How Gordon Ramsay Keeps Cucumbers Crunchy In Salad

Cucumbers are tasty, refreshing, and nutritious. But let them sit too long in a salad, and you'll end up the a soggy mess. The high water content means cucumbers are perfect for a refreshing summer snack, but it also makes cucumber recipes difficult to meal prep or make in advance.

One popular method involves coating them with salt. The salt draws out water, so after a few minutes, you simply wash off the salt and pat the veggies dry. But the method leaves even the most well-washed cucumbers slightly salty, which isn't always the vibe.

Gordon Ramsay has advice. In a video posted to his YouTube channel, the superstar chef explains how he keeps cucumbers crisp. While demonstrating a picnic-ready prawn-and-cucumber salad to his young daughter, Tilly, he reveals his secret: Removing the seeds.

Cucumber seeds — and the surrounding pulp — contain a lot of moisture. Getting rid of those seeds helps prevent soggy salads, but it sounds tedious and time-consuming. Luckily, Ramsay's method is quick and easy: He slices the cucumber in half lengthwise, then uses a spoon to scoop out the seeds.

As he peels and preps the cucumber, Ramsay explains each step to his daughter. His gentile demeanor is the exact opposite of his infamous onscreen persona: Ramsay admits that his kids bring out his soft side. In 2023, he told PEOPLE that he's the family "softie" since his wife, Tana, a former schoolteacher, is "super fierce."

"Why do you peel it? Can you not eat the skin on it?" Tilly asks. "You can eat the skin," her dad explains, "but I want this salad to taste light and fresh." He continues, "Now, you get your spoon... let's see what happens." Holding a cucumber half in one hand, he uses the bowl of the spoon to scrape the inside lengthwise. The drippy, seedy pulp falls into the sink below. As Gordon explains, now that the seeds have been removed, the salad won't get soft and will stay nice and crunchy.

The hack isn't Gordon Ramsay's only picnic tip, though. "The ultimate picnic keeps it simple with dishes that all work brilliantly well together," he tells viewers. "Make sure you've got a stunning selection and a great balance of tastes and textures, but above all, make sure it's fun." Whether or not you're a fan of Ramsay's divisive shows and brash style — or his questionable English Breakfast pizzas — that's solid advice.