This easy cucumber salad recipe is a fast and fresh summer side dish with a bit of a kick. The cilantro adds the perfect twist! A perfect compliment to a Mexican-style meal. Originally posted January 6, 2014.
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Today I dusted off my piano and started playing a song. Eric immediately said, “Oh, man, that’s bad. We need to get that piano tuned.” It’s adorable that when he hears terribly wrong notes coming out of the piano, he assumes we need a tune up rather than guessing the truth, which is that I really ought to practice the piano more often.
This is nothing new. As a kid I took lessons, but I was so bad at practicing that I didn’t really improve much. I used to go the entire week in between lessons and not so much as look at the piano, and then I would be frantic on the car ride over to my teacher’s house, practicing air-piano in the car with my books propped open on my lap. Yes, air-piano exists, much like air-guitar, only way less cool.
Eric bought me a second-hand piano when we lived in Indianapolis. He somehow managed to get some guys from church to help him lift it up into our second floor apartment. When we moved to Utah, we lived on the second floor yet again. And then our piano made it all the way out here to California this summer, officially becoming the heaviest and most cumbersome guilt-trip known to cross the country. It’s a giant piece of unused furniture sitting in our front room, taunting me.
I love playing the piano, I really do. But there’s always an excuse. The kids are asleep, don’t want to wake them. Have to get dinner on the table, I’ll do it after. I’m going, really, just let me pin this one last caramel-stuffed cookie recipe.
I think I feel a New Year’s Resolution coming on. Have you guys got any on your list?
Super versatile Cucumber Salad with Cilantro
Now let’s talk cucumbers. There are about a million ways to eat this Mexican-style cucumber salad: It would be an awesome replacement for lettuce on tacos, you could put it in burrito bowls, top off your tortilla soup, top off this Barbacoa Beef, or Carne Guisada, or eat it alongside these Baked Black Bean Taquitos. Or just serves it as a simple side dish when you are making enchiladas or tamales or carnitas or whatever.
You guys love this Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad so much (it came close to making my Top Recipes of 2013) that I thought I would try out a Southwestern version. I’m glad I did, because it is awesome. It’s not traditional, but since when has that ever stopped us from Mexican-ifying our food? I’m pretty sure they don’t really eat cream cheese enchiladas in Mexico, but that doesn’t mean they’re not dang good.
What you’ll need for Cucumber Lime Salad
Here’s a quick shopping list to help you gather your ingredients. See the recipe card below for the full ingredients and instructions!
- Jalapeno
- Garlic
- Fresh lime juice (from 2 limes)
- Crushed red pepper
- Olive oil
- 2 cucumbers
- Cilantro
How to make Mexican Cucumber Salad
Here’s a quick overview of how to make this cucumber salad. See the recipe card down below for full instructions and measurements!
- Dice garlic and jalapeno and mix with fresh lime juice, crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper.
- Finely slice the cucumbers and mix with the dressing.
- Finely chop the cilantro and add to the salad.
- Serve or refrigerate.
Tips for Lime Cucumber Salad
The easy way to get thin slices for cucumber salad
For me what makes a cucumber salad great is having the cucumbers sliced suuuuper thin. That means either a lot of patience and a very sharp knife, or a good quality mandolin slicer. I use my mandolin all the time, it’s a good kitchen tool to have around!
You want to slice the cucumbers pretty thin. They should be quite flexible, like this. Do yourself a favor and buy the mandolin. I love mine!
This is too thick. If I bent this any more, it would have snapped. You want them thin enough that they are bendy. (Try to shield your eyes from my horrific red nail polish.)
This cucumber salad is light, just as you would expect anything with cucumbers to be. I added some crushed red pepper to give it a little kick, but it’s not overwhelming. You can serve it immediately after you make it, or let it marinate in the fridge for a few hours. The flavors will be a little stronger if you let it sit. I like it both ways.
Storing Cucumber Cilantro Salad
Cilantro lime salad can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days. After that, the texture of the cucumbers and the flavors of the salad will deteriorate. This salad is best eaten immediately or in the couple days after you make it. We’re going for FRESH here people.
How do you keep cucumber salad from getting soggy?
Here is my number ONE tip to keep cucumber salad from getting soggy:
- Don’t let your cucumber salad get soggy.
I’m serious here. The longer your cucumber salad sits around in the fridge, the soggier the cucumbers are going to get. Don’t wait around to enjoy it!
If you do want to keep the salad as fresh and crisp as possible, you can lightly salt your cucumber slices and let them sit in a colander or strainer for 10-15 minutes, then pat them dry, before you combine them with the dressing and cilantro. The salt will draw out the moisture, and you can further remove it with the paper towels. But cucumbers don’t last forever, so don’t expect that they’ll be as fresh on day 5 as they were on day 1.
If you make any of my recipes, share it on Instagram using the hashtag #TheFoodCharlatan so I can see it! I love that.
What to serve with Cilantro Cucumber Salad
Spanish Cauliflower Rice (To Eat With Mexican Food) << another great HEALTHY Mexican side dish!
Traditional Tejano Carne Guisada (Braised Beef for Tacos) << this recipe is from my brother-in-law’s grandma. Today’s salad would pair well with it! Throw it on your tacos!
…and then eat these beans on the side >> Traditional Tejano Pinto Beans (Slow Cooker)
You could also try it alongside this hearty Super Easy Chicken Tortilla Soup!
More great salads to try out:
Asian Marinated Cucumber Salad: This one is soooo good guys
Pistachio-Pear Cucumber Salad << simple, refreshing, easy, and healthy.
