Greek Salad
84 Comments
Updated Jun 19, 2023
This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure policy.
Greek Salad is easy to make and bursting with flavor. With only six ingredients — cucumbers, tomatoes, bell pepper, red onion, olives, and feta — it’s one of the best healthy salad recipes.
This classic Greek salad highlights the beauty of the Mediterranean diet, where a few simple, fresh ingredients in their most natural form turn into a dazzling salad. Pair it with my homemade Greek salad dressing and you’re good to go!
What I love most about this Greek salad recipe is that it’s veggie-packed and contains no leafy greens. That means all of the ingredients can be prepped ahead of time (as I showed in my summer meal prep), then tossed together when you’re ready to serve. So needless to say, it’s the perfect summer salad recipe that’s always on repeat.
Greek Salad Ingredients
Since a traditional Greek salad is only made up of 6 simple ingredients – quality matters! For vegetables, pick the freshest ones out of the bunch. For cheese and olives, keep an eye out for quality brands you love.
- Cucumbers: Make sure to use English cucumbers versus field cucumbers. The thinner skin is preferable with no peeling needed.
- Tomatoes: In Greece, you’ll most often find large tomatoes used, but cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes are much easier to dice.
- Bell Pepper: Typically, a Greek salad uses green bell peppers. But you can switch it up and use yellow or red peppers.
- Onion: Red onions are the ideal choice for that pop of red, and softer onion flavor.
- Olives: Grab your favorite jar of kalamata olives. You can keep them whole in your salad, or slice them in half for even, bite-sized pieces.
- Feta Cheese: When it comes to cheeses, I always buy a fresh block. It’s better quality and guarantees a fresher taste and texture. But for convenience, you can also use crumbled feta.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
This Homemade Greek Salad Dressing is Best
You’ll often find Grecian locals simply drizzling olive oil and red wine vinegar straight on top of the salad, with a sprinkle of dried oregano. Honestly, I also like to use this method for a quick and easy “dressing”.
But, I will say my homemade Greek salad dressing really gives this salad some oomph. All you need to do is whisk together a simple combination of olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, minced garlic, Dijon mustard, dried oregano, salt, and pepper. Plus, you can make it a few days in advance and store it in your fridge for easy access.
How to Make a Greek Salad
Once you’ve got all the ingredients, it’s as simple as slicing and dicing them to about the same size (large chunks are preferred over fine dice). Then, drizzle your salad with the dressing and give it a gentle toss. That’s all there is to it!
Add Protein to this Greek Salad
I love to amp up this salad into a full meal by adding slices of herb baked chicken breast on top (like in my Greek chicken salad). But here are a few other ways to elevate this fresh, Mediterranean recipe:
- Add chicken for a heartier meal. Use my Greek lemon chicken marinade to create a delicious baked chicken breast or grilled chicken! This would also pair beautifully with my Greek chicken kabobs or chicken souvlaki.
- Serve with Mediterranean appetizers. Complete the table with a big bowl of hummus, baba ganoush, and a platter of falafels with a tahini sauce.
- Add chickpeas for a filling vegetarian salad. Instead of adding chicken to this salad, give it a protein boost with fresh or roasted chickpeas (like my Mediterranean chickpea salad) and diced avocado.
Storage Tips
It’s easy to devour this salad, especially on a summer day. But any leftovers will keep for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.
Make-Ahead Tip: Since there are no leafy greens involved, you don’t have to worry about anything wilting! Everything can be pre-sliced 1 to 2 days in advance, then tossed together the day of.
More Easy Summer Salads
Heat waves call for an endless list of salad recipes, and easy ones at that!
I hope you enjoy this Greek salad recipe all summer long! If you make it, let me know how it turned out in the comment box below.
Best Greek Salad Recipe
Description
Video
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- 1 large cucumber, diced
- 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced
- ½ cup Kalamata olives, halved
- 4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- salt and pepper, to taste
Greek Salad Dressing
- ⅓ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Add the cucumber, tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, olives, and feta cheese to a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate small mixing bowl, add the vinegar, lemon juice, mustard, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Slowly add the olive oil and whisk vigorously while pouring until the dressing is emulsified.
- Drizzle the dressing on the salad and gently stir to combine. Season with additional salt and pepper, if desired.
Lisa’s Tips
- Also, watch the video above for meal prep ideas and tips on how to add more protein to this salad!
Nutrition
©Downshiftology. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
Recipe originally published August 2018, but updated to include new information and tips.
Hi Lisa,
Just made thit Greek salad and it was lovely. Also got an overnight oats in the fridge :)
Happy you loved the salad, Dean! And sounds like you’re all set for breakfast now as well. Well done!
This has been my go-to salad all summer!
