This delicious fresh cucumber salad is so refreshing on a hot summer day. The crunch of the crisp cucumbers paired with the juicy tomatoes and creamy avocado can be the perfect pairing to any protein. The best part is there is no cooking so this side dish is not only healthy but it is easy and quick to make!

No Mayo Cucumber Salad!

If you’ve ever had a cucumber salad here in the salad, odds are it was drenched in mayo or even that Miracle Whip (bless their hearts) and it may or may not have slices of white onions in it. 

The dressing uses one of the condiments I mentioned, sugar, vinegar, and salt and pepper. As you can imagine it isn’t very diet-friendly or anything we could call “healthy”, but it did taste good. 

I’ll admit that I’ve made it many times with real mayo and low-carb sweetener options.

But sometimes it can feel fat heavy and if you have people in your family that feud over whether you should use may or salad dressing you’ll be glad to know there is a lighter style cucumber salad that might have those two sides in agreement at home delicious it is!

What Is The Best Cucumber To Use for Fresh Cucumber Salad?

Cucumbers are such a tasty, refreshing, and affordable vegetable that are great for eating fresh or pickled. Varieties of cucumbers that are grown and purchased to eat fresh are typically known as slicing cucumbers.

My gardeners grow this slicing variety as well as some cucumber varieties that have thick bumpy skin. These more bumpy varieties are better for pickling than for slicing into this salad.

My favorite variety, and one I highly recommend that you use for this salad, is the English Cucumber. These cucumbers, also known as seedless cucumbers,  are great for slicing and eating. 

They are known for their thin tender skins, very mild flavor, and minimal seeds. All these factors make these English Cucumbers the perfect variety for this Fresh Cucumber Salad. 

Of course, if you don’t have these on hand and would like to use the ones you grow in your garden, you can do that and still enjoy this salad. 

If you go with a variety that has more bumpy skin, maybe consider peeling the cucumbers to avoid the texture from the tougher skins. But that is optional and totally up to you of course! 

I love cucumbers and this salad is one of my all-time favorite fresh sides so I wouldn’t let not have the perfect cucumber stop me from taking it! 

Can This Cucumber Salad Be Made Ahead?

That is a great question! Who doesn’t like a good recipe that can be made in advance to save time later, right? I know I sure do.

The answer to this is yes, but there are a couple of things I would suggest you do to ensure that this salad stays in prime condition if you do decide to make it ahead of time for your event or dinner.

The nature of some of the veggies in this salad, particularly the cucumbers and the tomatoes, is to release their water over time. 

That on top of the salt in the dressing can pose an issue if you make it too far in advance or let it sit in the dressing for too long. 

Thankfully, I make this salad often enough that I’ve tried it a couple of steps along the way It helps me and in turn will help you make this Cucumber Salad the day before without it becoming a watery mess by the time we want to serve it. 

First and foremost, you never want to add your dressing to the salad the day before. The liquid and the salt in the dressing will begin to slowly pull out more water from the cucumbers and tomatoes and that is where the problem comes in. 

You’ll also want to hold off adding the cut-up avocado as it would oxidize in the fridge over time without the lemon juice in the dressing.

So mixing up the dressing in a separate container and storing it until you are ready to toss the salad and serve will save you from all that extra liquid in the salad. 

When you are ready to serve you could add the avocado and dressing then toss them together quickly and serve. 

Also, if you want to leave the small cherry tomatoes whole instead of slicing them into halves or bite-sized pieces that will also help with the excess liquids as whole tomatoes will not release as much water as cut tomatoes will. 

By following these two simple steps you can make this salad the night before and it will be perfect the next day for your event or dinner. 

Tips and Variations For This Fresh Cucumber Salad

There are a few things you can do to jazz this cucumber salad up or a few suggested twists to make it your own. 

First, swap out the lemon juice for lime juice and sprinkle in some Tajin seasoning, oh my that is so yummy and it gives it a nice flavor boost.

For those that like onions but not raw because of the spice or strong flavor I have a tip for you. Put your chopped onions into a bowl and add a couple tablespoons of vinegar then fill the rest with water. 

Let the onions soak for 1- to 15 minutes and this will take away that strong bite that raw onions have but leave you with the good flavor they add to this salad. Don’t worry, they won’t taste pickled!

Use fresh cilantro instead of dry to get even more freshness added to this recipe. You really can’t beat fresh herbs when it comes to salads like this. Just chop it fine so people don’t feel like they are getting a mouth full of grass, lol. 

Finally, if you want to skip whole avocados and want to just pick up your favorite premade guacamole you can do that and add a few big tablespoons of that to the salad and stir it up well instead of the chopped avocado. 

One thing is for sure, no matter what you do to this Fresh Cucumber Salad, it is going to be one of your new easy side dishes this summer. 

Yield: 5 Servings

Fresh Cucumber Salad

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

This veggie-packed salad is the perfect fresh side dish to any of your grilled proteins this summer. You'll this recipe that features crispy cucumbers, juicy tomatoes, creamy avocado, and a light citrus dressing.

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Ingredients

• 1 large English Cucumber, washed
• 2 small Avocados, cubed
• 1/2 cup of Cherry Tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1/3 cup of finely chopped red onion

Dressing

• 1/4 Cup of Avocado or Olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons of lemon or lime juice
• 1 Tablespoon of dried cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
• pinch of salt
• pinch of black pepper

Instructions

1. Wash the the produce, then start by cutting the cherry tomatoes into halves, and cutting the cucumber into small, easy-to-bite pieces.
2. Add the cucumber and tomatoes to the bowl, then chop up the onion finely and add it to the cucumber mix. Toss well to combine.
3. In a small jar or bowl combine all the dressing ingredients and mix well to combine them all.
4. Chill the salad and dressing separately until you are ready to serve. Then toss the dressing and cucumber salad together until all the fresh veggies are coated. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.

Nutrition Information

Yield

5

Serving Size

1/2 cup
Amount Per ServingCalories 202Total Fat 16gSaturated Fat 2gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 13gCholesterol 0mgSodium 37mgCarbohydrates 16gNet Carbohydrates 9gFiber 7gSugar 4gProtein 3g

I am not a nutritionist. If you have strict dietary needs I always recommend using an online nutrition calculator to calculate your totals using your exact brands you're using in this recipe as values may vary per brand.

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Keri Bucci

I am a southern girl through and through that loves to laugh, cook, read and spend time with family. My passions outside of home schooling my son are ministering to those in need and creating art in the kitchen! Every day is an adventure in our little house and I wouldn’t trade it or the chance to share here with you for anything!