5 from 4 votes

Cucumber Salad

Name: Cucumber Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Ingredients: 5 cups thinly sliced cucumber (see note ); 1 cup thinly sliced red onion; 2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill; ¼ cup white wine vinegar; 1 ½ Tablespoons granulated sugar; ¾ teaspoon table salt; Freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

By Sam MerrittPublished May 21, 2024

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15 Comments

Servings: 6 servings

40 mins

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Cucumber salad is a quick and refreshing summertime side dish. It’s perfect for using up garden cucumbers and takes just 10 minutes to prepare!

Overhead view of a serving bowl of cucumber salad made with dill and red onion.

A Simple Summertime Salad

Cucumber salad is one of those side dishes you can just toss together quickly and pop in the fridge while you prep your main dish. My version is light, refreshing, and perfectly tangy. It uses only a few simple ingredients but is absolutely bursting with flavor!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Perfect for using up an abundance of cucumbers and dill from your summer garden. Grocery store produce works just as well, though!
Pairs nicely with grilled meats, chicken salad sandwiches, or Mediterranean dishes like my Greek chicken orzo.
Best enjoyed 30 minutes to several hours after preparing, but will keep for up to 3 days.
Can handle some thinly sliced radishes or even cherry tomatoes if you want even more produce in your salad!

Ingredients

My cucumber salad recipe uses just five ingredients besides salt and pepper.

Cucumber. Typically I find that I need 2 standard sized cucumbers to get 5 cups. If you’re using cucumbers grown from your garden or the longer English variety, you may only need one!
Onion. Red onion is best, but yellow, white or sweet onion could be substituted. Keep your onions a similar thickness to your cucumbers for a more pleasant bite.
Dill. I recommend using fresh dill for the best flavor. If fresh dill isn’t available to you (or if it’s simply not in season), you can use dried dill in a pinch. Note that you won’t need quite as much dry dill as you do fresh; you will only need a heaping tablespoon.
Vinegar. White wine vinegar is my preference. If you don’t have this, you can use red wine vinegar, rice wine vinegar, or apple cider vinegar in your cucumber salad instead.
Sugar. Just a little bit of sugar balances the vinegar and adds flavor. Don’t be put off by this–I use sugar in my super popular macaroni salad and broccoli salad recipes too, and neither has ever been called “too sweet”!

SAM’S TIP: Like when making my refrigerator pickles, thinner cucumber slices will absorb the dressing better. So slice thin! You can use a sharp knife for this or a mandolin (I linked to the inexpensive and well-loved one that I use in the recipe below).

This is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!

How to Make Cucumber Salad

Overhead view of cucumber salad ingredients in a bowl before adding dressing.

Slice your veggies and dill and toss them together in a large bowl.
Make the dressing by whisking together all dressing ingredients.
Toss the dressing and veggies together until coated.
Cover and chill your cucumber salad for at least 30 minutes before serving.

SAM’S TIP: As the salad sits, more and more water will be drawn out from the cucumbers and you’ll notice it gets pretty liquidy! This is fine, but you could alternatively salt the cucumbers first to draw out their moisture. Here’s a good guide on how to drain cucumbers. Honestly, I never do this because it just doesn’t bother me (or my guests), but it is an option and will give you more concentrated flavor.

Close-up view of cucumber slices and red onion tossed in a dill dressing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to peel my cucumbers?

No, not unless you want to. Since we are slicing the cucumbers so thin, you really don’t notice the peels. I sometimes like to go around and do a few alternating peels just for aesthetics, but it’s completely optional.

How far in advance can I prepare this?

Ideally you should serve this salad shortly after preparing (I generally like to serve it the same day), as the cucumbers can get really wet the longer they sit (see my tip above!). If this doesn’t bother you, feel free to pop your leftovers in the fridge and enjoy them within 2-3 days.

Can I add more veggies?

Yup! Thinly sliced radishes, whole cherry tomatoes or diced Roma tomatoes would work well here.

Salad made with cucumbers, red onion, and dill in a white serving bowl.

If your garden has an abundance of zucchini instead of cucumbers, give my chocolate zucchini cake a try!

Enjoy!

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5 from 4 votes

Cucumber Salad

Cucumber salad is a quick and refreshing side dish. It's perfect for using up garden cucumbers! Just 10 minutes to prepare!

Prep: 10

Cook: 0

Chilling Time: 30

Total: 40

Servings: servings

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Equipment

Ingredients

▢ 5 cups (600 g) thinly sliced cucumber, see note
▢ 1 cup (80 g) thinly sliced red onion
▢ 2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
▢ ¼ cup (60 ml) white wine vinegar
▢ 1 ½ Tablespoons granulated sugar
▢ ¾ teaspoon table salt
▢ Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

Combine cucumbers, onions, and dill in a large mixing bowl and toss ingredients together to evenly combine.
5 cups (600 g) thinly sliced cucumber, 1 cup (80 g) thinly sliced red onion, 2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
In a separate small mixing bowl or measuring cup, vigorously whisk together vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper to create the dressing.
¼ cup (60 ml) white wine vinegar, 1 ½ Tablespoons granulated sugar, ¾ teaspoon table salt, Freshly ground black pepper
Pour dressing evenly over the cucumber mixture and toss everything together until evenly coated.
Cover bowl tightly and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Stir before serving.

Notes

Cucumbers

This is usually 2 standard-sized cucumbers for me. I use the second-thinnest setting on my mandolin to slice the cucumbers. Alternatively, you can use a sharp knife. I like my slices to be slightly thinner than ⅛” (3mm).