Spicy Cucumber Salad with Pickled Red Onions

Growing up, one of my favorite summer dishes – alongside my dad’s Salt & Vinegar Chicken – was his creamy cucumber salad. This tangy, crunchy, cool treat refreshed us on long, humid summer nights. When the craving hit recently, I asked him for the recipe. He told me he didn’t really use one; he just thinly sliced cucumbers and white onions, mixing them with sour cream, white vinegar to thin it, and salt and pepper. I saw this as a perfect opportunity to develop my own recipe, using his ingredient list as a base. I set out to recreate the salad with my own twist. I’d like to introduce you to Spicy Cucumber Salad with Pickled Red Onions. I’ve made a few notes below, but feel free to skip to the recipe at the bottom! Salting and Draining the Cucumbers: My dad didn’t salt and drain his cucumbers, while Ina Garten salts hers for 4 hours or overnight. I tried one version without draining and wasn’t thrilled with the runny, muted results. Impatient to shorten Ina’s recommended time, I…