I’m a firm believer in the “Hair of the Dog” cure for a hangover. You need to replenish your body with salt, sugar, water and more beer. There’s a meme that claims the human body is 90% water, so we are basically just cucumbers with anxiety. This is untrue, the human body is around 60% water so maybe we drink beer to try to reach the higher consciousness of an anxious cucumber but we never quite get there.
I found this cucumber beer quite extraordinary the first time I tried it. I kept imagining I was having a Hendricks gin and tonic rather than beer (which is probably a good way to approach drinking sour beers if you haven’t tried them before). The Berliner Weisse is a cloudy, white, sour beer style from (you guessed it) Northern Germany. It is typically 3-4% alcohol. It was the most popular style at one point in the 19th Century Berlin, and was commonly flavoured with fruit syrups. I think this cucumber version is probably better, in fact right now I think it is the best beer in the world.
To cure your hangover, and improve your life in general, try this pairing:
#12 8 Wired Cucumber Hippy Berliner Weisse + Chinese Smashed Cucumbers
Ingredients:
- 2 large cucumbers
- 1 tsp salt, plus more for seasoning
- 1 tsp sugar, plus more for seasoning
- 1 1/2 Tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
- red chilli flakes
- coriander leaves, to garnish (optional)
- you’ll probably want 2 cans of this amazing beer
Method:
- Wash the cucumbers and cut them in half lengthways
- Place a tea towel under your chopping board, then place the cucumbers flesh side down and use a knife to gently press or smash the cucumbers to release the seeds and some juice
- Cut them into rough pieces around 2cm long/wide
- Place the cucumber pieces in a strainer over a large bowl. Sprinkle in some sugar and salt, then mix this through and leave them to drain. Place a saucer on top to press them down, and put them in the fridge for around 30 mins.
- Mix the sugar and salt into the rice vinegar. Then add the sesame oil and soy sauce.
- Take the drained cucumbers from the fridge and put them in a mixing bowl, then mix through the olive oil. Add half the garlic, half the vinegar mix, and a pinch of chilli flakes. Taste, then keep seasoning until you find a balance you like. I used the full amount of seasoning but I think it’s wise to add half at a time. You may like to add more salt. Garnish with coriander leaves.
Eat and rejuvenate!
