Cucumber Tomato Salad Recipe (w/ Easy Dressing) + Video
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Cucumber Tomato Salad is the best of summer’s harvest. Crisp cucumbers and luscious tomatoes tossed in a bright and creamy lemon poppy seed dressing. This tomato cucumber salad recipe is my newest obsession. It’s the perfect way to use those fresh cucumbers and I love making this with other simple ingredients.
Trust me when I say you’ll want a large bowl to make this tomato-cucumber salad. It’s not only a refreshing salad, but it’s one of those summer salads that everyone loves.
This is because it has a mild flavor due to the use of fresh ingredients. (and it’s also an easy recipe to make!)
The combination of tomatoes with crisp cucumber addition is what this simple salad is all about.
Once summer arrives, it’s the perfect time of year to whip up this great recipe.
Cucumber Tomato Salad
Summer is a perfect time to make veggie salads. Vegetables are plentiful at the farmer’s market or in our gardens.
So, if you want to try a few more of my favorites after you’ve made this tomato and cucumber salad recipe, here are a few ideas.
My Asian Inspired Carrot and Cucumber Salad uses fresh vegetables with an Asian-inspired dressing, perfect for lunch!
Creamy Cucumber Salad comes together in 10 minutes with red onions and a spectacular poppy seed dressing. For a delicious salad that is both hearty and beautiful, try our 7-Layer Salad instead!
Or, this Cucumber Vinegar Salad is a Southern classic. It has a delicious sweet vinegar marinade that is sure to be a hit.
Tomato and Cucumber Salad Recipe Notes
- Prep ahead. Cucumbers have a tendency to release a lot of liquid.
To avoid a watery salad, place sliced cukes in a serving dish and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt.
Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours, then pour off the liquid (do not rinse). Do not add more salt — there will be plenty left over! - Peel if you’d like. We don’t peel the cucumbers when we make this tomato cucumber salad recipe — it adds a little extra crunch and is less work!
But if you want to, you can peel them before you slice them. - Make ahead tip: Prepare the cucumber tomato salad dressing in a mason jar and store it in the refrigerator.
Give it a good shake, then toss the salad with it the day you plan to serve it.
Best Dressing for Cucumber Tomato Salad
We love a tangy, homemade poppy seed dressing for cucumber tomato salad!
It rounds out the flavors, and the creaminess balances all the crunchy textures in this tomato and cucumber salad recipe.
Not a fan of poppy seeds? Simply leave them out or try one of the other dressing suggestions listed below.
Flavor Varieties
There are many different things you can add to this cucumber tomato salad.
Why not try adding chopped avocado, corn, chopped chives, or even chunks of watermelon — you won’t believe how delicious it is!
- Give it a Mexican twist by adding bell peppers and crushed red pepper flakes.
- Make a Mediterranean cucumber tomato salad dressing with lemon and olive oil instead of poppy seeds.
- For a Greek Cucumber Tomato Salad, add black olives and crumbled feta cheese.
There are a lot of different ingredients that you can add to this simple cucumber tomato salad. Diced green bell pepper, yellow onions, sweet onion, fresh basil leaves, fresh herbs, kalamata olives, fresh dill, more cherry tomatoes or sweet tomatoes, even diced roma tomatoes as well.
It’s a refreshing side dish, no matter how you make it happen.
The recipe card below gives you all the steps that you need to make this easy salad, so gather the main ingredients and get started!
It’s the perfect punch of fresh flavor for the year!
Tomato Cucumber Salad Recipe FAQ
For the best flavor, allow the vegetables in this tomato and cucumber salad recipe to marinate for at least 20 minutes. You can let them marinate for up to twenty-four hours in the refrigerator if you want to make this salad the day before.
When choosing the best tomatoes for this tomato cucumber salad recipe, look for tomatoes with no blemishes or bruises.
They should be a deep, bright red color. If one has a pale color or is mottled with green, the flavor won’t be the best.
Be sure to avoid any tomatoes with black spots on them.
There are many different types of cucumbers you can use in this cucumber and tomato salad. I typically use English Cucumbers because they have fewer seeds.
