Summer Vegetables: Cucumber and Zucchini

We've been getting tons of cucumber, zucchini and red onions in our farm box lately. I love cucumber, but am less fond of zucchini. Both these recipes worked well enough to make again, MZ loved the zucchini. I prepped them the night before and served with microwave "baked" yams and pan-grilled teriyaki pork tenderloin.

Stir-fried Zucchini with Red Onion and Black Soy

3 large-ish zucchini cut in 1/4" half-moons

1/2 red onion, feather cut

1/4 t salt

1 clover garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 t minced ginger

1 T soy sauce

1 T chicken broth

1 t black soy

1/2 t sesame oil

Heat a wok to hot hot. Swirl in a scant 2 t canola oil, add onion, sprinkle with salt and stir and fry until the onion softens a bit. Add garlic and ginger, stir and fry 30 seconds and move mixture to upper edges of wok. Add zucchini, spread out across bottom of wok and allow to char around the edges. Stir and allow the other side to char. Add soy sauces and broth, stir and cook to desired doneness. Drizzle with sesame oil and serve.

"Korean" Cucumber Salad

This recipe is riffed from a salad from Growing Up in a Korean Kitchen by Hi Soo Shin Hepinstall. We need to work MZ up to the spice level she recommends... I used a combination of Persian, lemon and standard cucumbers because that's what I had on hand. I seeded the lemon and standard cucumbers with spoon before slicing. No seeding required for the Persian cucumber. Serves 4-6 as a side dish

3 lbs. cucumbers, peeled, halved and thinly sliced

1.5 T sea or kosher salt

1 pinch red pepper flakes

1/2 cup rice vinegar

1 T vermouth

2 T sugar

2 T fresh lemon juice

1 clove garlic, pressed

1/2 t freshly ground black pepper

1/2 red onion, feather cut

1 T sesame oil

1 T toasted sesame seeds

1 T slivered almonds

Place the sliced cucumbers in a strainer and sprinkle with the salt. Toss to cover. Let sit for 15 minutes. Meanwhile. combine ingredients through black pepper, whisking till sugar dissolves. Add red onion and toss to combine.

Wrap cucumbers in a dish towel and squeeze out liquid. Place in a bowl with dressing ingredients, stir to combine, drizzle with sesame oil and refrigerate one hour or overnight. Toss with sesame seeds and almond slivers and serve.