Greek Cucumber Salad {Cucumber Yogurt Salad}

This Greek Cucumber Salad is made with a creamy yogurt dill dressing and tossed right in the same bowl. It's a simple, fuss-free cucumber yogurt salad recipe you'll be coming back to again and again!

When I did my MSc in nutrition we had an international cohort, and would often have potluck lunches. Amongst us was a charming Greek fellow named Thanasis who would bring Greek salads to practically every event, always lamenting the terrible quality of the ingredients he had access to here in Sweden.

"Here is a Greek salad. It has the worst tomatoes, the worst cucumbers, the worst feta, and the worst olive oil."

I bring this up only because I'm certain that poor Thanasis would be horrified that I'm even call this cucumber yogurt salad Greek, but it *does* have all of the elements of tzatziki in that creamy yogurt dill dressing, so I'm going with it!

If you can't get your head around calling this a Greek Cucumber Salad, then by all means just go with whatever name feels appropriate to you. I support you. That's how we roll around here.

What's in this Greek Cucumber Salad?

Alrighty friends, grab your cucumbers and let's get going. To make this deliciously crunchy salad you're going to need to gather up some:

• Cucumbers! --> Betcha didn't see that one coming!
• Green onions --> Aka the only onions I like eating raw.
• Yogurt --> It goes without saying that we're using a full-fat Greek-style yogurt here.
• Dill --> Lots and lots of fresh dill, please.
• Oregano --> Just to add another herby dimension.
• Garlic --> Because: garlic.
• Lemon juice --> We're juicing up a nice big one today.
• Grainy Dijon mustard --> Uhhh, so not so Greek. But it tastes awesome!

How do you make cucumber yogurt salad?

This is a one bowl operation, my friends. I do not mess around with extra bowls when I don't need to.

Step 1: Get all of your chopping out of the way. You're going to slice and dice your cucumbers, chop the green onions, crush the garlic, and mince the dill and oregano.

That's right; slice, dice, chop, crush, and mince. It should take about 5 minutes to get through it all. 

Step 2: Grab a large bowl and combine the yogurt, dill, oregano, garlic, Dijon, and lemon juice in the bottom. Mix it up, and season with salt and pepper.

It should taste delicious and tzatziki-ish, like you'd like to grab a bunch of warm pita bread and go to town on it. That's what we're going for.

Step 3: Add the sliced cucumbers and green onions right on top of the yogurt dill dressing.

One bowl, my friends. One bowl.

Step 4: Stir it up! Give everything a good toss so it's well coated in the dressing. Taste, and add a bit more salt and pepper if needed.

If you're being fancy, you can transfer it to a serving bowl and top with extra dill. I also like to serve spicy pickled onions on the side because a) they're so dang pretty, and b) the tangy crunch is a perfect complement to the cool cucumber salad.

That's it! You're done!

Can cucumber yogurt salad be made in advance?

Regular readers know that I'm allll about making things in advance when I can. I love batch cooking and making meal prep bowls and that kind of thing.

However, in certain cases where the quality of the recipe will suffer if made in advance, I recommend preparing the ingredients, but not assembling the recipe until the last minute. This is one of those situations!

Please do prepare the creamy yogurt dill dressing in advance! Please also get your chopping out of the way ahead of time. You can even drop your sliced cucumbers on top of the dressing if you like, but please don't stir it through until you're nearly ready to serve.

Otherwise the cucumbers will get soggy and your salad will be sad. Nobody wants a sad cucumber salad.

Can I make a vegan cucumber salad?

For sure you can, with some modifications. If you're looking for a dairy-free cucumber salad, I've got some suggestions for you.

Option 1: Replace the Greek yogurt with your preferred plant-based yogurt.

Option 2: Make this vegan Cucumber Mint Raita from Connoisseurus Veg and use that as the base of your dressing.

Option 3: Make this Cucumber and Onion Salad from Sustainable Cooks, which is vegan AF.

Hey Nutrition Lady, are cucumbers good for you?

Yes, yes they are, my friends.

Cucumbers are an excellent source of vitamin K, which is important for helping your blood clot. They are also a good source of copper, potassium, manganese, vitamin C, phosphorus, magnesium, biotin, and vitamin B1.

The phytonutrients found in cucumbers (cucurbitacins, lignans, and flavonoids) provide us with valuable antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer benefits.Cucumbers also contain the mineral silica, which is important for nail and hair health.

Leave the skin on and give 'em a good scrub, because many of a cucumber's nutrients are concentrated in the skin!

Other tasty salads you might enjoy:

Beluga Lentil Salad with Halloumi Croutons
Summer Berry Salad with Sesame Baked Goat's Cheese
Vegetarian Caesar Salad with Kale
Vegetarian Nicose Salad
Spicy Watermelon Salad with Feta
Pear and Gorgonzola Salad