You can also choose from one of these varieties:
Armenian cucumbers have soft skin and seeds.
Garden cucumbers are the most common and have large seeds.
Gherkins are small and are often used for pickling.
Kirby cucumbers, which are often referred to as pickling cucumbers.
Serving Suggestions
Cucumber Tomato Salad is a perfect summer side to go with any grilled meat.
You can serve it when you Grill the Perfect Steak. It also goes wonderfully with Honey Balsamic Grilled Chicken. Or, why not try it with this Spicy Grilled London Broil?
Storing Leftover Cucumber Tomato Salad
If you store this salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator, it should last up to a week. After that, the tomatoes will start to get soft.
If you remove the tomatoes, you can store this salad for closer to two weeks. Just chop fresh tomatoes right before you want to serve it again.
Enjoy!
With love, from our simple kitchen to yours.
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Other Easy Salad Recipes
Cucumber Tomato Salad Recipe (w/ Easy Dressing) + Video
Equipment
- chef's knife A sharp knife or mandolin is always a necessity when slicing cucumbers.
- cutting board A high-quality cutting board comes in handy when prepping this salad.
- mixing bowls Combine all of the ingredients for this salad in a large mixing bowl.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 English cucumbers, cut into half coins
- 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
Instructions
- Combine lemon juice, sugar, olive oil, poppy seeds, mustard, garlic, salt, and onion powder in a large bowl. Whisk well until dressing is completely combined.
- Add cucumbers, tomatoes, and onion to the bowl. Toss to combine.
- Chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!
Video
Donna’s Notes
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
Originally published July 2016, updated and republished May 2024
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This has become a favorite salad of ours! I occasionally add avocado, delicious.
Am I being dumb or what,I couldn't find the video.. lol
I love this salad. I make it all the time without poppyseeds. Delicious! Sometimes I toss in a box of Chickpea pasta (it’s our go-to pasta nowadays) for a more filling side dish for my husband and son. I double the dressing recipe for that (except I don’t double the sugar and I never add salt). We can each add salt & pepper to our fish as we like…but I don’t even miss the salt at all. Great recipe! Thx so much
looks brilliant can’t wait to try it out, I being a bit dumb but can’t quite figure out the dressing recipe, everything else was clear
Step one in the recipe directions is for the dressing.
I can not find the measurements anywhere in the link. Am i
Missing something? Video is not working. Thank you
I love the fresh taste of the lemon dressing with this salad.
Can’t find the video, but I do have the recipe; I’ll try it!
I have a brand new bottle of poppyseed dressing and am wondering if I could use that and just add some lemon juice and a little dijon to it. What do you think??
That’s what I was thinking. Did you try it?
Marcus…this is the dressing recipe! The veggies are just tomatoes, cukes, onion. ENjoy
Very nice recipe! I had to use 4 teaspoons allulose in place of the sugar since I’m diabetic and it was still wonderful. In fact, I use this dressing on my lettuce salads, too, because it’s got such a fresh, perky flavor.
Loved this recipe with hot pepper flakes orange bell peppers and multicolored cherry tomatoes. Very colorful. Heavy on the lemon juice
I made this tonight to go with our dinner. I’m not a fan of cucumbers
but I enjoyed this salad, it was a tad too sweet for me so I will adjust the sugar the sugar the next time.
I have made something similar. I use 1:1 ratio of tomatoes, cucumbers, and Mozzarella cheese. Add a little but of Italian dressing. Your dressing sounds good, too.
Hi Mary,
That sound delicious! This is one of my favorite recipes. Have a great day!
TSRI Team Member,
Holli
This cucumber tomato salad is a summer staple in our house! The dressing is so light and refreshing. Thanks, Donna and Chad!
Hi Melissa!
We’re so glad that you enjoyed the recipe!
TSRI Team Member,
Devlyn
I love this recipe, but the second time I made it, I added a bit of mayo to it, to help it emulsify. The poppy seeds are pretty, but I really don’t think they add anything to the delicious recipe, so if you don’t have them, just leave them out. You will enjoy this recipe either way!
Hi Debbie!
Glad you enjoyed the Recipe!
TSRI Team Member,
Devlyn