Happy to hear this greek salad has been on repeat, Michelle!
Hi Lisa
Only just found your website & Love your recipes, could you please tell me where I can purchase the food scraper?
I couldn’t see the link
Thanks
Anna Jackson
Hi Anna – you can find the food scraper in the Shop page on my website or on my Amazon storefront :)
This recipe couldn’t have come at a better time for me Lisa. My garden is producing lots of English cucumbers and heirloom cherry tomatoes right now so I made your salad this afternoon. It is absolutely delish.
Thank you so much for inspiring me to cook ‘outside the box’ as it were. I love your cookbook and am trying many of the recipes as I go along, I have yet to be disappointed.
What a great salad to make the most of your garden this summer!
I have made the recipe several times and I love how it tastes and how “simple” it is to make. I love the YouTube Video.
My daughter, who is 11 loves to make the salad and she cuts up all the ingredients and the only change she made was she also added regular black olives to it because she LOVES olives.
Happy to hear both you and your daughter are loving this Greek salad!
the whole family loved it!
Glad the whole family enjoyed this one Angela :)
Thoroughly enjoyed your fresh take on the classic Greek salad, Lisa! I appreciate your detailed instructions and insightful tips to bring out the best of the ingredients. It’s clear that a lot of effort went into creating this recipe and it absolutely paid off. Can’t wait to give this a try in my kitchen. Keep up the fantastic work!
Thanks so much for the comment Nyla! Glad you enjoyed this recipe and everything that went into it :)
Hi Lisa,
I don’t like green bell pepper. Can I remove it and replace it with something else? Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe!
Yes, of course. Feel free to replace it with any other crisp vegetable that you enjoy raw. :)
I made this Greek Salad for lunch for myself and a few friends and it was delicious. The only change I made was using green olives instead of black olives. I also happened to have a cup of orzo that I added. The dressing was amazing …… so much so that I made it a second time, tripling the recipe to keep in the ‘fridge for daily/future use. Thank Lisa!
You’re more than welcome, Angie! So thrilled you loved it. :)
This Greek Salad is the best! Absolutely delicious. Thank’s for sharing
Glad you’re loving this Greek salad!
This was quick and easy to make and I especially like that there’s no lettuce in the recipe, making leftovers more appealing. My dressing tasted bitter so I added more salt and a bit more olive oil. I did use an immersion blender to mix the dressing instead of whisking it. Perhaps that made a difference.
I prefer a creamier Greek dressing. If you ever consider creating that, Lisa, I would be more inclined to that style of Greek dressing.
I’ll definitely keep that in mind for another version of Greek dressing! But the classic version is usually very light :)
I did the greek salad and although I’m not a fan of Cucumber it was really surprisingly good, everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. I paired it with the ultimate potato salad, yum 😊
Thanks Penelope! I’m happy you loved both this Greek salad and my potato salad. :)
I love this Greek Salad recipe. It is so quick and easy to make. I enjoy either as a salad, or I put the ingredients in a wrap with just a little dressing. Healthy and delicious.
Yes, it’s so versatile! Happy you love it. :)
This is truly THE BEST Greek salad ever. Every single bit of it is so fresh and delicious. Highly recommended!
I’m so glad you’re loving this Greek salad Pearl!
I made this last night for a girls night and everyone loved it! Thank you!
Yay, love to hear that! :)
This recipe was delicious and easy to put together. I used a yellow pepper. It added colour.
Happy to hear you enjoyed this Greek salad Roberta!
It sounds good
This was easy and tasty. I made ahead for the week. While the salad is okay after a few days, when I make again, I’ll leave the dressing off until closer to eating. The dressing combines with the excess veggie liquid and loses a bit along the way.
Delicious and easy with the perfect dressing. Another Downshiftology hit. Thanks Lisa. Can’t wait for the cookbook!
Very light and delicious recipe! Thank you!
This is sounds absolutely awesome! I am definitely going to try it. I will however need to emit the tomatoes due to histamine proteins the tomato releases in soft tissue causing inflammation; especially those with arthritis. I will definitely give this a try as a combination of the other flavors will most definitely not dull the tastebuds! Thank you, Dear Soul, for this awesome recipe!!!
Love this recipe. So fresh and tasty. It has become one of my favorite quick fixes. You have so many wonderful recipes. I haven’t come across one that I that isn’t delicious. Thank you!
Happy to hear you’ve been enjoying all my recipes so far Sheila, including this Greek salad :)
Hiii just a small reminder that I’m so glad to found your blog, also your youtube channel! It was sooo inspiring! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Happy to hear you’re loving everything on Downshiftology Elsa! :)
I can’t think of anything that would make this recipe better. The dressing is everything. I use good quality red wine vinegar. Thank you so much for this recipe! As always, no recipe of yours disappoints.
