Mango Cucumber Salad
With its light and tropical flavour, this mango cucumber salad is a great addition to any BBQ. The cooling nature of this mango cucumber salad is a great match to a piece of spicy jerk chicken, cilantro lime chicken, or anything off the BBQ, so try it for your next summer gathering for a crowd-pleasing side dish.
Although often done as salsa, I think the combination of mango and cucumber makes a great summer salad. A few weeks ago I saw a mango cucumber salad in a magazine while I was on a flight, and the idea has stuck with me ever since. Not only did I think the recipe idea was clever and unexpected, but I thought it was a really fresh and fun side dish for a summer BBQ, so I decided to give my own recipe a go! As it turns out, the flavours and texture contrast between the mango and the cucumber are perfectly balanced making it highly addictive. The best part about this dish is that it is really easy to prepare, you just need the ingredients and a good knife.
This mango and cucumber salad recipe calls for a scotch bonnet, and if you have never used one before, I need to warn you that they are very hot! Scotch bonnet, also known as Caribbean red peppers, is one of the hottest peppers and, for reference, is 12 to 140 times hotter than your standard jalapeño. Fortunately, the preparation method of soaking the sliced scotch bonnet in lime juice and sea salt helps to tame its heat, so it’s not as fiery as you might think, plus the mango and cucumber make the salad quite cooling in the end. However, if you are one to stick on the mild side, simply use a small amount of pepper or opt for a red chilli instead.

Mango Cucumber Salad
Made with ripe mango and crunchy cucumber, this mango cucumber salad is the perfect cooling side dish for any grilled meat or summer BBQ.
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Prep Time: 45 minutes
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Total Time: 45 minutes
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Yield: 4 servings 1x
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Category: Salad
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Method: By Hand
Ingredients
- 1 English cucumber, lightly peeled, seeds removed and cut into wedges
- 2 mangos, ripe but firm, peeled, quartered and cut into 1/4″ wedges
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 scotch bonnet, or spicy pepper of your choice, seed removed and diced
- 1 lime, juiced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the shallot, garlic, chilli, lime juice and sea salt, and stir to combine.
- Cut the mango and cucumber, add to the bowl, and toss again to ensure everything is well coated.
- Cover and transfer to the fridge for 30-45 minutes to allow the flavours come together. The sea salt and lime juice will help to act as a dressing and the shallot, cucumber and papaya will soften as the salad rests.
- To serve, add chopped cilantro to the bowl, toss to combine and season with sea salt and pepper to taste.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 133 calories
- Sugar: 26 grams
- Fat: 1 gram
- Carbohydrates: 34 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Protein: 2 grams
Delicious! A repeat recipe, for sure. Thank you!
Great, happy you liked it! Thanks for sharing 🙂