Greek Cucumber Salad
This Greek cucumber salad is loaded with delicious and filling veggies, topped with creamy hummus and comes together in just 20 minutes!
Do you have one of those meals that you just keep going back to, time and time again? The ones that don’t really require specific quantities, have amazing flavors, and taste great no matter what? That’s what this Greek Cucumber Salad is for me. One taste and you’ll want to add this bowl to your weekly rotation too. Let’s have a build-a-bowl party.
The combination of cucumbers, red onions, tomatoes, olives, and hummus tastes like a momentary Mediterranean vacation, without the cost of a plane ticket. In fact, it’s even more affordable than any fancy restaurant’s replicas you might find nearby. Plus, you have an edge on the competition because you can combine any amount of these ingredients that you want because, well, it’s your bowl!
Why You’ll Love This Cucumber Salad
- Timeless appeal. It goes with just about anything your heart desires and is the perfect carb for a bowl meal for brunch, lunch, or dinner at pretty much any time of the day.
- No cooking needed. You don’t even have to turn on the stove if you have cooked quinoa ready to go! As a matter of assembly more than cooking, you don’t even need a full recipe to master the concept.
- Highly adaptable and customizable. If you love cucumbers, go ahead and double up! Not so crazy about olives? Cut them out. This is your bowl, and you can make it exactly the way you want.
Notes on Ingredients
Please note that this is important information on the ingredients and instructions and the FULL recipe with amounts and details can be found DOWN BELOW (scroll to it) in the recipe card.
- Quinoa – It takes about 15 minutes to cook dry quinoa, but you can skip right ahead by getting either frozen or shelf-stable pouches of prepared quinoa that are ready to use.
- Cucumbers
- Olives – Kalamata are ideal for their authentic Greek flavors, but all olives are good olives. Just make sure they’re pitted!
- Vegan tofu feta cheese or store-bought vegan feta – For a quick fix, my favorite brands of vegan feta are Violife and Follow Your Heart.
- Tomatoes
- Red onion
- Parsley
- Hummus – Homemade or store-bought, in any flavor you like best!
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Lime wedge
Recipe Variations
The beauty of this recipe is that you can use it as a build-your-own-bowl blueprint for anything you’re craving.
- Mexican: Use guacamole instead of hummus, cilantro instead of parsley, and shredded vegan cheddar-style cheese instead of feta. Add black beans and sliced jalapenos.
- Japanese: Use sliced avocado instead of hummus, pickled ginger instead of olives, and snow peas instead of tomatoes. Add edamame and a splash of soy sauce.
- Thai: Use peanut sauce instead of hummus, roasted sweet potato instead of tomatoes, and toasted cashews instead of feta. Add shredded carrots and baked tofu or tempeh.
- Indian: Use plain, unsweetened vegan yogurt instead of hummus, toasted peanuts instead of feta, and achaar (mango pickles) instead of olives. Add curried chickpeas and chopped peppers.
How to Make Greek Cucumber Salad
- Cook the quinoa according to package directions and let cool.
- Split the ingredients in half and add to each quinoa bowl as desired. Spoon hummus on top and mix all the ingredients together if desired. Drizzle olive oil, and grind salt and black pepper over each quinoa bowl. Serve with a lime wedge to squeeze over olives, cheese, tomatoes, and red onions.
Tips for the Best Quinoa Salad
- If you don’t have vegan feta cheese and don’t want to make your own, you can omit it and add more olives for a similar briny, salty sensation.
- Raw onions can be a bit harsh. To take some of the bite out, blanch them (that is, plunge them into boiling water for a minute than rinse in ice water) before using. Alternately, replace them with sliced scallions.
- You can use any whole grain instead of quinoa to switch up your routine. Try cooked brown rice, barley, millet, buckwheat, or farro.
How to Store Cucumber Salad
If you want to prepare this bowl ahead of time, I recommend preparing all the ingredients in advance, storing them all in separate airtight containers. That way, you can just reheat individual components and then put the entire bowl together. You can make the whole bowl, fully assembled, up to a day in advance, but I wouldn’t recommend keeping it together for longer than that.
If you’re making this for lunch, just assemble it all together the morning of, or pack in a mason jar for easier transport.
More Vegan Salad Recipes
- 15-Minute Quinoa Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing
- Easy Vegan Caesar Salad
- The Best Vegan Potato Salad
- Cashew Thai Quinoa Salad with Peanut Ginger Sauce
- The Best Kale Salad with Sesame Tahini Dressing
If you try this Greek Cucumber Salad please let me know in the comment section below, or tag me on instagram with the hashtag #jessicainthekitchen! For more exclusive recipes follow me on Instagram AND on Snapchat: jessinkitchen.
Greek Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1/4 cup chopped cucumbers
- 1/4 cup chopped olives
- 1/4 cup vegan tofu feta cheese or store-bought vegan feta
- 1/4 cup tomatoes, diced
- 2 tablespoons red onion
- 2 teaspoons chopped parsley
- 2 tablespoons hummus
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil + salt + black pepper
- Lime wedges to serve
Instructions
- Cook the quinoa according to package directions and as desired: see here how to cook quinoa
Per Bowl
- Split the ingredients in half and add to each quinoa bowl as desired. Spoon hummus on top and mix all the ingredients together if desired. Drizzle olive oil, and grind salt and black pepper over each quinoa bowl. Serve with a lime wedge to squeeze over olives, cheese, tomatoes and red onions.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- If you don’t have vegan feta cheese and don’t want to make your own, you can omit it and add more olives for a similar briny, salty sensation.
- Raw onions can be a bit harsh. To take some of the bite out, blanch them (that is, plunge them into boiling water for a minute than rinse in ice water) before using. Alternately, replace them with sliced scallions.
- You can use any whole grain instead of quinoa to switch up your routine. Try cooked brown rice, barley, millet, buckwheat, or farro.
Disclaimer: Although jessicainthekitchen.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, kindly note that these are only estimates. Nutritional information may be affected based on the product type, the brand that was purchased, and in other unforeseeable ways. Jessicainthekitchen.com will not be held liable for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information. If you need to follow a specific caloric regimen, please consult your doctor first.
Thank you so much Shawna!
Hi ya,
I don’t know if I missed it, probably! Are their recipes for the dressings you use in these salads?
Thanks,
Claire
Hi Claire!
I didn’t use a dressing here just olive oil and salt, but here are some of my dressings all in one place! https://jessicainthekitchen.com/mason-jar-salads-meal-prep-lunch/
This recipe looks great! Do you have the nutritional information for it?
Hi Stacey,
Thanks! We are working to get the nutritional information for this recipe up soon!