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½ pound cucumber, preferably thin skinned, like Kirby, English, or Japanese cucumber

Salt if necessary

¼ cup minced shallot, scallion, or red onion

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar or other light vinegar

1 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon sesame oil

¼ teaspoon cayenne, or to taste

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (optional)

1. Rinse the seaweed once and soak it in at least ten times its volume of water.

2. Wash and dice the cucumber; do not peel unless necessary. (You can salt it if you like; see the preceding recipe.) When the seaweed is tender, 5 minutes later, drain and gently squeeze the mixture to remove excess water. Pick through the seaweed to sort out any hard bits (there may be none) and chop or cut up (you can use scissors, which you may find easier) if the pieces are large. Combine the cucumber and seaweed mixture in a bowl.

3. Toss with the remaining ingredients except the sesame seeds; taste and add salt or other seasonings as necessary and serve garnished with the sesame seeds if you like.

TOMATO SALAD WITH BASIL

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

TIME: 10 MINUTES

SO FEW INGREDIENTS and so much flavor—as long as the ingredients are of high quality! Omit the basil if you can’t find any, but where there are good tomatoes there is probably good basil. Add slices of mozzarella to make this more substantial.

4 medium tomatoes, perfectly ripe

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

A handful of fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped

Extra virgin olive oil

1. Core the tomatoes (cut a cone-shaped wedge out of the stem end) and cut them into slices about ¼ inch thick.

2. Lay the tomatoes on a platter or 4 individual plates. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and basil, drizzle with olive oil, and serve.

WATERMELON, THAI STYLE

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

TIME: 10 MINUTES

A FREQUENTLY SEEN snack in Bangkok and elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

Four 1-inch-thick wedges of watermelon

Salt

Finely ground dried red chile

Lime wedges

Put the watermelon on plates and pass the remaining ingredients, allowing guests to season the watermelon to taste.

ASIAN CHICKEN SALAD WITH GREENS

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

TIME: 30 TO 40 MINUTES

THIS SALAD FEATURES grilled chicken; a superflavorful dressing based on soy sauce, peanut or sesame butter, and spices; and cucumber for crunch. Make extra dressing and you can serve the chicken on top of a bed of salad greens.

Boneless chicken thighs are preferable to breasts, because their flavor and texture are superior, they remain moist during grilling, and they brown perfectly.

1½ pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs or breasts

¼ cup soy sauce

3 tablespoons peanut butter or tahini (sesame paste)

2 teaspoons sesame oil

2 small garlic cloves, peeled

A few drops of hot sauce, like Tabasco

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or other mild vinegar

1 cucumber

6 cups salad greens

½ cup minced fresh cilantro

1. Start a grill or preheat the broiler. Cut the chicken meat into ½- to 1-inch chunks and thread it onto skewers (if you’re broiling, you can forget the skewers and simply use a roasting pan). Put the skewers on a plate and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce.

2. In a blender, combine the remaining soy sauce with the peanut butter, sesame oil, garlic, hot sauce, salt and pepper to taste, sugar, and vinegar. Add ⅓ cup of warm water and process until the mixture is smooth and creamy. (You can add as much as you like; garlic, vinegar, and sesame oil also can be added to taste.) Put the dressing in the refrigerator to cool.

3. Grill or broil the chicken, turning once or twice. Total cooking time will be 6 to 8 minutes for breasts, 10 to 12 minutes for thighs. Meanwhile, peel the cucumber (if it is waxed), slice it in half the long way, and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Cut it into ½-inch dice and combine in a bowl with the dressing. When the chicken is done, let it rest and cool on a cutting board for a few minutes, then toss it with a tablespoon or two of the dressing and cucumber.

4. Toss the