Cucumber Mint Cooler
I was astonished when I was eating a sandwich at Mokoloco, which I can pretty confidently say makes the best sandwiches in the world. Okay, perhaps that’s a bit of hyperbole, but every sandwich I’ve had there has been spectacular. From the Cuban sandwich made with pulled pork, ham, pickled vegetables, spicy mustard, and griddled on house-made bread, to a Katsu Meatball “burger” served with anchovy mayonnaise on a toasted brioche bun, it’s always a tough decision to decide which to have. The menu changes daily so you never really know what’s going to be on offer, but lately they’ve been doing an excellent Fattoush salad, the best I’ve ever had, which I guess I should be glad is a seasonal thing because I’d be in there every day they’re open, all year round.
The restaurant is owned by Moko Hirayama and Omar Koreitem, although calling Mokoloco a restaurant is a bit of a misnomer. (The couple owns the nearby Mokonuts, which became so popular that they created Mokloco sandwich bar to offer more casual fare.) It’s a sandwich bar in the best sense of the word, with the friendly staff making sandwiches and salads to order, handing them off to customers who either get them to go, or to enjoy perched on a stool in the sparse, modern space.
At Mocoloco, Moko makes this as a “base” which she keeps refrigerated and adds cold water to when it’s time to serve. We did a video of her making it here, in case you want to see her in action.
She uses an equal amount of water to cucumber base, but if you’d like to keep this Cucumber Mint Cooler ready-to-pour in the refrigerator, or to serve it by the pitcher, measure out how much base you have then add an equal amount of water to it.
Cucumber Mint Cooler
- 1 large English or seedless cucumber, unpeeled, (see headnote)
- 3/4 cup (8g) loosely packed fresh mint leaves
- 6 to 8 tablespoons (75-100g) sugar, preferably granulated fine natural cane sugar
- 2 medium limes, preferably unsprayed
- pinch of salt
- Fresh mint, lime, and/or cucumber, for garnish
- Cut the cucumber into cubes. Put them in a blender, preferably a high-powered one, along with the mint and the sugar. Zest the limes right into the blender then add the juice of the limes to the blender along with a pinch of salt.
- Cover the blender and blend at high speed until the mixture is completely pureed. It'll take a little longer than you think, so don't be afraid to really blitz the ingredients.
- If you plan to serve the Cucumber Lime Cooler by the carafe or small pitcher, measure the amount of the "base" (it should be around 1 cup/250ml) then add an equivalent amount of cold water to it and blend them together. Chill thoroughly, or serve immediately with ice. Garnish with mint, lime and/or cucumber.
