Here’s a good example of how handy it is to have some pickled cucumber stashed in the fridge. It doesn’t take long to make from scratch (see Almost Greek Salad with Pickled Cucumber) but how handy to have it done. This salad on toast became a favourite lockdown lunch; all it requires is tuna, pickled cucumber, crisp lettuce such as Cos and some decent bread, ideally sourdough or something similar. The dressing is mayo based, a spoonful let down with vinaigrette to almost pouring consistency to swipe all the ingredients through. It hardly needs a recipe, but here it is. The tuna I particularly like, by the way, is Ortiz bonito del norte. Pricier than many, but very, very good and the big pieces are like sticks that flake beautifully and generously. The oil it’s packed in shouldn’t be wasted.
Serves 2
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 2 min
¼ cucumber
½ tbsp cider or white wine vinegar
1 Cos lettuce heart
1 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tbsp vinaigrette
75g tuna, drained weight
4 slices sourdough or similarly dense and crusty bread
butter
Use a potato peeler to peel the cucumber, halve lengthways, use a teaspoon to scrape out the seeds and slice across the halves in thin half moons. Spread out on a plate and add the vinegar, tossing a few times so all the slices are wet. Shred the lettuce, rinse and drain and pat dry. Mix mayo and vinaigrette in a bowl, stir in the cucumber with its vinegar, mixing thoroughly. Add lettuce and tuna broken into small shards. Mix again. Toast the bread, butter lavishly and place two slices on two plates. Load with tuna mix and serve. Done.