Italian Cucumber Salad
This quick and easy Italian cucumber salad recipe only needs 4 ingredients: fresh tomatoes, cucumber, and red onion in an Italian dressing. This salad is fast, fresh, and so flavorful.
Whenever the weather is warmer I’m just itching for fresh food and sunshine. Depending on when you read this it may be a little early for produce from your own garden but thanks to the marvels of our modern grocery stores, I can get all I need to whip up this salad in a jiff. This serves as a delicious side dish bursting with garden flavor and can be kept in the refrigerator for several days.
My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
When you see how quick and easy it is, this may very well end up being your favorite salad of the summer! My quick and easy Italian tomato cucumber salad recipe is made with just 4 ingredients: fresh tomato, crisp cucumber, red onion, and Italian dressing. All we’re going to do is chop up the vegetables, add them to a bowl with the Italian dressing, give it a good stir, then refrigerate the salad for several hours to let the flavors meld together.
It’s fresh, it’s fast, and that Italian dressing means it’s also so flavorful. You can’t go wrong with this Italian cucumber tomato salad and it’s the perfect dish to bring to your next potluck or picnic. Now, let’s take a closer look at the ingredients and instructions. But don’t blink because you might miss them!
Recipe Ingredients
- Tomatoes (I’m using Roma tomatoes, but cherry tomatoes also work well).
- Red onion
- Cucumbers
- Italian dressing
How to Make Italian Cucumber Salad
Chop or slice your cucumber.
I’m leaving my skin on but you can peel it if you prefer.
Place that in a large bowl.
Do the same with your tomato.
Toss that in there too.
If you want you can just use a can of diced tomatoes and drain them.
Chop up your onion.
Add that in.
Pour the whole bottle of dressing into the bowl.
Ugh. I made this last week and ate every last bit of it. As soon as I press send on this post I’m heading to get the stuff to make it again!
Lawdy it’s good.
Stir.
Cover with a lid and place in the refrigerator for several hours to marinate.
Serve as the perfect side to BBQ, grilled burgers, or whatever your heart desires!
I just plop it in a bowl and dig into it all on its own!
Storage
Leftover salad will last, covered, in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Recipe Notes
- You can use any raw veggie you like here really, just go with what you like. Be sure to wash them well before using them though.
- You can also use either original or zesty Italian dressing. However, I’m a big fan of Kraft Italian dressing because, in my personal opinion, it tastes exactly like what they use at Olive Garden.
- Want to make homemade Italian dressing? You’ll need ingredients like white or red wine vinegar, olive oil, freshly grated parmesan cheese, sugar or honey, Italian seasoning (dried basil, dried parsley, and/or dried oregano work as well), and garlic powder.
- Add a garnish of freshly chopped parsley or leaves to your .
- For an extra Italian touch, add some chopped olives.
- Salt and black pepper to taste.
Recipe FAQs
How do you serve Italian cucumber salad?
Serve your salad as a side dish with any kind of main meal, such as:
- BBQ Chicken Breast in Oven
- Slow-Roasted Beef Brisket in the Oven
- Grilled Chicken Tenders (No Grill Needed)
- Meatloaf Burgers
- Butter Roasted Chicken Recipe
- Slow Cooker Angel Chicken Pasta
It also wouldn’t be an without a serving of on the side as well, right?
Can I make Italian cucumber salad in advance?
Yes, I’d recommend making it up to 24 hours in advance to let all those flavors marinate together.
Here are some more summer salad recipes:
Tomato, Onion, and Cucumber Salad
Recipe for Caprese Salad with Chicken and Avocado
Ingredients
- 3-4 chopped Roma tomatoes or your choice (about 1.5 cups)
- 1 large red onion, diced
- 2 cucumbers, chopped
- 1 bottle Italian dressing or your choice
Instructions
- Place all vegetables in a large bowl. Pour in the entire bottle of dressing and stir.3-4 chopped Roma tomatoes or your choice, 1 large red onion, diced, 2 cucumbers, chopped, 1 bottle Italian dressing or your choice
- Cover and refrigerate for several hours before serving.
- Can be kept in the refrigerator for several days.
I’m an angel and if someone breaks my wings
I continue to fly on a broomstick…I’m very flexible.
Submitted by Iplayoutside the box. Submit your quote here.
Yumm, that salad looks fresh and tasty!! 😀
I was sitting here a couple of weeks ago thinking about digging up my back yard to plant a little garden. I am on dialysis and don’t have a big store of energy so I just thought about it. Well, thank you so much for your garden tips. I am going to do just what you did. My husband will help because it doesn’t include digging and upheaval. Thank you again for all your tips, I think you are wonderful and wish you were my sister!!!
I will be planting jalapeno peppers in half of one of the tubs. I use them to make a sauce for omelets. I chop up 3 big onions, 3 big green peppers, and about twelve jalapeno peppers and then saute them in butter until tender. I add about a gallon of tomato puree and simmer this all together till the flavors blend together. This is wonderful over 3 egg omelets. Have a lot of napkins to wipe the sweat off your forhead, but the taste is great. Serve with buttered toast.
Also, just a thought for the dressing for the Italian Cucumber Salad. I use Good Seasoning dry italian dressing and make it as specified on the package, except I use Balsamic vinegar. This makes a great Balsamic Vinegrette.
Yum!!! Except I’d have to leave out the red onion…still not a big fan of raw onion, but I’ve come a long way! Anyways, I found your raised bed “technique” a few weeks ago and went out and bought me a baby pool combined with the one I have from last year so now we’re ready to go. In fact, I just got back from Walmart and Lowe’s with the peat moss, compost and pepper plants, eggplants. I’m so excited!!!
LOVE this salad and LOVE kraft Tuscan Italian dressing. It is SO yummy. When I make this salad I often scrape some of the seeds out of cucumbers or use cukes (seedless cumcumbers). I have a sensitive stomach for seeds so it helps alot. Also: instead of italian dressing I just load it up with some EVOO & Lemon Juice. The lemon juice keeps the color in the cucumbers as well. For an extra treat -throw in some FETA! OMG my mouth is watering. I’m going to have to make it tonight!
I used to make this for our deli case at the grocery store I previously worked for. It was so simple to make and we sold quite a bit of it .. I probably shouldn’t have but, I’d tell my customers how easy it was to make and they said they’d rather have us do all the work for them. We sold it for $3.99/lb. Can you believe it?
And, I’d always use the $1 bottled Italian on it and people loooooved it! Crazy .. XD
Every year I tell my self that I am going to have a garden. We have the perfect spot out in the back of the house that is enclosed with a fence. Finally this year I got one started in my house.
Here in KY I was always told growing up not to put anything out till after derby. I got cucumbers and green peppers already started, my poor tomatoes are a very sad looking, their stems are so thin they can’t eve be held up with a toothpick. I think I might go out and buy some and plant those.
I also have some silver queen sweet corn, pumpkins (I always have wanted to try to grown pumpkins), watermelon, sunflowers and some strawberrys. I am waiting till the end of May to get those out.
My husband and I can live off this salad in the summer.
When you transplant the tomatoes, bury most of the stem. Just cut the leaves off, they will get stronger.
I know the red/purple onion makes it look pretty but I love the sweet Vidalia onions best. They will start coming in next month.
I love sweet onions with EVERYTHING. Does that make me an onion head??? I sautee them and put them in cooked mixed greens , add a little cornbread . yum yum.