Cucumber Tomato Salad

A classic and delicious salad, this Cucumber Tomato Salad is light, refreshing and so so easy to make! Made with sweet english cucumbers, cherry tomatoes and a simple homemade dressing, you will add this into your regular meal rotation, regardless of the time of year. So tasty as a side to my Country BBQ Pizza or a simple Roasted Chicken.
Cucumber Tomato Salad aka My Go-To Salad
I don’t know about you, but I am head over heels in love with this salad (and so are my kids!) It’s a suuuuper basic recipe that I’ve been making for years. It tastes more delicious the longer it sits and pairs perfectly with just about any main course. Whether you’re making this with freshly grown veggies from your garden in the summer or store bought veggies from the store in the winter, I promise MY version of Tomato Cucumber Salad will be one of the best salads you’ve ever eaten. Throw it together in a cinch *tonight* as your side salad for dinner.

tomatoes, onions and cucumber in glass bowl
Main Ingredients Needed
Based on the name Cucumber Tomato Salad, yes, you guessed it! We need cucumbers and tomatoes plus a little thinly sliced red onion and a few other ingredients for the homemade dressing. Here’s what you need:

English Cucumbers – not to be confused with a regular cucumber, these are longer, sweeter and seedless cucumbers. Also sometimes called Hothouse cucumbers.
Cherry Tomatoes – sweet and small, cherry tomatoes are the perfect accompaniment to the fresh crunchy cucumber. Grape tomatoes also work just as well.
Red Onion – these are sliced thin so that you don’t just get an overwhelming mouthful.
Grape Seed Oil – or light olive oil. Really any light-flavored oil is aok to use.
White Wine Vinegar – or red wine vinegar, either is fine. I prefer white wine vinegar, so that is what I use.
Garlic Powder + Onion Powder – instead of chopping garlic or grating onion into the dressing, I prefer to just add the powdered versions. Don’t mistake these for garlic or onion salt! They are not the same!
Sugar, Salt + Pepper – sugar to help sweeten the onions, salt to help release juices from the tomatoes and onions and pepper for a little heat.
Do I Have to Use English Cucumbers?
No, you are welcome to use any cucumbers you can find! I definitely prefer the English (or Hothouse) Cucumbers because you don’t have to peel them, they are longer, skinnier and sweeter than a regular cucumber you’d get at the store, plus they are all seedless. Yes, they tend to have a higher price tag, but for good reason! You will fall in love with English Cucumbers.

If you’d prefer a regular cucumber, be sure to peel and de-seed it.

Can’t I Just Use Regular Tomatoes? Why Use Cherry Tomatoes?
I was very particular in choosing which tomatoes I’d prefer to use for this salad. Because a Cucumber Tomato Salad is basically just two ingredients with a few red onions and a homemade dressing, the cucumbers and tomatoes absolutely need to be delicious. In my opinion, cherry and grape tomatoes are sweet and delicious year round. I live in a place that has four seasons and I can’t grow delicious garden tomatoes in January, unfortunately. In the winter and sometimes even in the summer, store bought roma tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes and “on the vine” tomatoes can be a little grainy. The quality goes down in the winter months. But, I’ve found cherry and grape tomatoes are fabulous regardless of the month I’m buying them in. So that is what I recommend using for this salad.

How to Make Cucumber Tomato Salad | Directions
Because this is a no-cooking required recipe, it’s probably one of the easiest recipes on my site! Trim and slice up your veggies, add the dressing that that’s it!

Step 1: Prep your Cucumbers + Tomatoes
Wash your english cucumber and tomatoes. Halve the cherry tomatoes and slice the cucumbers into half moons. I link slicing my cucumbers slightly thinner, but feel free to keep this salad nice and chunky. Also, slice your red onions and add them to the bowl.

Step 2: Make the Dressing
In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, add grapeseed oil, white wine vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, sugar, salt and pepper. Whisk vigorously until emulsified.

Step 3: Toss Together
Pour the dressing over the veggies and toss to coat. You can serve immediately, or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate about an hour to marinate the veggies so they really absorb the flavors from the dressing. Serve!

Do I Have to Let My Salad Marinate in the Fridge?
Giving this salad time to sit and marinate in the fridge gives the tomatoes time to release some of their (sweet) juices and allows the onions to mellow out and not be so ‘spicy’ or strong. So, even though you can enjoy this immediately, I’d highly recommend letting it sit an hour in the fridge for maximum deliciousness. Totally personal preference.

pouring dressing over tomato cucumber salad
Variations
Cucumber Tomato Salad is a pretty simple and straight forward recipe that you can change and modify to make it just how you like it. Because this dressing is so versatile, it would taste delicious with all these options. Here are a couple of common ingredients I’d recommend trying:

avocado
feta cheese crumbles
fresh mozzarella
fresh basil (I love adding this! So so good!)
fresh corn
fresh chopped dill
canned chickpeas (drained and rinsed well)
quinoa

Cucumber Tomato Salad
Light, refreshing with a slight zing this is my Cucumber Tomato Salad recipe! It’s a classic that is perfect as a side dish or as a snack.

Ingredients
▢2 english cucumbers halved and sliced
▢1 pint cherry tomatoes halved
▢1/4 red onion sliced
For the dressing
▢3 tablespoons grape seed oil or olive oil
▢3 tablespoons white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar
▢salt & pepper to taste
▢1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
▢1/4 teaspoon onion powder
▢1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
US Customary – Metric
Instructions

Wash your english cucumber and tomatoes. Halve the cherry tomatoes and slice the cucumbers into half moons. I link slicing my cucumbers slightly thinner, but feel free to keep this salad nice and chunky. Also, slice your red onions and add them to the bowl.
tomatoes, onions and cucumber in glass bowl
In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, add grapeseed oil, white wine vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, sugar, salt and pepper. Whisk vigorously until emulsified.
pouring dressing over tomato cucumber salad
Pour the dressing over the veggies and toss to coat. You can serve immediately, or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate about an hour to marinate the veggies so they really absorb the flavors from the dressing. Serve!
cucumber tomato salad
Nutrition
Calories: 97kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 12mg | Potassium: 326mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 491IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 25mg | Iron: 1mg