Description
Mediterranean cucumber & feta salad offers crisp, refreshing flavors perfect for summer gatherings. Cool ingredients blend seamlessly, inviting you to savor each light and zesty bite.
Ingredients
Scale
- 4 medium cucumbers
- 4 oz (113 g) crumbled feta cheese
- ½ medium red onion
- ¼ cup packed fresh basil leaves
- ¼ cup packed fresh parsley leaves
- 1 tbsp packed fresh oregano
- 1 or 2 lemon verbena leaves (optional)
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Edible flowers, for garnish
Instructions
- Moisture Extraction: Salt cucumber slices and let them rest in a metal sieve over a bowl, allowing excess liquid to drain for 25 minutes while occasionally stirring to release water.
- Vinaigrette Preparation: Blend fresh basil, parsley, oregano, and optional lemon verbena with olive oil until herbs are finely pulverized, creating a vibrant and aromatic dressing.
- Salad Assembly: Combine drained cucumber slices with thinly sliced red onion and crumbled feta cheese in a spacious mixing bowl, ensuring even distribution of ingredients.
- Dressing Integration: Drizzle herb vinaigrette over the salad, gently tossing to coat all components thoroughly, adjusting the quantity to personal taste preferences.
- Finishing Touches: Enhance the salad with freshly ground black pepper and optional edible floral garnishes, adding visual appeal and subtle flavor complexity to the dish.
Notes
- Drain Cucumber Thoroughly: Salt and drain cucumber slices for 25 minutes to remove excess water, preventing a watery salad and ensuring crisp, concentrated flavor.
- Herb Vinaigrette Flexibility: Choose between blending or hand-chopping herbs for different texture experiences – smooth and refined or rustic and chunky.
- Balance Dressing Carefully: Start with half the vinaigrette and adjust gradually to prevent overwhelming delicate cucumber and feta flavors.
- Garnish Strategically: Use edible flowers sparingly to add visual interest and subtle complexity without overshadowing the main ingredients.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Appetizer, Snacks
- Method: Blending
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 5
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 2 g
- Sodium: 300 mg
- Fat: 14 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 6 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 10 mg