Greek Cucumber Salad

5 from 2 votes

A crisp Greek Cucumber Salad with lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, olives, and feta in a simple oregano vinaigrette. Ready in 15 minutes.

Prep Time15

Total Time15

Course: Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine: Greek, Mediterranean

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian

Servings: people

Calories: 266kcal

Author: Ayla Clulee

Ingredients

For the vinaigrette

1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar (or white wine vinegar/apple cider vinegar)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon dried oregano
pinch of sugar
pinch of salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Salad

½ iceberg lettuce or roman lettuce (washed and sliced)
10 cherry tomatoes (cut in halves)
1 small cucumber (cut in 2 cm dices or sliced ½ cm thickness)
½ red onion (sliced)
1 red bell pepper (cut in 2 cm dices)
5 oz feta cheese (150 grams)
10 pitted olives
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped mint

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

For the vinaigrette, in a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar, and oregano.
Slowly add the olive oil while still whisking until it forms a thick creamy sauce.
In a large bowl or a plate, place the lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, bell pepper, half of the feta cheese, pitted olives, and herbs.
Drizzle the vinaigrette on the vegetables and lightly toss using 2 wooden spoons or your fingers just to combine.
Sprinkle the rest of the feta cubes on top before serving.

Notes

Storage: once dressed, keep leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 day. Undressed chopped vegetables keep for up to 2 days in separate containers, with a folded piece of paper towel in each to absorb moisture. Do not freeze this salad, the cucumber, tomato and lettuce all turn to mush.
Make ahead: the dressing keeps in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to a week. Olive oil solidifies when cold, so take it out around 10 minutes before you need it and shake it hard. Peppers, onion and lettuce can be prepped a day ahead. Leave the tomatoes and cucumber until closer to serving.
To stop it going watery: salt the cucumber slices and leave them in a colander for 20 minutes, then rinse and pat dry. Dry the lettuce thoroughly. Dress the salad at the table rather than in advance.
Feta: buy a block sitting in brine rather than a tub of ready-crumbled feta, which goes dry and loses its tang. Real Greek feta is made from sheep's milk with no more than 30% goat's milk. Keep the block in its brine until you cube it, and add it after tossing so it does not break apart.
Red onion: slice it as thinly as you can. If raw onion is too sharp, scatter the slices with a pinch of salt and leave them 5 minutes before adding them to the bowl.
Oregano: use dried Greek oregano rather than ground powder, and crumble it between your palms as it falls into the dressing to release the oils. Dried thyme works just as well here, so use whichever you have open.
Dressing: whisk the mustard, vinegar and seasoning together first, then add the olive oil in a slow stream. The mustard is what stops it splitting.
Substitutions: white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar in place of red wine vinegar. Grilled halloumi or a good vegan feta in place of feta. Green bell pepper in place of red for a sharper, more traditional flavor. Extra cucumber in place of the lettuce.
Dietary: vegetarian as written, and naturally gluten free and low in carbs. For a dairy free version use vegan feta, or leave the cheese out and add extra olives and a few capers.
Variations: top with grilled chicken, shrimp, canned tuna or drained chickpeas to turn it into a meal. Stir through cooked orzo, quinoa or leftover rice for a lunchbox version. Add capers for a sharp, briny edge.
Serve at room temperature, never fridge cold. Take it out around 15 minutes before serving so the tomatoes and the olive oil taste of something.
Toss gently with two spoons or your hands. Stirring hard bruises the tomatoes and they start weeping straight away.
Scaling up: multiply the vegetables but hold back on the dressing. Start with about one and a half times the dressing for a double batch, toss, then add more only if it looks dry.
Do not throw away the juices left in the bottom of the bowl. Mopping them up with bread is called papara in Greece, and it is the best part.

Nutrition