Cucumber and Tomato Salad is a simple side dish with fresh tomatoes, cucumber, feta cheese and more! Try this cucumber tomato feta salad for an easy summer salad or side dish requiring only 15 minutes of prep work.
Contents
Yield: 6 servings | Prep Time:35 mins | Cook Time:5 mins | Total Time:35 mins
Ingredients
- 2 pints ripe cherry tomatoes quartered (about 4 cups)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 medium shallot minced
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ground black pepper
- 1 medium cucumber peeled, seeded and diced into ½-inch chunks
- 4 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- 1-2 tablespoons fresh parsley minced
Instructions
- Combine the tomatoes, salt and sugar in a medium bowl; toss to combine. Let stand for 30 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a salad spinner and spin until the seeds and excess liquid have been removed, about 1 minute. Stir to redistribute the tomatoes during spinning as needed. Return the tomatoes to the bowl and set aside. (If you don’t have a salad spinner, you can put the tomatoes in a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and gently shake the bowl to remove the excess seeds and liquid.) Strain the tomato liquid through a fine mesh strainer into a liquid measuring cup, pressing to extract as much liquid as possible.
- Combine no more than ½ cup of the tomato liquid with the garlic, oregano, shallot and vinegar in a small saucepan set over medium heat. Simmer until the mixture is reduced, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Whisk in the oil, and season with pepper to taste.
- Add the cucumber, feta, dressing and parsley to the bowl with the tomatoes. Toss gently and serve.
Notes
- You can substitute cherry tomatoes with grape tomatoes.
- You can omit the sugar, if desired.
- If you don’t have a salad spinner, follow alternative directions above.
- Don’t be too concerned if you don’t have very much tomato liquid. Even after spinning the tomatoes, sometimes you may get even less than 1/4 of a cup. Combine whatever liquid you have, up to 1/2 cup, with the other ingredients and decrease the amount of time to simmer on the stove.
- Store this salad in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.