Cucumber Tomato Salad
Cucumber Tomato Salad is a quintessential summertime staple! This vibrant side dish features juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, bold red onions and mozzarella pearls all tossed together in a simple olive oil based dressing. Pair this side dish with any of your favorite entrees to really brighten up your plate!
Cucumber Tomato Salad
My love for this summery salad really runs deep. Once the weather gets hot, I usually find myself making this Cucumber Tomato Salad on a weekly basis! It’s such an easy way to brighten up my dinner plate and really pack on the nutritious veggies.
The fresh, crisp, and cool qualities of this easy salad make it ideal for those warm nights when you don’t want anything super heavy on your plate.
Have I mentioned that the homemade dressing is really what sends it over the top? It’s made with all-natural ingredients like garlic, honey, and a medley of herbs and seasonings. The base of the dressing is olive oil and vinegar, keeping things nice and simple.
I really love the way it compliments the fresh veggies and mozzarella pearls without totally overpowering everything! It’s the best balance of neutral and flavorful.
While I usually serve this salad as a side dish next to some chicken or salmon, it also makes a fabulous light lunch all on its own. It’s so quick and easy to make in the middle of the day or right before a busy weeknight dinner. Whenever you’re craving some fresh veggies that are flavorful and can be tossed together in just a few minutes, this is the recipe to turn to!
How to Make Cucumber Tomato Salad
You’ll love tossing together this easy as can be homemade salad with fresh dressing!
- Toss the veggies and cheese. Add the tomatoes, cucumbers, red oniona, mozzarella pearls, herbs, and seasonings together in a large bowl.
- Make the dressing. Whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing until combined.
- Toss to coat. Pour the dressing all over the salad and toss to fully coat.
- Serve immediately or chill. Personally, I like to chill the salad for a little bit in the fridge to give it a cool, refreshing quality. However, you can definitely serve it right away if you’d like. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Here’s a little run down of the ingredients needed to make this salad and homemade dressing. Be sure to scroll down to the full recipe for more specific measurements and information!
- Grape Tomatoes – You can use cherry tomatoes if preferred. Regular tomatoes also work, just be sure to cut them into bite-sized pieces.
- Cucumber – I like to cut my cucumbers in half lengthwise, then chop them.
- Red Onion – These onions have the most bold flavor. I don’t recommend swapping them with anything else!
- Mozzarella – You should be able to find mozzarella pearls at your local grocery store. If not, just buy a log of mozzarella and cut it into bite-sized pieces.
- Herbs – Fresh chopped dill and parsley create the most lovely herbaceous note throughout the salad that’s subtle but so enjoyable!
- Seasonings – For the salad itself, I just add a little pinch of kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Most of the flavor comes from the dressing.
Dressing Ingredients
- Olive Oil – For the best flavor, I recommend grabbing a good quality bottle of extra virgin olive oil.
- Vinegar – White wine vinegar creates the best subtle tangy flavor that compliments the other ingredients beautifully.
- Seasonings – A simple blend of kosher salt, black pepper, Italian seasoning and cayenne is all you need. The cayenne is optional, but I like the touch of heat that it provides!
- Garlic – For the freshest flavor, be sure to use real garlic cloves. Pre-minced garlic won’t add the same fresh qualities.
- Honey – This adds just the right touch of sweetness to help balance out all of the other bold flavors at play. If possible, try to use a good quality raw organic honey that has a nice golden color for the best flavor! The super sweet stuff that usually comes in a plastic bear doesn’t create the same depth of flavor.
Enjoy more of my favorite fresh summery salads!
- Mediterranean Chickpea Salad
- Caribbean Jerk Chicken Cobb Salad
- Green Goddess Salad
- Cucumber Dill Salad
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Get the Recipe: Cucumber Tomato Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups halved grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, if using regular tomatoes, cut into quarters
- 1 English cucumber, cut in half lengthwise and chopped
- 1/2 large red onion, diced
- 1 cup pearl sized mozzarella
- 3 tablespoons fresh chopped dill
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh black pepper
For the dressing:
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 garlic cloves, finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne, optional
Equipment
- 1 mixing bowl
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, mozzarella, dill, parsley, salt and pepper.
- Toss to combine. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, garlic, honey, Italian seasoning and cayenne.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.
- Cover and allow the salad to sit at room temperature until ready to serve.
- Serve room temperature or briefly chilled for the best flavor.
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