Description
Mediterranean cucumber salad brings Mediterranean sunshine to your plate with crisp vegetables and zesty herbs. Refreshing and light, this quick dish offers perfect summer comfort for cool palates seeking authentic Mediterranean flavors you’ll savor.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 1 pound (454 grams) seedless cucumbers, thinly sliced crosswise on a mandoline
- 1/2 small onion, thinly sliced
Seasoning Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5 grams) sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (9 grams) kosher salt
Dressing Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37.5 milliliters) red wine vinegar
Instructions
- Slice cucumbers and onions into delicate, translucent ribbons using a sharp knife or mandoline for uniform thinness.
- Transfer the sliced vegetables into a spacious mixing vessel, ensuring gentle handling to maintain crisp texture.
- Generously dust sugar and kosher salt over the vegetable mixture, using fingertips to distribute seasonings evenly and create a light coating.
- Drizzle red wine vinegar across the salad, gently folding ingredients to ensure complete integration of flavors and balanced seasoning.
- Allow the salad to rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, permitting the vegetables to release natural moisture and absorb tangy vinegar undertones.
- Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary, adding a pinch of salt or splash of vinegar to enhance the profile.
- Chill in refrigerator for up to 2 hours before serving to intensify the marinated essence, but consume within this timeframe to maintain vegetable crispness.
- Serve cold as a refreshing side dish, garnishing with fresh herbs like dill or parsley for added visual appeal and aromatic complexity.
Notes
- Use a mandoline or sharp knife to slice cucumbers and onions paper-thin for the best texture and even marination.
- Adjust sugar levels based on personal preference, reducing for a tangier profile or increasing for a sweeter taste.
- Let the salad rest in the refrigerator for enhanced flavor development, allowing vinegar and salt to perfectly pickle the vegetables.
- For a low-carb or keto version, substitute sugar with a zero-calorie sweetener like stevia or erythritol to maintain the classic sweet-tangy balance.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Appetizer, Snacks
- Method: Pickling
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 18 kcal
- Sugar: 4 g
- Sodium: 360 mg
- Fat: 0 g
- Saturated Fat: 0 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 5 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg