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This easy Cucumber Salad with Vinegar is crisp, tangy, and ready in just 10 minutes! A perfect refreshing summer side dish for BBQs, picnics, and potlucks.
Table of Contents
- A Light and Refreshing Summer Side Dish
- Ingredients You’ll Need for Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
- Where this Recipe Came From
- What’s the Best Type of Cucumber to Use?
- Salad Dressing Substitutions
- Is Cucumber Salad Keto Friendly?
- Suggestions for Cucumber Salad
- How to Serve & Store
- Questions About Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
- How to Make Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
- Cucumber Salad with Vinegar Recipe
- More Fresh Summer Side Dishes
A Light and Refreshing Summer Side Dish
I don’t know about you, but when the sun is shining and the grill is fired up, I crave something light, crisp, and refreshing to balance out all those smoky, savory flavors. And let me tell you, this easy Cucumber Salad with Vinegar is exactly that! It’s bright, tangy, a little sweet, and comes together in just 10 minutes. It’s the perfect side for grilled chicken, hot dogs, steaks, burgers, you name it. And best of all? You only need six simple ingredients to make it.
You can serve this as an appetizer, snack, or side dish. It’s perfect for picnics, potlucks, and barbecue cookouts because it keeps well in the fridge and can be made ahead of time. Add regular or cherry tomatoes to make it even more colorful!
Ingredients You’ll Need for Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
I always have these ingredients on hand during the summer because they make the easiest, most refreshing salad:
- Cucumbers – Five fresh, crisp cucumbers from the garden or the grocery store are my go-to, but feel free to use more or less depending on how many you’re serving.
- Red Onion – Not only does it add a pop of color, but it also brings a bit of sharpness to balance the sweetness. Prefer a milder taste? Swap it out for a Vidalia onion.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – I love the tangy, slightly fruity kick of apple cider vinegar. You can also substitute white vinegar, red wine vinegar, or rice vinegar.
- Sugar – About half a cup, but you can adjust depending on your sweetness preference.
- Water – Half a cup helps balance the acidity of the vinegar.
- Salt & Black Pepper – A teaspoon of salt and a few cracks of black pepper to taste.
Where this Recipe Came From
In my humble opinion, this is the best cucumber salad recipe out there! My mom made this salad often when I was growing up, and we still make it today. It’s the perfect side dish and a great way to bring some freshness into your meal! The sliced cucumbers and red onions soak up the sweet and tangy vinegar dressing so well. This is definitely one of my favorite salads for summer nights.
What’s the Best Type of Cucumber to Use?
Honestly, any kind of slicing cucumber will work, but my top choices are:
- Garden-fresh cucumbers (if you’re lucky enough to have a garden!)
- English cucumbers – They’re crisp and have thinner skin, so no peeling necessary.
- Persian cucumbers – Slightly smaller and extra crunchy.
If using regular grocery store cucumbers, I recommend peeling them if the skin is thick and waxy.
Salad Dressing Substitutions
There are also creamy cucumber salads that use a sour cream and mayonnaise based dressing. Again, it’s a matter of preference. This adds calories to the salad, and makes a heavier dressing that can dominate the fresh cucumber taste. With the vinegar based dressing, this cucumber salad is only 66 calories per serving.
Is Cucumber Salad Keto Friendly?
Yes! Just swap out the sugar for monk fruit sweetener or your preferred keto-friendly alternative, and you’re good to go. This salad is also gluten-free!
Suggestions for Cucumber Salad
This salad is delicious as-is, but if you’re feeling creative, here are some fun ways to mix it up:
- Add cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, or sliced tomatoes with a splash of olive oil for extra color and sweetness.
- Toss in some feta cheese for a creamy, salty flavor.
- Sprinkle with fresh herbs like basil, dill, or parsley to enhance the freshness.
- Mix in sliced green, red, or yellow bell peppers or even squash for more crunch and variety.
- Love a little heat? A pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of hot sauce will give it a kick!
- Season the salad with minced garlic for added flavor.
How to Serve & Store
You can enjoy this salad right away, but letting it marinate for at least 20 minutes makes it even better! If you want to prepare it ahead of time, store it in an airtight container or mason jar in the fridge. It’ll keep well for up to three days, though the cucumbers will soften over time. (Some people keep it for up to a week, but I find it best when eaten fresh!)
Questions About Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
At least 20 minutes and up to 3 days.
If they have a thick skin, yes. If they’re thin-skinned, just give them a good wash and slice away.
Anything you love! Tomatoes, feta, chickpeas, herbs, peppers—get creative!
