Adapted from Bon Appètit | Shot by Riley Ziesig
I thought this dish was too beautiful to pass up. I have a coconut allergy, so I substituted the milk with swipes of labneh. I also fried up my own garlic chips for some crunch on top.
To make garlic chips, cut 5 to 6 garlic cloves into thin slices; the long way. Fill a small frying pan with enough vegetable oil to cover the bottom. Place the garlic in the oil and bring it up to a boil. Once you see the edges of the garlic frying with tiny bubbles, bring it down to a simmer for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and let the pan sit off heat for 20 minutes. If they are not chip-like, you cut them too thick and you should simmer again, careful not to burn them. They should be a golden straw color and stiff. Drain on a paper towel.
For the pickles, it is a funny concept to toss fresh cucumbers in another kind of pickle. Jars of lime "mixed pickle" can be found in Indian grocery stores. Luckily SFK left some at my house. Basically, you cut up a large hot house cucumber, squish it with your hands a bit and toss it in the chopped spicy pickle. I bet it jostled the plant cell walls, releasing juice and allowing the pickle to permeate quickly.
When you plate the cucumbers with the labneh, herbs and crunchy garlic; it is both spicy, cooling and juicy.
A similar dish can be found at Han Dynasty in the East Village. Instead of lime pickle, they use a sticky, garlic-y sauce with fresh cucumbers. It is very addicting.
Did you try it? Tag @Randwiches in an Instagram photo, I'd love to see it!