Glad you enjoyed this Greek salad dressing :)
We made this we orange bell peppers and the kids loved it as well, it was so delicious and refreshing!
Happy to hear the whole family enjoyed this Greek salad!
I love Greek salad and this one was great! So easy and healthy too! Thanks Lisa!!
Made this salad tonight along with the salad dressing. Seared a piece of salmon for on top. Delicious! We loved it! Thank you for all your wonderful healthy recipes!
Yum! Love the idea of adding salmon on top Jan. You should also give my Greek Chicken Salad a try – similar concept but with chicken on top instead :)
This was delicious! I am a huge Greek salad lover and this was perfect. Served it with some beef kebobs and rice. Ate it for lunch the next two days too. Delicious, simple and fast.
This dish is a great addition to any meal! It’s flavorful, crispy, slighty sweet and refreshing. The best part about this dish is it’s easy to prepare and will please picky eaters too. I also made the Greek dressing which is definitely a keeper too.
Glad everyone enjoyed this salad recipe :)
Such a wonderful salad! Thanks, Lisa. Anything with kalamata olives and feta in it is tops in my book. ha. Dressing is also fabulous.
Super delicious, healthy and easy to make! Whatˋs not to like. I make several of your recipes each week and enjoy them all. Lisa, I thank you so much for what you do!
Hi Celine – So glad to hear you’re enjoying so many of my recipes!
This recipe is AMAZING!
So glad you love this one Cindi! :)
I made this salad for lunch today and was so impressed. A truly authentic Greek salad and the dressing is divine. Thank you Lisa for sharing this recipe. I gave it 5 stars, but only 4 will show.
I had some leftover feta (from the broccoli salad) and I also happened to have all the other ingredients in house. Lucky me. Again a healthy, tasty and very easy recipe. The dressing was also very easy and will use them for other salads too. Thanks Lisa!
Wonderful! Glad you were able to throw this salad together with things you had on hand Babette :)
amazingly wonderful Thank you
Hi Luci, I am from Greece and particular from Thessaloniki, near chalkidiki, thank you very much for you recipe it looks delicious. If you would like you can add barel feta as well as another idea of feta or goat cheese.
Hi Christina- Love that idea as well! Thanks for sharing your tip with us.
all time favourite Greek salad recipe in our home! I also make your dressing -spot on! Love it! Thank you 🙏🏻
Hi Assem – Wonderful! I’m glad you enjoyed this greek combo :)
I love Greek food! And this salad is awesome! Lisa’s Greek dressing is perfect with this.
Hi Becky – Glad you love this salad! The greek dressing is definitely what makes it :)
This salad is quick to prepare, delicious, and very satisfying! We eat it often at home paired with the Greek dressing—one of the best I’ve tried so far!
Hi Monica – So glad to hear you’ve enjoyed this recipe :)
I made your Greek Salad dressing tonght. Tomorrow, I will make the salad. The dressing is good!!!! I ran across your website trying to find the dressing recipe. I am so happy I did. Your story touched me. I am 77 and I am changing my ways. I have always been a healthy eater, but ventured off the path and now I am making a sharp right turn to find my way back! I think, Our meeting was meant to be. 😁
Hi Barbara – Yay! So glad you’re loving these salad dressings :) And I’m happy you found Downshiftology as well. I hope my recipes and videos will help you on your way to a healthier lifestyle.
I almost cried this is sooooo good! One of my favorite salads, and the dressing is out of this world delicious! I love how simple ingredients create the most vibrant flavors.
Hi Michelle – I’m so glad my Greek salad and dressing brought you tears of joy! What a compliment! Thank you so much for your positive feedback! :)
My family would this salad. I will have to make it the next time we have dinner together.
Hi Luci – I hope you enjoy it soon!
Mmm my favourite salad! So yummy, will be making this one again and again.
Wonderful!! This is one of my favorites too!
I love everything about this beautiful salad! This is perfect for light lunch or the side for dinner.
Thanks so much Sharon, I agree!
what a nice option for people who are “leafed out”. Salads can be so many things, but too often people only think of lettuce based salads. Love your dressing!
“Leafed Out”, I’m going to have to steal this phrase, Noel! Yes, its definitely great to switch it up!
Great recipe. Seems like it would be really good paired with fish. Do you have any fish recipes that would work with this?
Hi Emily – I actually have an orange glazed salmon recipe coming next week and it would also pair great with my chicken souvlaki!
Is there a way to make this last longer? For someone who needs to meal prep each week, 2 days just doesn’t seem like enough time for the salad to be worth it for me!
If you hold off on the feta and dressing until serving, the rest of the salad will likely last up to 4 days. Then you could just top with the feta and dressing daily. :)