More Cucumber Salad Recipes
How to Make Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
Cucumber Salad with Vinegar
Video
Ingredients
- 5 cucumbers
- 1 red onion
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar (or white vinegar, red wine vinegar, rice vinegar)
- ½ cup sugar (or more to taste)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Peel and slice cucumbers into thin slices.
- Cut onion in half and cut into very thin slices.
- Combine onions and cucumbers in a large bowl.
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Stir until sugar dissolves.
- Pour vinegar mixture over cucumbers and onions. Stir until the cucumbers are evenly coated in the dressing.*
- Refrigerate at least 20 minutes. Before serving, drain liquid and place in a serving bowl to serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
More Fresh Summer Side Dishes
Looking for more easy, refreshing sides? Check out these favorites:
Chopped Broccoli Salad
Watermelon Feta Salad
Caprese Salad
Greek Pasta Salad
Wedge Salad
Grilled Corn Salad
I only used 1/4 cup sugar. The first time I used 1/2 and it was way to sweet. Otherwise perfect.
I have made this salad with rice vinegar and a teaspoon of sesame seed oil, it bumps up the flavor another notch.
Love this salad. We also like to put tomatoes in with it!
Leave the liquid, at least I do and I been making this for 40 years. The first recipe my Grandmother taught me at 5 yrs old
I made this and it’s DELICIOUS!!! Perfect recipe. I only used 1jumbo cucumber and used apple cider vinegar. Everything else used what was called for. I love it ! Thanks
Relatively tasteless. Texture was nice, flavors came through but definitely needed more spices.
This was delicious! I added halved, cherry tomatoes. Yum. Next time I’d cut back a little on the sugar, though…it was just a tiny bit too sweet for me.
This is so good…. I just made this. I made it with yellow onions(all I had). I didn’t use the water, as I figured the cucumbers and the tomatoes I added would give them enough water. This is a nice change from my sour cream dressing I make. I’ve been looking for a recipe like this, and this hit the spot!!! Thank you so much for the recipe!!
Easy and DELICIOUS!!!!
Loved this recipe! I added an 1/8 tsp.
of dried dill but followed the recipe other than that. Right amount of sweet tart flavor. Thanks for sharing.
Love, love, love, love…… I have an abundance of cucumbers. This recipe is a very tasty solution to my bumper cucumber crop. Thank you.
That is amazing you have so many cucumbers! This is the perfect dish and so easy to make!
Dianna,
My mom used to sprinkle salt on the cucumbers first let’s sit for a few minutes and then with clean hands squeeze the cucumber and you will get lots of juice. So where it says add salt in the recipe you’re going to sprinkle it on the cucumbers and you’re going to use this liquid to make the dressing. Then continue with the recipe
I cut the recipe in half and it’s delicious!
My grandmother use to make this all the time for us for dinner and tasted real good.
I have read other recipes that call for sprinkling kosher salt over the sliced cucumbers and let sit 30 minutes. Then rinse well and pat dry before adding to dressing. This takes out a lot of the water in the cukes. This adds more water. Why is that? Just curious. Haven’t made but hoping to this weekend. It’s so hot to eat hot.
This recipe has a little bit more of a dressing to it, I think.
I have not made it yet, but it is very similar to what I’ve made in the past. I usually, substitute the sugar with Splenda and it tastes just as good.
I will be making this in a couple days.
How much is a serving size?
We don’t have an exact serving size but the whole recipe feeds 10 people as a side dish.
How can this be reduced to 1 or two cucumbers?
You can just reduce all the other ingredients in proportion to the cucumbers!
Recipe calls for 5 cucumbers, just cut everything in half. Once you get it put together you should taste and adjust ingredients to your desired taste. I noticed that it did not indicate salt and pepper. I would definitely add some. Adding some diced fresh tomatoes is always good too.
**On another note I do not use regular sugar. I substitute Splenda instead.
Good Luck
I make cucumber onion salad using zero sugar, then zesty italian dressing w copious amts of fresh ground course black pepper. Always a hit.
This is so good! Tastes just like what my mom used to make! Thank You so much!
This takes me back to summers spent at my grandmothers farm. We would pick the cucumbers, get them sliced, and grandma would make this with cider vinegar, water, sugar, and celery salt instead of regular salt. It was perfection. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Thank you for sharing this – I’m glad it brought back a sweet memory for you!
Yes, heat the liquid then cool. But for crisp cukes and onions, soak in crushed ice in water for an hour or so. Then continue with the recipe. After they are in the fridge, they will keep for a long time – a month or so.
Debbie Claitior,
Interesting tips on heating the liquid and putting the cucumbers in ice. I will be trying it that way.