Use up your garden’s summer bounty in this fresh cucumber dill salad. It’s sweet, tangy and makes the perfect side to just about any dish!
This bright cucumber dill salad is so simple, requires only a few ingredients, but packs in delicious flavor! It is quite refreshing. For more tasty sides to use your bountiful harvests try Creamed Spinach, Stovetop Cinnamon Apples, and Oven Roasted Broccoli.
Simple + Delicious
I recently went to a BBQ and had an amazing cucumber salad. Normally I don’t get too excited about cucumbers but this dish was so simple and so delicious I couldn’t help but ask for the recipe.
I was surprised when our host listed off 6 ingredients: cucumbers, onion, dill, vinegar, salt and sugar. That was it!
I was even more surprised when she said all you had to do was toss it together? I went home and did my best to recreate it.
Making Cucumber Salad
CUCUMBERS. Peel the cucumbers and then cut into 1/8-inch thick slices. If you like rustic looking salad you can cut the cucumbers by hand OR you can use a mandolin to get perfect, even slices. It’s totally up to you and whether or not you have that tool.
DILL. Grab a bunch of fresh dill or a little container of it. I like to buy a big bunch and use the rest of it for chicken salad, pasta, or homemade ranch dressing. You’ll need about 3 tablespoons of chopped dill.
RED ONION. Then thinly slice some red onion. You don’t need a lot. I used about ⅛ of a medium red onion and it was definitely enough. It helps add flavor and zing to the salad. Don’t go overboard!
DRESSING. The last part is making the dressing or marinade. Drizzle the vinegar, sugar, and salt over top, then toss the cucumbers in it until they’re coated and the sugar has dissolved. If you prefer a slightly sweeter salad you can add a half tablespoon of sugar to the recipe below. I prefer it on the tangy side so 1 ½ tablespoons was perfect.
COMBINE. Let the salad rest in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Not only will the cucumbers taste better but they will soften up. If you’re in a super big time crunch you can get a way with just 30 minutes. We’ve enjoy this recipe at the 30 minute mark, 2 hour mark and overnight. It’s tasted equally delicious each time!
Enjoy this cucumber dill salad with grilled chicken, fish or pork. It’ll be a hit no matter what you serve it with!
Tips + Variations
If you are using fresh cucumbers or specifically watery cucumbers you might want to slice them and sprinkle salt on top of them before incorporating them into the salad. This will help draw out some of that extra water in the cucumbers and avoid having a really watery salad.
Variations:
- For more of a sweet taste use Persian cucumbers
- Add diced tomatoes for a fresher taste
- Leave the skin on the cucumbers for more of a crunch
- To really mix it up you can use a variety of cucumbers
- Make it more filling by adding drained and rinsed white beans
- Add a few tablespoons of sour cream or Greek yogurt to the dressing to make it creamy
Storing Info
STORE these vinegar marinated cucumbers in your fridge in a jar or air-tight container for up to 3 days.
Any longer than that and the cucumbers will lose their “crisp-ness” and become limp.
More delicious salads:
- Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad
- Chicken Gyro Salad
- Cobb Salad
- Summer Pasta Salad
- Southwestern Quinoa Salad
- Chickpea Salad
Cucumber Dill Salad
Ingredients
- 2 large cucumbers - peeled and cut into 1/8-inch slices*
- 1/8 medium red onion cut into thin slices
- 3 tbsp. freshly chopped dill
- 1/3 c. distilled vinegar or white wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 tbsp. granulated sugar - more if you prefer a sweeter salad
- 1 1/4 tsp. coarse kosher sea salt
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in an large, shallow dish (preferably with a lid). Toss to combine, then cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, preferably up to 2 hours before serving.
I used sour cream (to up the fat content) and just a bit of vinegar, and Stevia to sweeten and this was cool, crunchy and delicious for keto in summer! 😊
I’m glad you were able to adjust it to fit your needs.