Greek Cucumber Salad
This is inspired by a cucumber salad my mom makes and I have to give kudos to her for inspiring me to always take her ideas and try to make my own or more recently spin it to remove the SAD ingredients while still having a delicious dish. The original recipe also calls for feta cheese and if you jive well with feta or feel like splurging it definitely is a delicious addition. My only suggestion would be to keep it separate until serving and crumble on top of the salad. On that note you could keep some freshly chopped up dill for that purpose as well.
This is inspired by a cucumber salad my mom makes and I have to give kudos to her for inspiring me to always take her ideas and try to make my own or more recently spin it to remove the SAD ingredients while still having a delicious dish. The original recipe also calls for feta cheese and if you jive well with feta or feel like splurging it definitely is a delicious addition. My only suggestion would be to keep it separate until serving and crumble on top of the salad. On that note you could keep some freshly chopped up dill for that purpose as well.
- Carbohydrate 8.92254632352941 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 6.71823794027647 g
- Fiber 2.52040984425942 g
- Protein 1.15578740196078 g
- Saturated Fat 0.907967499875728 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (164g)
- Sodium 515.978809895815 mg
- Sugar 6.40213647926999 g
- Trans Fat 0.321554941152099 g
- Calories 93 calories
Step-by-step
- After rinsing and peeling the cucumber (I prefer a zester because of the texture and look it gives to the cucumber), I used my trusty mandolin to thinly slice. I then added this to a mixing bowl.
- Then repeat with the red onion. If you don’t have this on hand, or you think onions are gross, you can skip these altogether.
- I then sliced up the kalamata olives—don’t be a dope and pick up olives with the pits still in if you can help it. I forgot and spent a good amount of time removing pits.
- Finely chop the dill.
- Add all ingredients into your mixing bowl, and mix away.
- Add in the olive oil and balsamic vinegar, and give it a final mix. This does best after a little time resting on the counter or in the refrigerator. The sooner you serve it, the sharper the red onion is. If you’ve excluded the red onion, this usually doesn’t apply. Typically I let this rest for 1-2 hours in the refrigerator before serving.
- Once ready to serve, dish up a bowl, and garnish with fresh dill and possibly feta (if you’re into that sort of thing).
Mastering the Rest Period for Optimal Flavor
Allowing the sliced cucumbers and red onions to rest in the refrigerator for one to two hours fundamentally changes the texture and sharpness of the dish. Salt draws out excess moisture from the cucumber cells through osmosis, concentrating the vegetable's natural sugars while softening the crunch just enough to absorb the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Skipping this mandatory chilling window leaves raw red onions overwhelmingly pungent and prevents the dressing components from fully coating the produce.
Equipment and Technique Adjustments
Using a mandolin yields uniform paper-thin slices that standard chef knives rarely achieve, but operators must use the accompanying safety guard to protect fingers against the razor-sharp blade. Pitting kalamata olives manually requires patience, so purchasing pitted varieties saves considerable prep time and prevents accidental tooth fractures. Fresh dill provides a bright herbal contrast that dried herbs cannot replicate due to the loss of volatile essential oils during the dehydration process.
