in my old age. So forgive me for asking, but what is the difference between an American type cucumber and a Japanese cucumber please.
Sorry for the late response. American cucumbers are much bigger with the seeds being hard to chew and inedible which means you have to remove them. The flesh is also less crunchy than Korean cucumbers.
Great simple recipe. I didnt have chilli flakes but used gochujang instead. Just another sassy way to do cucumber. I’m sure I’ll make this tomorrow again. And then the day after. Repeat. Thank you JJ, so delightful!
Thank you so much! And sure gochujang will work too – it will not be as bright flavored but still delicious.
love all Korean salad recipes and love to making them
Quick Korean Cucumbers
Thank you so much!!