Cucumber Tomato Salad

Cucumber tomato salad is so refreshing! Enjoy this crunchy and easy recipe as a summer side dish or add some protein to it and upgrade it to a quick and healthy main.

It's a simple recipe with eight fresh ingredients and it'll be your best ally during these scorching hot summer days.

This cucumber tomato salad recipe is similar to a Greek salad. If you've ever been to Greece, you would have noticed that they serve tomato, cucumber, and onion salad everywhere.

However, in a classic greek fashion, they add feta cheese to it to give that salty, umami flavor booster that is so good.

You can add feta if you like. Or you can substitute other add-ins for the feta. Try:

• crispy fried tofu
• air-fried tofu
• spicy oven roasted chickpeas
• crispy air-fried chickpeas
• homemade croutons
• canned chickpeas
• kalamata olives
• diced avocado

For the dressing, you can do like the Greeks and Italians and season with extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper, without pre-mixing the ingredients in a vinaigrette.

Or you can use a homemade salad dressing, such as our mustard vinaigrette or Italian dressing. We hope you'll love this salad as much as we do and bring it to the next potluck.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are the star of this salad, and having tasty, meaty tomatoes will make all the difference. That's why the Greeks and the Italians don't drench their tomato cucumber salads in dressings. Because their tomatoes rock!

If you are lucky and have a farmer's market nearby, go there. They'll probably have delicious organic tomatoes on offer during the summer months.

Try to use a mix of different tomato varieties if you can. We love the different colors, textures, and flavors you get by mixing heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, gold tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, and even delicious San Marzano tomatoes.

Get ripe tomatoes but firm to the touch. Make sure they are not overripe. Remember that tomatoes taste best when served at room temperature.

Cucumber

You can use any fresh cucumber variety such as English cucumber, garden cucumber, or Persian cucumber.

Keep the peel on, peel the cucumber in stripes, or remove the peel altogether. We like to keep it on.

Red Onion

Red onion is another essential ingredient. It adds character to this salad with its bold, sharp, and almost spicy taste.

Make sure your onion is fresh. It should be very firm to the touch. Also, if the raw onion is a little much for you, try soaking it in cold water for ten minutes before adding it to the salad.

Olive Oil

Good quality extra virgin olive oil is best in salads. It's heart-healthy, has a high amount of antioxidants, and gives the salad a rich, fruity flavor with earthy notes.

If you don't have good quality extra virgin olive oil, use a salad dressing instead. For example, a mustard dressing or an Italian vinaigrette is perfect for this salad.

Vinegar

Vinegar adds acidity, which lifts the taste of the veggies, and add freshness, which is essential in a summer salad.

You can use balsamic vinegar for a rounder and sweeter taste. Or opt for red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or freshly squeezed lemon juice for a sharper taste.

Salt & Pepper

Add sea salt or kosher salt to bring out the flavor of the tomatoes. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper to add a fragrant aroma. Also, pepper and tomatoes are perfect together.

Fresh Herbs

You have several options when it comes to herbs. We recommend fresh basil, fresh flat-leaf parsley, or fresh dill.

Step 1: Chop the Veggies

Cut the onion in half, peel it, then cut it into thin slices. Separate the onion layers by pinching them with your fingers.

Optional: if you like a milder onion flavor, soak the onion in a bowl with cold water for 10 minutes.

Wash, dry, and chop the tomatoes into bite-size chunks.

If you use small round tomatoes, cut them in half. If you use larger round tomatoes, cut them in half, then in wedges. If the wedges are too big, cut each wedge in half. If you use long and narrow tomatoes, cut them in discs or wedges.

Wash, dry, cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, then in half again, and dice it.

You don't have to peel the cucumber, but if you want, you can do so.

To a bowl, add chopped tomatoes and cucumber, thinly sliced onion, and finely chopped parsley (or basil).

Step 2: Add the Dressing

Add extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Mix well, taste, adjust for salt, and serve.

If you'd like a tomato cucumber salad with a bolder flavor, or if your tomatoes aren't the tastiest, make a quick mustard vinaigrette dressing or a simple Italian dressing.

For the mustard dressing: to a small bowl (or in a mason jar), add extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, mustard, maple syrup, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, or grated garlic.

Whisk (or shake) well the dressing ingredients and pour over the cucumber tomato salad. Mix well before serving.

For the Italian dressing: to a small bowl (or in a mason jar), add extra virgin olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, maple syrup, dried oregano, dried basil, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.

Whisk (or shake) well the dressing ingredients and pour over the cucumber tomato salad. Mix well before serving.

Italian Cucumber Salad

You can make a delicious Italian cucumber salad simply by adding a grated carrot and a chopped celery stalk.

The carrot's sweetness and the celery's crunchiness make this cucumber tomato and onion salad even tastier.

Greek Cucumber Salad

Greeks have their salad with feta. Also, they chop the tomatoes and cucumbers into larger pieces and sprinkle everything with a generous amount of oregano.

To make a delicious greek cucumber salad add diced feta or crumbled feta on top of the salad just before serving it; season with extra virgin olive oil, wine vinegar, salt, pepper, and plenty of dried oregano.

Avocado and Cucumber Salad

Add a ripe, diced avocado to our cucumber tomato and onion salad to make it creamy and nutritious.

If you like to give this one a Mexican spin, then dress it with our cilantro lime dressing.

Lettuce and Cucumber Salad

This is another salad that is popular in Italy. It's a simple salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and onion. To make it, add a few leaves of chopped Romaine lettuce to our Italian cucumber salad recipe.

It's crunchy, colorful, and delicious.

Arugula Cucumber Salad

If you love the fresh, mildly spicy, and slightly bitter taste of arugula, try serving our tomato onion cucumber salad onto a bed of arugula—season with some extra olive oil and balsamico.

Crispy tofu and cucumber salad

Want to boost the protein content of this salad to turn it into a main meal but don't feel like adding feta cheese?

Then try adding our delicious pan-fried tofu or crispy air-fried tofu to the salad. Healthy and wholesome plant-based protein combined with fresh veggies is a winner meal.

Suppose you are wondering what goes with cucumber salad. In that case, I'd recommend trying homemade rosemary focaccia, a slice of freshly baked crusty bread, and a creamy, dreamy chickpea hummus to turn this into a light, nutritious, and fulfilling meal.

If you want to serve the salad as a side dish, we can recommend one of our easy vegan dinners. Among those are:

• Pan-fried tofu with mushrooms
• Spaghetti with marinara sauce
• Tofu meatballs with marinara sauce
• Vegan steaks
• Mediterranean-style vegan fish

If you like this tomato-cucumber salad, you might also enjoy our other easy salads:

• Tofu salad: a protein-rich salad with crunchy tofu and a creamy tahini sauce
• Vegan pasta salad: a picnic favorite and meal-prep-friendly lunch idea
• Chickpea salad: an easy recipe perfect for a lazy vegan meal
• Quinoa salad: nutrient-dense and vibrant salad with crunch and color
• Panzanella salad: an Italian classic made with leftover stale bread
• Fennel and orange salad: sweet and crisp, this autumn and winter salad is lovely as a holiday side dish
• Italian salad: simple, quick, and perfect for most main meals.

Or any of these 25 vegan salad favorites with our most loved salads all in one list!