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Light and refreshing cucumber salad recipe – perfect for a warm summer day. It’s a great side for just about anything you put on the grill – chicken, steak, and fish.
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This easy cucumber salad recipe is light and refreshing for a warm summer day. It’s a perfect side for just about anything you put on the grill. I like to serve it alongside chicken, fish, or steak.
It’s a popular salad in Germany where I used to enjoy it while I lived there during my college days. They call it Gurkensalat – some variations are with a vinegar base and some are with a creamy base. Both are delicious but this is my favorite.
It’s very easy to make and it takes only about 10-15 minutes to put together. For more easy salad recipes, be sure to check out my favorite Caesar salad and Tomato salad recipes.
Why you will love this easy cucumber salad recipe
- Easy side dish: This quick & easy recipe is the perfect side salad for any meat, fish, or poultry dish. Great to bring to summertime picnics.
- Healthy: This nutritious salad is not only wholesome but also full of flavor.
- Crowd-pleaser: Everyone will love this simple cucumber salad.
Ingredients
- English cucumbers. I prefer to use long English cucumbers for this salad, but you could also use any type of cucumber.
- White wine vinegar: You can substitute it with champagne or sherry vinegar, or even with apple cider vinegar.
- Sweeter (honey, maple syrup, or sugar). You only need just a little bit of sweetener to balance out the acidity of the vinegar. You can use any type of sweetener, or you can skip it if you want.
- Fresh herbs – chopped dill is a classic addition to this salad and parsley will work too.
How To Make Cucumber Salad
- Mix cucumber and onions in a large bowl.
- Mix white wine vinegar, water, salt, pepper, and sweetener in a small jar. Pour over the cucumbers and onions, and toss to coat.
- Sprinkle some fresh chopped dill and toss the salad.
Cucumber Salad Dressing
If you are wondering what dressing goes with this salad, look no further. This simple dressing is light and delicious. It’s made with white wine vinegar, water, a tablespoon of sweetener, fresh chopped dill, salt, and black pepper.
Quick and Easy Salad
Even though this salad with cucumbers is very quick and easy, it doesn’t lack flavor. The simple dressing brings all the delicious and refreshing flavor of the marinated cucumbers. The cucumbers are crunchy and cool. Even though it tastes great with just vinegar and salt, adding onions & dill elevates this simple salad to something more interesting.
This German cucumber salad is also healthy because it doesn’t use any mayo or sour cream. And if you are looking for a keto salad, you could substitute the tablespoon of sugar with another sweetener or omit it. I used English cucumbers, but you could use regular pickling cucumbers. If I use the pickling cucumbers, I would use 4 to substitute the 2 long English cucumbers.
What to serve it with
This quick salad is great as a side dish served with almost anything. Try it with some of these easy dinner ideas.
- Honey Chipotle Chicken
- Maple Mustard Salmond
- Grilled Shrimp Skewers
- Baked Chicken Breast
- Honey Sriracha Salmon
- Chicken Francese
Storing & Making Ahead
Also, you can serve the cucumber onion salad right away or store it in the fridge before serving. In general, the salad can be refrigerated for about 2-3 days.
You can make the salad 3 – 4 hours in advance. Slice the cucumbers and the red onion and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. Mix the dressing and store it in a separate jar in the fridge. Toss the salad with the dressing just before serving.
If you are planning to refrigerate it overnight, season the sliced cucumbers with salt and place them in a colander sitting in a bowl in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Allow the salt to draw out the excess moisture. Once the cucumbers have drained, discard the liquid and continue with the recipe.
TIPS FROM NELI’S KITCHEN
Tips and Recipe Notes
- Use English long cucumbers for this salad – they have thin skin and peeling is not required. You can also use Persian cucumbers which are smaller in diameter.
- Use fresh dill for the most delicious flavor.
- You can use a mandoline to slice the cucumber and red onion into even and thin slices. Of course, if you prefer you can use a knife.
- This recipe is best served immediately since the cucumber becomes watery over time. But you can prepare it 3-4 hours ahead of time and refrigerate it.
- If you are planning to refrigerate it overnight, season the sliced cucumbers with salt and place them in a colander sitting in a bowl in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Allow the salt to draw out the excess moisture. Once the cucumbers have drained, discard the liquid and continue with the recipe.
More Easy Salads
This cucumber dill salad is one of my favorite go-to salads, it’s tasty, simple, and uses only 5 main ingredients. Some other easy salads are:
Cucumber Salad
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INGREDIENTS
- 2 long English cucumbers, sliced
- 1 medium onion, sliced
- ¼ cup white wine vinegar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 Tablespoon sugar , (or coconut sugar or sweetener of choice)
- ⅓ cup fresh dill, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
INSTRUCTIONS
- Mix cucumber and onions in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
- Mix white wine vinegar, water, sugar in a small bowl. Pour over the cucumbers and onions, and toss to coat.
- Sprinkle some fresh chopped dill and toss salad.
TIPS & NOTES
- Use English cucumbers for this salad – they have thin skin and peeling is not required. You can also use Persian cucumbers which are smaller in diameter.
- Use fresh dill for the most delicious flavor.
- You can use a mandoline to slice the cucumber and red onion into even and thin slices. Of course, if you prefer you can use a knife.
- This recipe is best served immediately since the cucumber becomes watery over time. But you can prepare it 3-4 hours ahead of time and refrigerate it.
- If you are planning to refrigerate it overnight, season the sliced cucumbers with salt and place them in a colander sitting in a bowl in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Allow the salt to draw out the excess moisture. Once the cucumbers have drained, discard the liquid and continue with the recipe.
NUTRITION
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I subbed radish & celery for onions, as I’m not a fan… Still delicious!