This cucumber salad is the perfect addition to any summer meal. It’s fresh and crisp, sweet and tangy, and it comes together in under 30 minutes! 

Easy cucumber salad in a bowl.
Photo: Gayle McLeod

Why You’ll Love This Cucumber Salad

This cucumber salad always finds a spot on my summer menu. It’s easy to prepare, uses the simplest ingredients, and is filled with fresh flavor. In other words, it’s one of those summer salads I can quickly toss together, and it pairs especially well with BBQ meats. Pulled pork and this salad? Summer meal perfection! But beyond that irresistible combo, here’s why you’ll love this cucumber salad recipe:

  • It’s simple and budget-friendly. All you need are cucumbers, onions, fresh herbs, and a few pantry staples for the tangy-sweet dressing.
  • It’s light and healthy. With fresh greens, herbs, and vinegar, it supports digestion and helps stimulate the body’s natural enzyme production. I consider this a bonus when you’re serving it up alongside harder-to-digest, meaty dishes. 

Cucumber Salad Ingredients

Ingredients for cucumber salad.
  • Cucumbers: I recommend English cucumbers as they’re larger, sweeter, have thinner skin, and no seeds. But you can certainly use regular cucumbers as well.
  • Red Onion and Scallions: I love using a combination of red and green onions in this salad. They add extra texture and a pop of color to the dish!
  • Dill: Fresh dill really makes this salad feel “farmer’s market fresh.”
  • Vinegar and Honey: Either champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar works beautifully. And a little honey helps to balance out the vinegar and salt. 

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

How To Make The Best Cucumber Salad

Step one: Place the sliced cucumbers in a colander and sprinkle a little salt over them to help pull the water and moisture out. Cucumbers are moisture-rich, which makes them a great cooling vegetable, but you also don’t want a soggy salad!

Sliced cucumbers in a colander with salt.

Step two: Once your cucumbers have been mixed with the salt for a bit, you should notice some liquid dripping out of the bottom of your colander. Then, wash and drain the cucumbers. This step is key to preventing an overly salty salad.

Rinsing cucumber slices in a colander.

Step three: Add the sliced ingredients to a large mixing bowl and stir the dressing together in a separate small bowl. Pour the dressing on top of the salad and toss it all together. I also like to add some cracked black pepper on top!

Cucumber salad ingredients in a bowl.

Common Questions

How do I make a creamy cucumber salad?

Just add ½ cup of sour cream or yogurt into the mix!

How long can I store cucumber salad in the fridge?

This will stay fresh in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, meaning it can also be made ahead of time. That makes it perfect for summer party prep, like the 4th of July! Just keep in mind that the salad will become a bit watery over time. 

What can I serve cucumber salad with?

You can pair this with almost any meal. But during the summer, it’s always a hit with staple BBQ foods and grilling mains such as grilled chicken, grilled lamb chops, BBQ chicken, grilled skirt steak, or grilled shrimp.

Cucumber salad recipe.

More Summer Salad Recipes

If you try this cucumber salad recipe, let me know how it turns out in the comments below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration and exclusive content, join my free newsletter here.

Cucumber salad recipe for the best summer salad.

Easy Cucumber Salad

Author: Lisa Bryan
5 from 43 votes
Read 106 Comments
Serves 4 servings
Prep Time 20 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
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Description

This cucumber salad recipe is light, crisp, and the perfect refreshing summer salad or BBQ side dish to pair with grilled meats, fish, and more. Watch the video below to see how I make this in my kitchen!

Video

Equipment

Ingredients 
 

  • 2 large English cucumbers, thinly sliced
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • ½ red onion, thinly sliced
  • 2 green onions, thinly sliced
  • 3 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
  • 1 ½ tablespoons champagne vinegar, or white wine vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons honey
  • freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions 

  • Toss cucumbers with salt. Add the sliced cucumber to a colander and toss with the salt. 
    Prepping cucumber slices in a colander.
  • Wash and drain the cucumbers. Set the colander in your sink or on top of a plate, as the salt will pull liquid from the cucumbers. Let this sit for 20 minutes, then rinse the cucumber with cold water.
    Rinsed cucumber slices in a colander.
  • Add the salad ingredients to a bowl. Add the drained cucumber to a salad bowl along with the red onion, green onion and fresh dill. 
    Ingredients for cucumber salad in a bowl.
  • Make the dressing. Stir the vinegar and honey together in a separate small bowl, then pour on top of the salad.
    Dressing for cucumber salad.
  • Garnish with black pepper and additional fresh dill leaves, and serve.
    How to make a cucumber salad.

Lisa’s Tips

  • Storage tip: This will stay fresh in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, which means it can also be made ahead of time. That makes it perfect for summer party prep, like the 4th of July! Just keep in mind that the salad will become a bit watery over time. 
  • I use this mandoline for slicing up the cucumbers fast and easy!

Nutrition

Calories: 37kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.03g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 1749mg | Potassium: 247mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 191IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 31mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @downshiftology or tag #downshiftology!

Recipe originally posted May 2017, but updated to include new photos and information for your benefit!

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About the author

Lisa Bryan

Lisa is a bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, and YouTuber (with over 2.5 million subscribers) living in sunny Southern California. She started Downshiftology in 2014, and is passionate about making healthy food with fresh, simple and seasonal ingredients.

5 from 43 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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106 Comments

  1. So easy and it tastes like an upgrade from the cucumber onion summer salad we grew up on! I could not find champagne vinegar, so thank you Lisa for providing the appropriate substitute!
    I couldn’t find fresh dill (living overseas on a military base), so went lighter using dill weed.

    This was so tasty, and the entire bowl was devoured by 4 people in one sitting!
    Will definitely be making this again!5 stars

    1. Thrilled to hear you’re loving this cucumber salad with ingredients you had on hand, Amber!

  2. Tastiest, easiest cucumber salad ever! So refreshing on a hot summer day and the dill made it even better.5 stars