When it’s blazing hot outside, this cucumber tomato salad is exactly what I want to eat. This recipe is crisp and refreshing, light yet satisfying.
This salad features fresh cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, not-too-much red onion, fresh herbs and optional feta cheese. Once tossed in Greek dressing, this basic combination is further proof that summertime produce doesn’t need much help to taste spectacular.
Bring this tomato cucumber salad recipe to your next get-together, or serve it at home as a side salad. It keeps well for several days in the refrigerator.
I love leftovers with sandwiches—this salad would be perfect with my Caprese Sandwich, Vegetarian “BLT” Sandwich or Green Goddess Hummus Sandwich. Hope you’ll make it soon!
Cucumber Tomato Salad Ingredients
Cucumber
But of course! Use one English cucumber or two Persian cucumbers for this salad. I prefer these varieties to standard garden cucumbers because their skin isn’t bitter and they are extra crisp. That said, you can use a regular cucumber if that’s what you have—taste it first, and peel off half or all of the skin if it tastes bitter.
Tomatoes
Cherry tomatoes are perfect for this salad because they’re small, flavorful, and more fleshy than watery. Cut them in half if they’re small-to-medium in size, and quarter any larger tomatoes.
Red Onion
Red onion can be overpowering, so we’ll tame its intensity by soaking it in ice water before using. Simply slice the onion and place it in a bowl of ice water while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Soaking also makes the onion extra crisp and nice.
Optional Feta Cheese
You’ll love this salad either way. Feta offers little bursts of creamy, salty flavor. Without it, this salad tastes extra light and refreshing, like a spa salad!
Fresh Basil or Dill
This salad is not complete without fresh herbs. Use a combination of the two or all basil, whichever you prefer.
Greek Dressing
Finally, we’ll toss this salad with my go-to Greek salad dressing. It’s bold and zippy, so you can get by with less. Sometimes salads of this nature are swimming in oil, but not this one.
You can either cut the salad dressing ingredients in half for the perfect amount for this salad, or better yet, make the full batch to enjoy on green salads throughout the week.
Watch How to Make Cumber Tomato Salad
More Summer Salads to Enjoy
These refreshing salads feature summer’s finest tomatoes and cucumbers:
- Easy Tomato Salad
- Fattoush Salad
- Gaby’s Cucumber Salad
- Heirloom Caprese Salad with Burrata
- Layered Panzanella
Please let me know how your salad turns out in the comments. I love hearing from you.
Cucumber Tomato Salad with Greek Dressing
- Author:
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes (plus 10 minutes resting time)
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: By hand
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
- Diet: Gluten Free
This cucumber tomato salad recipe is light, refreshing and perfect for summer! Featuring fresh cucumber, cherry tomatoes, leafy herbs, optional feta and Greek dressing. Recipe yields 6 side servings.
Ingredients
- ½ medium red onion, cut into short strips
- 1 English cucumber or 2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced into rounds
- 1 pint (2 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered if large
- ⅓ cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)
- 2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or additional basil
- ⅓ cup Greek Salad Dressing*
Instructions
- Place the onion in a small bowl of ice water and let it soak for at least 5 minutes to tame the flavor.
- In the meantime, combine the cucumber, cherry tomatoes, optional feta, and herbs in a medium serving bowl. Once the onions are drained, add them to the bowl. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss to combine.
- For best flavor, let the salad rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. This salad keeps well in the refrigerator, covered, for up to 4 days.
Notes
*Dressing note: You’ll need about half of the full salad dressing recipe. Either divide the ingredients in half to make just what you need, or better yet, make the full batch for future salads! It will keep in the fridge for about 1 week.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Omit the feta cheese.
Vegetable enthusiast. Dog lover. I'm probably making a big mess in my Kansas City kitchen right now. 
Kathryn Wilkinson
Add green bell pepper, Greek olives, and capers and you’re talking about a little slice of Heaven!!!
Thanks for all your great work–such an inspiration.
Kate
Thanks so much, Kathryn! :)
JJ
YES! Peppers, kalimata olives and pepperoncinis! I will definitely add these but this looks delectable either way!!!! Thank you!
★★★★★
Padmini Mirchandani
This was epic!
I didn’t measure ingredients for the dressing, just added (I cook too :))
But the combination was fab fab fab!
Thanks!
★★★★★
Kate
I’m so glad! Thank you, Padmini!
Chris W.
This recipe is perfect timing as our tomatoes are growing like crazy. We have all heirloom varieties except 2 kinds of cherry tomatoes. And we have a friend who has been giving us the best english cucumbers! The perfect match-up, huh?
Kate
Love it!! Our cherry tomatoes are going strong now and we’re just starting to get some bigger tomatoes. Our pup keeps stealing our cucumbers from the garden, though! Hope you love this recipe.
Tammy
We loved this! We have an abundance of tomatoes, basil, and cucumbers from the garden right now, so I threw this together for yesterday’s lunch. It was a big hit and goes into our keeper file. Thanks for such an easy and delicious recipe.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m so glad to hear it! Thank you for letting me know, Tammy.
Elizabeth @ Bowl of Delicious
Omg this looks amazing! So refreshing!
★★★★★
Kate
Thank you for your review, Elizabeth!
Kim C
I made this and liked it very much. It wasn’t all lettuce-y or oil soaked or drippy. I debated leaving out the feta cheese, as that’s not a cheese I particularly like. But wow, when I added it, there was the salt punch and the something else – like a big oomph of fillingness – that the salad needed. Great recipe.
★★★★★
Kate
I’m glad you added it! I appreciate your review, Kim.
Chris W.
Made this last night for dinner as a side – delicious!
★★★★★
Kate
I’m glad you loved it!
Dawn
This was exactly what I was looking for to go with the Cod I was cooking last night. I added 2 ingredients: a yellow pepper and a handful of Spring Greens. I skipped the feta just because I thought the fish would do just fine without it. I also used Cookie and Kate’s Greek Salad Dressing.
It was yummy and a lovely summer meal. This will be my go-to Greek Salad recipe.
★★★★★
Katie Royce
So good! I had always thought that I didn’t like cherry tomatoes, but this recipe is one that has made me change my opinion. I added chickpeas to mine and ate it as a full meal.
kjo
I have every size cuke from 4 varieties in our garden plus it’s the end of summer. How many cups of cukes roughly?
Kate
Hi! I don’t have exact cups, but roughly 2 two cups I believe.