This Refreshing Cucumber Salad is crisp and fresh and perfect for those hot summer days. You're going to love this flavorful cold dish!
Is there anything more refreshing than Cucumber Salad? This moist, crisp, and cool vegetable makes some amazing dishes and this Refreshing Cucumber Salad recipe is no different. Sliced into sticks, each cucumber piece is coated in herbs and tasty ingredients like lemon and garlic, giving every bite a mouth-watering burst of flavor.
This vegan cucumber dish is great because you can make it ahead and the flavors marinate well while it's waiting to be served. It's also a good complement to other dishes, which makes this Refreshing Cucumber Salad the perfect addition to any barbecue, 4th of July Food, or summer get-together where you need to bring a side. Putting together this cold dish is quick and easy, and it uses simple ingredients you probably already have on hand. Let's talk about what goes into it.
Main Ingredients
- Cucumbers. Any type of cucumber will work, but the regular slicing cucumbers you find in most grocery stores work best. You may peel the cucumbers if you prefer, or leave the skin on like I did.
- Dill. Fresh dill is an important ingredient, so I suggest that you don't skip it. Try to use fresh herbs because the dried ones just don't have the same intense flavor.
- Garlic. You can use pre-minced garlic or use garlic cloves that you mince yourself, whichever is more convenient.
- Lemon Juice. Lime juice can be used instead if you have no lemon juice on hand.
- Olive Oil. Or any other kind of oil you have. I also LOVE unrefined sunflower oil in this salad.
- Salt and Pepper.
How to Make this Cucumber Salad
1. Using a mandolin, slice the cucumbers into sticks. You can also cut the cucumbers with a knife into small sticks if you don't have a mandolin.
2. Place the cucumber sticks into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the fresh dill, minced garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper on top and mix well. Serve.
Can I Make this Ahead of Time?
Yes, you can make this refreshing Cucumber Salad ahead of time. To save time before you serve this dish, put the salad together and store it in the refrigerator one day in advance. Or you can just slice the cucumbers and place them in a ziplock bag until you are ready to mix everything together.
Just keep in mind that the cucumbers will release some moisture as they sit with the other ingredients, so the dish will have a slightly wetter appearance over time. But the cucumbers will remain crisp and the flavors the same until serving.
How to Store Cucumber Salad
The best way to store this salad is by placing it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will remain fresh and crisp for 1-3 days. After that, the cucumbers begin to lose more moisture and become floppier, but the flavor is still good for about a week. If it lasts that long. 🙂
What goes well with this Dish?
This Cucumber Salad is really flavorful, but also works great with other flavors and dishes. Here are some ways you can serve it.
- Grains. Sliced bread tastes great with this side dish, especially if you pile some of the salad on top.
- With meat. If you aren't looking for a vegan or vegetarian option, then you can serve this alongside a protein like steak or chicken. These cool flavors are great with barbecue.
- Tossed with tofu. Dice up some firm tofu and add it to this cucumber salad for a multi-textured and filling main dish.
- As a salad topper. If you normally put cucumbers in your salad, level it up with a few spoonfuls of this on your lettuce.
- On its own. This salad is so yummy, you can just dig in and enjoy it all on its own.
This Refreshing Cucumber Salad is so fresh and bursting with intense flavors. Each bite is cool and crunchy, and I just love eating it in the summer and warmer months. You can make it ahead with a few simple ingredients or just toss it together whenever you want because this recipe is nice and easy. What more can you ask for in such a delicious and tasty dish?
More tasty recipes to try:
Video Tutorial
Refreshing Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs. cucumbers
- ⅓ cup fresh dill, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ½ tsp. sea salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- 1 ½ tbsp. lemon juice
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
Instructions
- Using a mandolin, slice the cucumbers into sticks. You can also cut the cucumbers with a knife into small sticks if you don’t have a mandolin.
- Place the cucumber sticks into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the fresh dill, minced garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper on top and mix well. Serve.
Absolutely delicious!! Saving this to my "favorites" board on Pinterest. Thank you!!!
Thank you so much, Ariel!
I just made this salad for a small party and it was AMAZING! Everyone wanted the recipe. Thank you, Tania! Your recipes never disappoint. Greetings from Georgia!
Yay! Glad to hear this, Carla!
This is delicious. We made this tonight as a side for dinner and thought that it tasted like a pickle salad just using fresh cucumbers. We will definitely make this again. Thanks for your awesome recipe inspirations.
Thank you, Kim!