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    Easy Greek Salad

    ha scritto per te

    This easy Greek Salad is made with plum tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, bell pepper, kalamata olives, and crumbled feta cheese. Tossed with a lemon and red wine vinegar vinaigrette dressing, it’s ready for a summer picnic!

    Photography Credit: Elise Bauer

    This Greek salad is a favorite of my father’s to make during the summer.
    We usually have plenty of tomatoes and cucumbers growing in the garden, and all you have to do is toss in some red onions, olives, bell pepper, feta cheese, a few herbs, and some olive oil and vinegar and you have beautiful, cooling, fresh, Greek salad.
    All the best ingredients and flavors of Greek cuisine, all in one easy summer salad!

    What To Serve with Greek Salad
    You can serve this salad as a side for just about any of your summer favorites, like grilled chicken or grilled fish. It’s terrific with pita bread that has been brushed with olive oil and toasted or grilled.
    Make-Ahead Tips
    The dressing for this recipe can be made up to three hours ahead and kept at room temperature.
    Except for the tomatoes, all the vegetables can also be chopped a few hours ahead of time and kept refrigerated. Tomatoes are much better when fresh and un-refrigerated, so wait to add those until just before serving.
    Toss all the vegetables with the salad dressing and sprinkle with cheese when ready to serve.

    From the editors of Simply Recipes

    What’s in Greek Salad Dressing?
    The ingredients in this salad are so fresh and vibrant that they only need a simple dressing to bring them together. This one uses olive oil (here’s our favorite!), lemon juice, garlic, red wine vinegar, oregano, and dill.
    This dressing will separate so if you make it ahead just whisk it together before dressing your salad. Even better, make it in a jam jar and just give the jar a few shakes before pouring it over your salad.
    Tame Your Onions
    If you’re not a huge fan of raw onions try this tip from Elise’s mom: soak the chopped onions in a little vinegar or lemon juice while you chop the rest of the salad ingredients. This softens their flavor and makes them a little more palatable.
    TRY THESE OTHER SUMMER SIDE SALADS!

    Updated August 21, 2020 : We spiffed up this post to make it sparkle. No changes to the original recipe!

    Easy Greek Salad Recipe

    Tip from my mom: to take some of the bite away from the onions, after you chop them, soak them in a little vinegar or lemon juice.

    Ingredients
    6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
    2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    1/2 teaspoon fresh chopped garlic
    1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
    1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
    1/2 teaspoon dried dill, or 1 teaspoon chopped fresh dill
    Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    3 large plum tomatoes, seeded, coarsely chopped
    3/4 cucumber, peeled, seeded, coarsely chopped
    1/2 red onion, peeled, chopped
    1 bell pepper, seeded, coarsely chopped
    1/2 cup pitted black olives (preferably brine-cured), coarsely chopped
    A heaping half cup crumbled feta cheese

    Method

    1 Make dressing: Whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, vinegar, oregano, and dill together until blended. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
    This can be prepared 3 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Re-whisk before using.
    2 Combine salad ingredients: Combine the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, bell pepper, olives in a bowl. Toss with dressing. Sprinkle with cheese and serve.

    Hello! All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. Thank you!

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    Elise Bauer
    Elise Bauer is the founder of Simply Recipes. Elise launched Simply Recipes in 2003 as a way to keep track of her family’s recipes, and along the way grew it into one of the most popular cooking websites in the world. Elise is dedicated to helping home cooks be successful in the kitchen. Elise is a graduate of Stanford University, and lives in Sacramento, California.
    More from Elise LEGGI TUTTO

    consigliato per te

    • in Recipes

      Easy Cucumber Salad

      ha scritto per te

      Use up the bounty of summer with this refreshing and crispy salad with cucumbers, rice vinegar, salt, pepper, and chopped fresh dill or basil.

      Photography Credit: Elise Bauer

      This easy cucumber salad consists of nothing more than the cucumbers, some rice vinegar, either dill or basil, and salt and pepper.
      You don’t even really need the herbs! Cucumbers are crunchy and cool with just some vinegar, salt, and pepper. But added dill or chopped fresh basil will elevate this simple cucumber salad to something just a bit more interesting.
      I like adding a mix of regular basil and Thai basil (the one that tastes somewhat licorice-y).

