This easy cucumber, onion, & dill salad is practically a staple in our refrigerator when we have cucumbers and onions coming out of the garden. Although it’s quite simple, it’s very refreshing and tastes like a “new pickle” to me.
I originally found this recipe in a cookbook by the “Frugal Gourmet”, Jeff Smith.
Since we’ve been doing a “keto” type diet, we were also excited to learn that Swerve can be substituted for the sugar to make a “keto-friendly” version of this salad.
What Goes Into Cucumber, Onion, & Dill Salad
All it takes for this easy salad are raw cucumbers, onion, water, dill, vinegar, and sugar (or Swerve if doing a “keto-friendly” version).
We grow the Diva cucumber variety for dependable cucumbers. It’s an All-American Selection (AAS) winner from 2002. You can read more about it HERE. We’ve found that it does very well in our garden and it’s the variety I plant each year now. I prefer to use heirloom vegetables but Diva has been working well for us. I think it’s the Compost from the goats and chickens that helps it do so well each year.
Diva Variety Cucumber
It’s best to peel the cucumbers for this salad; however, I like to leave a few “ribbons” of the green peel on the cucumbers – it makes them prettier in the final salad.
Seeded Cucumbers
You can either leave the seeds in your cucumbers or remove them. For this batch, I had one cucumber that was fairly large, so I chose to remove the seeds from it as shown in the photo above.
Sliced Cucumbers & Onions
When the cucumbers and onions are first sliced and go into the sugar (or Swerve), water, vinegar, and dill mixture, they are firm and hard. But, as they marinate in the refrigerator, they soften while still retaining some crunch. This makes them so refreshing on a warm summer day.
Cucumber Salad Marinade
This is the easiest way I know to put the texture and flavor of new pickles on your table! Whenever I take it to an event as a potluck dish, everyone seems to enjoy it.
Invariably there are comments that folks remember it from when they were growing up and that it’s one of their favorite easy cucumber, onion, & dill recipes.
Also, some folks like to vary the recipe by adding more herbs than just dill. It can be easily customized to be what tastes best for your family. Check out the comments below, folks like to vary this recipe in lots of ways.
I hope you enjoy this salad too!
Easy Cucumber, Onion, & Dill Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cucumbers (peeled and sliced thin)
- 1 large onion (halved and sliced into thin rings)
- 3/4 cup sugar (or substitute 3/4 cup Swerve for keto-friendly)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 1/2 tablespoon dried dill
Instructions
- Peel and cut the cucumbers into thin slices. Mix with the onion rings.
- Bring the sugar (or Swerve substitute), water, vinegar, and dill to a boil; pour over the cucumbers and chill.
- The cucumbers will reduce as they chill in the vinegar mixture.
Made traditionally with sugar instead of Swerve, the nutritional analysis comes in at 129 calories as shown below. Made with Swerve, the calorie count comes down to 35 calories per serving.
Jess says
DO NOT REMOVE THE CUCUMBER PEELS!!! That is where most of the vitamins, minerals, and anti-oxidants are in cucumbers. As long as you let it marinade 4-6 hours first the peels will soften (it’s even better after a day or so – see below). This is a lifelong favorite summertime salad. I make a big batch (doubling the liquids to completely cover the veggies) and keep it in the fridge and serve it up for a few days, For all intents and purposes these are a light, refreshing, and healthy pickled salad…. as long as you leave the skins on the cucumbers. Also, some people use red onion, but I suggest yellow or white onions because if you do keep the mixture in the fridge a few days the purple leaches out of the onion and into the liquid and it doesn’t look as good when served.
Lesa says
Hi Jess – those are great tips for making this salad! I will have to try it with the peels on. I also prefer to use yellow or white onion to avoid the discoloration from red onion 🙂
Nancy says
Delicious cucumber salad!