SPICY THAI CUCUMBER RELISH (about two cups)

This can accompany virtually any Thai dish. Try it with Tiger’s Cry (filets mignon), chicken cutlets with Thai herbs, or Thai grilled jumbo shrimp.

2 cucumbers

1 small red onion, diced

5 tablespoons white vinegar

4 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste

1. Wash the cucumbers well to remove the waxy deposit, cut them in half lengthwise and slice them thin.

2. In a bowl, mix all the remaining ingredients and toss the cucumber slices with the mixture. Will keep 4 days, covered and refrigerated.

from Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby, who claim to have gotten it from a street vendor in downtown Bangkok, printed in The Thrill of the Grill