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Korean-Style Spicy Pickled Cucumber and Carrot is a crisp, refreshing side dish with a sweet, tangy, and mildly spicy kick. I first saw it demonstrated by Chef Kai Son on YouTube, tried it myself, and was hooked straight away. It’s become one of my regular summer staples, I make a batch whenever the weather heats up and keep it in the fridge to go with almost every meal. Sometimes I make it with just carrot, or swap in red cabbage instead, both work just as well and add plenty of fibre. This version is adapted from Chef Kai Son’s original recipe, tweaked slightly to suit my own taste, and I hope you love it as much as I do.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Quick to make: ready to eat straight away, though it’s even better after a few hours in the fridge.
Sweet, tangy, and mildly spicy: gochugaru and garlic give it a proper kick without being overwhelming.
A great summer staple: keeps well in the fridge and works as a fresh, crunchy side with almost any meal.
Easy to customise: swap in red cabbage, or make it with just carrot, both work just as well.

Tips for Making This Recipe

Remove the Watery Centre: the seedy centre of the cucumber releases more water, so scoop it out before slicing for a better texture.
Hand-Slice the Carrot: slicing the carrot by hand rather than grating it gives a nicer, crunchier texture.
Blanch to Remove the Raw Taste (Optional): if you’d prefer to soften the raw edge, blanch the cucumber and carrot for 1 minute, then cool before slicing.

How to Store This Pickled Cucumber and Carrot

This is a quick, unfermented pickle made with raw garlic and sesame oil, so it’s best kept refrigerated and eaten within about 3 days. Always use a clean, dry utensil each time you serve some, since anything wet or previously used can introduce bacteria and shorten how long it keeps.

Final Thoughts

Korean-Style Spicy Pickled Cucumber and Carrot is one of those recipes worth keeping on repeat all summer. A quick toss in the marinade, a few hours in the fridge, and you’ve got a crunchy, spicy, endlessly useful side dish ready to go.

Korean-Style Spicy Pickled Cucumber and Carrot

Wanting

A quick Korean pickle with a spicy, garlicky kick, ready in minutes but even better after a few hours in the fridge.

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Course Appetizer, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine Korean

Ingredients

1 carrot about 200g
1 whole cucumber about 180g

FOR THE MARINADE

2 tbsp gochugaru Koreanchilli powder
2 tbsp gochujang Korean chilli paste
2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
2 tbsp maple syrup or honey or sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp white sesame seeds

Instructions

Prepare the vegetables: Trim the ends off the cucumber and cut into long strips. The seedy centre tends to release more water, so you can remove it for a better texture. Grate or slice the carrot into strips, hand-slicing gives a better texture than grating.

If you'd like to remove the raw taste from the cucumber and carrot, blanch them in boiling water for 1 minute first. Leave to cool before slicing into strips.

Mix: Toss the sliced cucumber and carrot with the marinade until well coated.
Serve: Enjoy right away, or for even better flavour, let it sit in the fridge for a few hours.

Video

Notes

You can salt the cucumber for a few minutes beforehand to draw out excess moisture and help it take on more flavour, but the marinade sauce itself is already so flavourful that this step can be skipped.

Keyword pickle, salad