Mediterranean Cucumber Salad

Why Make this Recipe

Top Reasons You'll Love this Recipe

• Fast
• Healthy
• Doesn't go soggy

This Mediterranean cucumber and tomato salad comes together in 10 minutes or less! The flavors are bright, fresh, with a zesty lemon, basil, and dill dressing that is so tasty! It makes a great side dish for any meal, it's the perfect salad to take to a barbecue or potluck.

Since this salad is made with no lettuce, it stays fresh and crunchy in the refrigerator for days! Making it ideal for to meal prep for yourself a healthy side for the week.

It tastes great by itself but is also the perfect addition to a wrap, rice bowl, shawarma, or roasted chickpea gyros. Try serving it alongside hummus and pita bread for a perfect appetizer.

Ingredient Notes

• Cucumbers. English cucumbers are my preference, sometimes called hot house cucumbers. If you choose to use a cucumber with a thicker skin, remove the skin before adding to the salad. Be sure to remove the seeds to prevent the salad from getting too watery.
• Tomatoes. I like to use cherry or grape tomatoes. You can use whatever tomatoes you have.
• Red Onion. A little red onion goes a long way.
• Feta. I prefer chunk feta, but crumbled feta works fine too.
• Lemons. The zest and juice of the lemons are used for the dressing.
• Olive Oil. Use good quality olive oil for the dressing.
• Salt and Pepper. Salt and pepper flavor the dressing.
• Basil. Fresh basil adds a sweet, fresh, and herby flavor.
• Dill. Use fresh dill. Dried dill can be substituted (see notes) if necessary.

How to Make this Recipe

1. Make Dressing. Mix together with all the dressing ingredients. Set aside.
2. Slice Cucumber. Cut cucumbers in half lengthwise and remove seeds. (No need to peel if using thin-skinned English cucumbers.) Cut into approximately ¼ inch cubes.

3. Prepare ingredients. Slice tomatoes in half, then finely dice the red onion, then add all salad ingredients to a bowl (make sure it's large enough to be able to toss the salad).
4. Toss. Toss cucumber and tomato salad with dressing and serve.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Expert Tips

• If the red onion is particularly strong, soak it in some ice cold water. This will mellow out the flavor.
• Fresh herbs are going to give the best flavor in this salad, however if you need to substitute fresh herbs for dried, you can substitute 1 teaspoon of dried herbs for 1 tablespoon of fresh.

Variations of this Tomato and Cucumber Salad

This Mediterranean tomato and cucumber salad is easy to adjust and make your own. Feel free to swap out the herbs in the dressing, add some protein or grains, add some jalapenos for a little heat, or swap out the cheese. Below are some of our suggested swaps.

• Fresh herbs-try switching up the herbs in the dressing, other good additions are parsley, oregano, mint, or cilantro.
• Add protein-some of our favorites are grilled chicken, chickpeas, or white beans.
• Add grains-to add a little more heft to this salad try adding some grains, like couscous, quinoa, bulgur wheat, or farro. Depending on how much you add, you may need to adjust the amount of dressing made.
• Other add-ins-some of our favorites things to add in are jalapenos (not traditional, but I love the spice), olives (kalamata or black), artichoke hearts, or hearts of palm.
• Use shallot-instead of red onion try using shallot, it has a similar flavor to red onion but with a hint of garlic to it.
• Swap the acid-instead of lemon juice try using red wine vinegar.
• Use a different cheese-try fresh chunks of mozzarella instead of feta.

How to Store this Recipe

This Mediterranean cucumber salad can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. If you're not planning serving the salad immediately, store the dressing in the refrigerator separately and dress the salad right before serving. This will help prevent it from getting too soggy. There will be lots of liquid at the bottom of the salad bowl, this is normal, just give the salad a quick toss to re-coat everything before eating.

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