This creamy and tangy Cucumber Salad goes amazing with most grilled meats. It makes for a tasty and refreshing side dish at a summer BBQ
Low in calories but big on taste
Got plenty of cucumbers in your garden or fridge? Then, this delicious creamy cucumber salad is for you! Just a few ingredients and you have yourself a healthy side dish that goes perfectly with grilled/BBQ meat, veggies or fish.
For such a creamy and tasty salad, it’s relatively low in calories. The secret is with mixing mayonnaise with some sour cream instead of using just the mayonnaise as the base of the dressing. The simple but flavourful dressing also has vinegar, sugar and a generous amount of fresh dill.
I love that this Cucumber Salad is not overwhelmingly rich. It’s creamy, sweet and tangy, with an enjoyable crisp texture from the cucumbers.
What type of cucumbers is best for salads?
Cucumbers are made up of around 96% water. This means they’re likely to release loads of water into salads which may dilute the dressing and wilt the veggies.
Lebanese/Persian or baby cucumbers are best in salads because they contain less water and have fewer seeds. I think they also taste better too because they have thin skin and are mild in flavour. They’re also refreshing and crisp.
Do we need to salt the cucumbers before adding them to a salad?
Salting cucumbers is quite effortless, we simply leave the sliced salted cucumbers in a colander or strainer over a bowl for 30 minutes.
This step may seem a little unnecessary and adds to the prep time, but it’s absolutely worth doing if you have the time. Salting the cucumber helps to get rid of some of their water. This means the salad will stay fresh and crisp for longer.
If you’re in a rush and plan to serve the salad immediately, then skip salting the cucumber. Just remove the seeds before you add them to the salad, then season the dressing to your liking.
Cucumbers vs A 3-year-old
To me, cucumbers are one of those vegetables that are so inoffensive. I treat them like lettuce because if it’s there, I’ll just eat it. They’re very mild in taste and are delicious when served with a good dressing.
I’ve tried so many times to serve cucumber to my 3-year-old Kai. I even tried peeling them so he won’t see any green on them because if Kai sees any green veggies, he’ll automatically reject them.
I handed a peeled cucumber stick to Kai, and he smiles. He examines it suspiciously up close, then to my excitement, he takes a massive bite. That happy feeling quickly faded when he sprayed cucumber pieces all over our dinner table out of disgust.
Kai then enthusiastically climbs onto hubby’s lap and forcefully shoves the remaining cucumber in his mouth. ‘Here daddy, you eat it!’ Looking so proud of himself, Kai breaks into a fit of loud, adorable giggles. His laughter was so contagious, and without realising it, I was giggling along with him. Hubby didn’t look impressed.
I would love to say that this cucumber salad has changed Kai’s mind, and he ate a plate of them, but that would be a BIG lie. However, I can confirm that this salad was a hit with the adults in our household!
More exciting side dishes to try:
Roast Beetroot Salad
Roasted Potatoes on Creamy Aioli
Mexican Style Corn
Prawn Halloumi Watermelon Salad
Ingredients for Cucumber Salad
Cucumber – Use a variety of cucumbers that have thin skin and minimal seeds, such as Lebanese/Persian cucumbers. These cucumbers contain fewer seeds and less water, so they’re better in salads.
Caster sugar (superfine sugar) – Caster sugar has finer granules than regular white sugar. For this recipe, you could swap caster sugar with regular white granulated sugar.
Mayonnaise – I love using full-fat whole-egg mayonnaise which is less sweet but more creamy and flavourful. The low-fat ones taste too sweet and artificial for my liking.
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How to make Cucumber Salad
Step-by-step guide with photos
Wash the cucumbers and slice them open lengthwise. Optional – to make the cucumber less watery, scrape the seeds off with a spoon. Slice the cucumbers roughly 0.5cm/0.2in thick.
Transfer the cucumbers into a large colander or strainer and place it over a bowl, then sprinkle salt over them. Give them a good mix gently and let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. The salt will draw out the water so you won’t get a mushy, watery salad.
For the dressing – Mix all the dressing ingredients in a bowl until it’s well combined, then set it aside.
After 30 minutes, the cucumber should have sweated out some water into the bowl. Gently press the cucumber slices using a paper towel to remove more water.
Transfer the cucumbers into a large bowl along with the onions and dressing, then mix gently to combine.
Leftovers – Transfer the cucumber salad into a sealed container and store them in the fridge for up to 3 to 4 days.
I’ve used a third-party application to calculate the calories and nutritional information, so please use this as an approximate guide only.
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements. For specific details and conversions, visit our Australian Cooking Measurements page.
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Cheers – Cat T
Cucumber Salad (creamy and tangy)
Video
Ingredients
- 700 gm Lebanese/Persian cucumbers (approx.6) (NOTE 1)
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ medium red onion (thinly sliced)
- salt and pepper to taste
FOR THE DRESSING
- 2 tbsp whole egg mayonnaise (NOTE 2)
- 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- 2 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tbsp caster sugar (or regular white sugar) (NOTE 3)
Instructions
- Wash the cucumbers and slice them open lengthwise. Optional – to make the cucumber less watery, scrape the seeds off with a spoon. Slice the cucumbers roughly 0.5cm/0.2in thick.
- Transfer the cucumbers into a large colander or strainer and place it over a bowl, then sprinkle salt over them. Give them a good mix gently and let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. The salt will draw out the water so you won't get a mushy, watery salad.
- For the dressing – Mix all the dressing ingredients in a bowl until it's well combined, then set it aside.
- After 30 minutes, the cucumber should have sweated out some water into the bowl. Gently press the cucumber slices using a paper towel to remove more water.
- Transfer the cucumbers into a large bowl along with the onions and dressing, then mix gently to combine. Have a taste and add salt and pepper to your liking.
