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PREPARE AHEAD:
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1. With a rotary peeler or small, sharp knife, peel the cucumbers lengthwise but leave occasional ½-inch-widegreen strips to add color to the finished dish.
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2. Rub the cucumbers with 2 tablespoons of salt and set them aside in a bowl to marinate for 15 minutes. Then hold them under cold running water and wash them free of salt.
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3. Pat them dry with paper towels. Trim the ends and, with a teaspoon or melon scoop, remove the pulp and seeds from the center of the cucumbers. The resulting tunnel in each cucumber should be about 1inch in diameter.
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4. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a small pan and drop in the watercress or parsley. Cook for 15 seconds, or only long enough to wilt the leaves. Then drain and run cold water over them.
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TO ASSEMBLE:
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1. To measure correctly how much stuffing each cucumber will hold, place 1 cucumber at a time on a cutting board and lay half the crab meat in a straight line alongside it.
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2. Press the flakes of crab meat together with your fingers to make them adhere. Arrange half the watercress or parsley down the length of the crab meat and half the pickled ginger in a long strip beside it.
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3. Slit the cucumber lengthwise along one side and, holding it open with your fingers, use tongs or chopsticks (or your hands) to insert the filling into the opening. Press the cucumber gently but firmly to seal it.
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TO SERVE:
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1. Carefully slice the cucumbers into ½-inch-thickrounds, arrange them on individual serving dishes, and pour a little of the sambai-zu dipping sauce into each dish.
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2. Serve the "kani kyuri ikomi" at room temperature as a first course, as part of a Japanese meal or as accompaniments to cocktails.
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