Cucumber Ribbon Salad plus Yogurt Herb Dressing

At a glance

What stands out: This cucumber ribbon salad is straightforward to mix and is full of great flavor, thanks to a creamy yogurt herb dressing. The cucumber salad is light and refreshing with only 28 calories per serving.

How long it takes: 10 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: sharp knife (or spiralizer), bowl, measuring utensils
Servings: 4

Cucumbers are thinly sliced into beautiful cucumber ribbons and topped with a creamy yogurt dill dressing for a uniquely gorgeous salad.

If you love tzatziki, a cucumber yogurt sauce that’s often found in Middle Eastern dishes, you’ll love this salad. Cucumber ribbon salad is also similar to German cucumber salad, which is made of sliced cucumbers with a sour cream dressing.

Refreshing Cucumber Ribbon Salad

Lots of herbal flavor! Cucumber salad is refreshing thanks to the crisp fresh cucumbers and lots of fresh herbs. We use chives, parsley, and dill but any combination of fresh herbs works well, including mint. (Be sure to try our cucumber lime cooler with fresh mint, too! It’s a mocktail that can easily be made into a cocktail.)

A simple dressing. The dressing is straightforward to mix with yogurt, salt and pepper. Use fat-free, low-fat, or regular yogurt, it’s up to you.

Always in season. Cucumbers are available in grocery stores year-round so this salad is reliable anytime. Whether you’re cooking burgers outside or pulled pork in your slow cooker on a cold winter day, cucumber salad will fit right in. It goes well with richer meals, providing freshness and lightness to an otherwise heavy meal.

How To Cut Cucumber Ribbons

If you have one, use a spiralizer to cut the cucumbers into pretty ribbons but if you don’t have a spiralizer, don’t worry. A vegetable peeler works well to make thin ribbons (watch this video). Another option is to simply cut the cucumbers into thin slices or half moons with a sharp knife, the thinner the better. If you love the idea of eating “ribbons”, be sure to try sautéed summer squash and zucchini ribbons and asparagus ribbon salad with beets and burrata.

Recipe Tips/Troubleshooting

Peeling/not peeling cucumbers: If you use thinner skinned varieties, like English, hot house, or Persian, there’s no need to peel the cucumber. Rinse them well and cut off the ends. Thicker skinned varieties should be peeled. Often they are coated with wax to extend the shelf-life.

Watery salad: Cucumbers contain a lot of water. Using Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt helps this salad stay creamy. If your cucumbers have a lot of seeds, remove them before slicing the cucumber. Another method is to salt the cucumber first, allowing the salt to draw out the water. Let the salted cucumbers drain in a colander for a half hour, rinse, and pat dry. Continue with the recipe.

Possible Recipe Variations

• Try a different dressing. Blue cheese dressing, green goddess dressing, or lemon basil vinaigrette are great choices.
• Add an extra layer of flavor. Stir in a teaspoon of grated garlic and a squeeze of lemon juice.
• Garnish with cheese. Sprinkle the salad with crumbled feta cheese, Parmesan curls, or blue cheese crumbles.
• Add more veggies. Thinly sliced onions, radishes, tomatoes, or carrots taste great in this salad.
• Not into creamy dressings? Try our cucumber salad with a straightforward vinegar dressing or refrigerator dill pickles. For a spicy kick, straightforward Korean pickles are a must try! All three recipes are also dairy-free.

Keeping leftovers

This salad is best eaten immediately. It should be refrigerated in a tightly covered container for up to two days. Keep in mind that the cucumber salad may get a bit watery and lose some of the crispness. Stir well, or add a few more cucumbers to refresh it.

• Yield: 4
• Prep: 10 minutes
• Total: 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 English cucumber (or another type of thin-skinned cucumber)
• ½ cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt (see note)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
• ¼ cup minced fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Using a spiralizer, cut the cucumber into ribbons with the ribbon blade. If you don’t have a spiralizer, use a vegetable peeler to make ribbons, or thinly slice the cucumber in half moons using a sharp knife.
2. In a small bowl, mix together Greek yogurt, chives, parsley, dill, salt and pepper. Taste dressing and season with more salt and pepper as needed.
3. Mix dressing into cucumbers and stir well to combine. Best served immediately but if you're not ready, refrigerate until ready to serve.

Notes

Cucumbers: we prefer English cucumbers to regular cucumbers. The skin is tender and the cucumbers contain less seeds. If you can’t find them, regular cucumbers can be substituted but for best results, peel the cucumbers and seed them if the seeds are large.

Yogurt choices: For a creamier salad, substitute 2% or full-fat Greek yogurt. Sour cream is good, too. Regular (not Greek) yogurt tends to separate and can make the salad too watery.

Storage: Although the salad is best eaten immediately, it can be refrigerated in a covered container for up to two days. The salad may get a little watery and the cucumber will get slightly softer. You can refresh the salad by adding freshly cut cucumbers; stir well to combine.

Dairy-free: For a dairy-free cucumber salad, try this cucumber onion salad.