      Using Garden Cucumbers with Cucumber Salad
      About this time of year, we start having an easy cucumber salad almost every night with dinner. If you are a gardener, you know how prolific cucumbers are, right? They can easily grow out of control, climbing up the tomato cages and all over other plants we may have in the garden bed.
      Every other day I bring in a handful, peel them and chop them up for this simple, easy cucumber salad to serve as a side.
      To seed or not to seed cucumbers
      With cucumbers you can either seed them or not. Some varieties have thicker seeds that can be a little harder to digest or a bit bitter if the cucumber is on the mature side.
      There is a lot of flavor right around the seed, so if the cucumber’s seeds are still small and tender, you can easily leave them in.

      To peel or not to peel cucumbers
      Should you peel your cucumbers for cucumber salad? Again, it depends on the variety and maturity of the cucumber. English or Persian cucumbers have thin skins which you do not need to peel.
      Regular market cucumbers may have thicker peels that can be tough and bitter, so it’s best to peel those.
      How to determine the bitterness of a cucumber
      Cucumbers can vary in their level of bitterness. Usually the older they are, the more bitter they are—and the seeds are often more bitter than the flesh. Once you cut into a cucumber, taste it.
      If bitter, scrape or cut away the seeds. You might also want to soak the chopped cucumber in salt water to help offset the bitterness. The cucumbers we get are usually fine as is, but I have had some bitter ones.
      Make-Ahead and Chill
      This salad is great to make and eat immediately, or you can assemble it ahead of time and chill it in the fridge. Note that if you let the cucumber salad sit longer than an hour or two, chilled or room temperature, the cucumbers will start to lose their crispiness.

      From the editors of Simply Recipes

      What to Serve with Cucumber Salad
      This simple salad is a perfect side to just about any summer meal. Try it with grilled chicken or salmon, in particular. This salad also travels well so it makes a good choice for a picnic.
      Suggestions & Substitutions
      So many of you have made this salad over the years and sent us notes about how you changed or added to the recipe. Here are a few favorites!
      Top with toasted sesame seeds
      Add thinly sliced red onions, sweet onions, or scallions
      Toss with feta cheese
      Add chopped summer tomatoes or cherry tomatoes
      For a creamy version, add a few spoonfuls of mayo or sour cream, or even a splash of heavy cream
      Add a few pinches of sugar if needed
      STAY COOL AS A CUCUMBER WITH THESE 5 SALADS

      Updated July 28, 2020 : We spiffed up this post to make it sparkle and add some extra information! No changes to the original recipe. Enjoy!

      Easy Cucumber Salad Recipe

      Cucumbers can vary in their level of bitterness. Usually the older they are, the more bitter they are—and the seeds are often more bitter than the flesh. Once you cut into a cucumber, taste it. Scrape away any bitter seeds or soak the chopped cucumber in salt water to help offset the bitterness.
      We almost always peel thick-skinned cucumbers, but there are some varieties with thin, mild peels that you don’t need to peel. Taste first if there is a question.
      To chop the basil, chiffonade it by stacking the leaves on top of each other, rolling them up like a cigar, and taking thin slices from one end to the other.

      Ingredients
      1 to 2 large cucumbers (or 4 to 5 smaller cucumbers), peeled (if using thick-skinned cucumbers), quartered lengthwise, then sliced crosswise
      1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, basil, or Thai basil (see Recipe Note)
      2 to 3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
      Salt and pepper to taste

      Method

      1 Make the salad: Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss to coat.
      2 Serve the salad: You can serve this immediately, or make ahead (up to a couple of hours) and chill.

      Hello! All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. Thank you!

      This post may contain links to Amazon or other partners; your purchases via these links can benefit Simply Recipes. Read more about our affiliate linking policy.

      Elise Bauer
      Elise Bauer is the founder of Simply Recipes. Elise launched Simply Recipes in 2003 as a way to keep track of her family’s recipes, and along the way grew it into one of the most popular cooking websites in the world. Elise is dedicated to helping home cooks be successful in the kitchen. Elise is a graduate of Stanford University, and lives in Sacramento, California.
      More from Elise LEGGI TUTTO