Creamy Cucumber Salad

Creamy Cucumber Salad is a beautiful, thirst-quenching salad or side dish that's easy to make for any occasion. Old fashioned cucumber salad is especially refreshing at summer picnics and BBQ cookouts.

Why we love this cucumber salad recipe

• The ingredients for this salad are readily available in any supermarket. Cucumber salad with sour cream is a great way to use up extra summer cucumbers if you have them in the garden too.
• This recipe is super quick to make.
• This creamy cucumber and onion salad recipe is a total classic. It's an old fashioned cucumber salad that your grandmother probably made. An oldie but a goodie!
• This salad is healthy. Cucumber salad is naturally vegetarian, gluten free, and keto/low carb. Cucumbers have tons of nutritional value and antioxidants.
• It's the perfect side dish to Baked Chicken Thighs, Grilled Salmon, and Slow Cooker Pulled Pork.

Key ingredients in creamy cucumber salad

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• Cucumbers - Very thinly sliced cucumbers make up the bulk of this salad.
• Sea Salt - Salt adds flavor to the cucumbers and is used as a treatment to remove some of their moisture.
• Sour Cream - Sour cream is a classic ingredient in this salad, but plain Greek yogurt can work too. The flavor with yogurt is a bit more tart, but equally delicious.
• Garlic - A finely minced garlic clove adds warm, bold flavor to the salad.
• Fresh Dill - Dill is a must for this old fashioned cucumber salad. Fresh is better, but dried will work in a pinch.
• Black Pepper - Adds a mild bite to the salad.
• White Vinegar - Combined with the sour cream, white vinegar adds tang and thins out the dressing.
• Red Onion - Thinly sliced onion is a spicy, crunchy addition. I love the color of the red onions against the green cucumbers too; it's gorgeous!

Best cucumbers for creamy cucumber salad

I love English cucumbers for this recipe. You don't need to peel them because they're usually greenhouse-grown and wrapped in plastic, so all of the fiber and nutrition is fair game. They are relatively seedless and perfect for slicing. Homegrown cucumbers usually have a lot of seeds, so you'll want to cut these in half lengthwise and remove the seeds before slicing.

How to slice cucumbers for cucumber salad

The right sized sliced cucumbers are key to making this salad amazing. You want them thin, but not so thin that they fall apart. A great trick is to use a mandoline slicer or a food processer (fitted with a slicing blade) to get uniform slices with minimal effort.

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How to make cucumber salad with sour cream

You want to remove moisture from the cucumbers or the sour cream dressing will become watery over time. So, start by lining a baking sheet with paper towels. Scatter the sliced cucumbers on the paper towels and lightly sprinkle with sea salt. Do this in two layers. Allow the salted cucumbers to rest for about 15 minutes to remove some of the moisture from them.

While cucumbers are resting, mix together sour cream, garlic, dill, black pepper, and vinegar. Dry the cucumbers, then add them to a large bowl along with sliced red onions and dressing.

Toss until well combined. Serve immediately or store until ready to serve.

Can I substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream?

Yes you can! Greek yogurt is an excellent substitute for sour cream in most cold applications (and one of my favorite kitchen hacks). Greek yogurt is a healthy swap because it can be any fat percentage you prefer. I personally love the flavor and texture of nonfat Greek yogurt ... much better than non-fat sour cream.

Recommended Tools

• mandoline slicer or chef knife
• cutting board
• baking sheet (or wide bowl)
• paper towels (or clean flour sack towel)
• mixing bowls
• whisk
• stirring utensil
• airtight storage container

More cucumber salad recipes

• Cucumber Tomato Salad
• Thai Cucumber Salad
• Mango Avocado Cucumber Salsa
• Vegetarian Banh Mi Bowls

More summer salads to enjoy

• Bacon Broccoli Salad
• Classic Coleslaw Recipe
• Creamy Macaroni Salad
• Loaded Baked Potato Salad
• BLT Pasta Salad

What to Serve with Creamy Cucumber Salad

• Greek Lemon Roasted Chicken Thighs
• Instant Pot Pulled Pork
• Baked Chicken Thighs
• Baked Chicken Legs
• Broiled Salmon
• Garlic Butter Grilled Salmon