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Cucumber Tomato Salad is a toss of seasonal rustic ingredients marinated in a dash of tangy red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing. This side salad is full with farm-fresh taste with seasonal tomatoes and cucumbers.
Some other side salads I enjoy are this bacon ranch pasta salad and this Italian marinated vegetables.
Cucumber Tomato Salad
With the slow seasonal shift here in Charleston our days will remain bright and warm well into the winter months. However, the crops resemble the same familiar patterns of harvest elsewhere. In an attempt to preserve the fresh summer produce I am making salads in abundance, and canning those ingredients I want to savor in the months to come.
There is just something to be said about a salad with farm-fresh ingredients spilling one over the other. The cucumber tomato salad is one of the simplest of summer produce indulgences. Crisp ripe English cucumbers, vine-ripe tomatoes bursting with juices, and marinated in red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing allow me to soak up the summer delicacies.
Best Tomatoes for Cucumber Tomato Salad
As with any food when it comes to taste most suggestions are purely opinion-based. For instance, the tomato suggestions for this recipe are purely my own. I prefer to use a combination of Roma tomatoes and tomatoes on the vine. Depending on the options available at my local farmers market or grocer I may on occasion add some heirloom tomatoes.
Dressing Variations
I like to change up recipes when I make them over and over and one way to do that is by changing the dressing. For example, this cucumber tomato salad can be made with a variety of dressings. Each recipe below is a slightly different variation of the other, but the small changes really help alter the flavor.
- Red Wine Vinaigrette: Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, Brown Sugar
- Balsamic Vinaigrette: Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, Dijon Mustard Honey
- Cider Vinaigrette: Olive Oil, Apple Cider Vinegar, Brown Sugar
How to Choose the Right Olive Oil
Heat, light, and age all affect the polyphenol content of olive oil. Immediately, you can rule out plenty of bottles in the store if they are not dark green or black in color. The green shade is a protectant of harmful light exposure. Extra virgin olive oil is the best and safest version you can purchase.
Make sure to check the country of origin. Many countries such as Spain, Greece, Tunisia, Turkey, and even California sell quality olive oils, however, Italian usually still ranks as best. Therefore, read the fine print on the back to ensure both the olives and the oil come from Italy. It’s not Italian olive oil if it comes from multiple countries.
Additional Tomato Salad Recipes
Ingredients
Salad
- 3 Vine Ripe Tomatoes cored, and quartered
- 4 Plum Tomatoes cored, and quartered
- 1 English Cucumber sliced thin
- 1/2 Red Onion sliced
- 2 tablespoons Fresh Italian Parsley finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons Fresh Cilantro finely chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon Brown Sugar
- Salt and Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
Dressing
- 1/2 cup Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
- 3 Garlic Cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar
- 1 teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
Salad
- Core the tomatoes, then cut into wedges and half the wedges. Slice the cucumber and red onion and place in a large bowl. Add the parsley, cilantro, brown sugar, and salt and pepper to the bowl. Toss ingredients to coat.
Dressing
- Whisk the dressing ingredients together and pour over the salad. Toss to coat and chill for 20 minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Yum, love a good cucumber tomato salad. The dressing for this is so delicious. I topped mine with some feta too!