Pineapple Spinach Salad << a fun twist on the traditional strawberry spinach salad.
Best Greek Tomato Cucumber Salad with Feta Cheese << so easy! a perfect last minute side dish.
Raspberry Avocado Salad with Poppyseed Dressing << super fresh, fun flavors.
Cucumber Ribbon Salad with Peppers, Radishes, and Thai Dressing from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Cucumber Basil and Watermelon Salad from FoodieCrush
(There are affiliate links above. Thanks for funding my kids’ college/expensive goat cheese addiction)
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Mexican Cucumber Lime Salad
Ingredients
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 3 tablespoons lime juice, fresh
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper, crushed
- ½ teaspoon salt, or to taste
- black pepper, to taste
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cucumbers, very finely sliced (see photos)
- 4 tablespoons cilantro, minced, to taste
Instructions
- Dice the jalapeno and garlic and add to a medium-sized bowl.
- Add 3 tablespoons of fresh lime juice, crushed red pepper, salt, and pepper. Use a whisk to incorporate the 3 tablespoons olive oil. Set aside.
- Finely slice the cucumbers. Use a mandolin if you have it, but a very sharp knife will do the trick. (See photos below.) Add the cucumbers to the dressing and stir together.
- Finely mince the cilantro and add it to the bowl. Stir to combine. You can either let it sit in the fridge to marinate for a couple hours, or serve immediately.
The turkey burgers are from Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook. I was hesitant about it but it’s actually awesome. I make those a lot. Super healthy. And the meatball sandwiches are these, which look weird but are actually really good: http://www.tasteandtellblog.com/smoky-pork-bbq-sandwiches/. I’ve added you to my feeds. Looks like we have similar taste!
You rock Ali! Thanks for the links! I’m following too! If you ever get sick of that painting, I’ll give you my address :)
I found this on Pinterest. We’re not normally big cucumber fans, but I had half of one leftover from cucumber yogurt sauce for Mediterranean turkey burgers so I just scaled down the recipe and it worked like a charm. Perfect amount for two people and it was a delicious accompaniment to tonight’s Vietnamese pork meatball sandwiches. Thanks!
Um, Mediterranean turkey burgers? Vietnamese Pork Meatball Sandwiches?? I’m heading over, cucumber salad or not!! :) I’m glad you guys liked the recipe. Thanks for commenting Ali, I’m about to go check out your blog, such a cute name!
Excellent recipe! I got a food processor for Christmas (best gift EVER), and used one of the attachments to slice the cucumber very thin. I made this recipe to go with some turkey chili on a Tuesday night, brought some leftovers into work and my coworkers raved about it. I also brought it to a Super Bowl party. At first I felt funny bringing such a light dish to a party that should typically involves dips, meat, cheese, and more meat. However the flavors complemented all of the football food so well, and it was a nice light option to balance everything out. I will make this recipe again and again, thanks!
Hooray! I’m so glad you loved it Bridget! I think it’s a great idea to bring this to a Super Bowl party, it provides relief from all the cheese and carbs :) And that’s a good idea to use your food processor. I thought about it, but I didn’t think it would get it as thin as I wanted. Glad to know it worked for you! Thanks so much for coming back to comment, Bridget, I love hearing from you.
I made this last night for my family along with the Korean Beef Bowl from Damn Delicious, and it was all exactly that – delicious! My kids gobbled this up and my husband caught me eating the last little bit out of the serving bowl while he was doing the dishes. The only changes I made were 1) I didn’t have any jalepeno; and 2) I finely shredded a carrot and threw it in there for some colour. Like I said, delicious. Thanks for the new favourite recipe!
Ooh, I totally love the carrot idea Hannah! Yum, I will have to add that next time! I’m so glad your kids even liked it. You must be a super star mom, my 3 year old wouldn’t touch it. I will have to go check out Chung-Ah’s Korean Beef Bowls, that sounds amazing! Thanks for coming back to comment, you are just great :)
This looks delicious. But there is no way that I could pin such a great recipe and sight when you choose to photo nails that are undone. It’s like trying to sell a car that’s covered in mud. C’mon!
Bahahaha! I love that you care. I am SO BAD about doing my nails! I know, I need to be better. Just pin an image with no gross nails! :)
Looks delish! Pinned!
Thanks Rachel! You’re blog is so cute! I’m totally drooling over that tomato salsa over white fish, it looks awesome. Thanks for commenting!
This looks so beautiful and fresh that I could make a meal out of this.
Thanks Simi! I had mine with burrito bowls (rice and beans, chicken and salsa) and it was sooooo good. Thanks for commenting :)
I love cucumber salads! These pictures are so pretty :)
Thanks Kayley! And I know, cucumbers are the best…a lot more versatile than I usually give them credit for :) I’m still dreaming about your mint whoopie pies. For real.
I was the worst at practicing for piano, too. Then during my lessons I tried to act all suave like I had been, but I’m sure it was totally obvious I hadn’t touched a piano in a week.
Love this cucumber salad. I’ve only made a plain version – no added ingredients, so I’m looking forward to trying this!
Haha! Hey, confidence works wonders, right?
And yes, try this salad! So easy, so good!
So refreshing and pretty! Perfect for a post celebratory detox. :)
Thanks Nicole! I’m drooling over your empanadas and roast turkey. Is it warming up down there in Mexico yet?? my cousin is in Cancun and posted a picture of herself on the beach with a sweatshirt…so sad!
Oh no!! It was warm the whole time in PV, just rained for the first three days, then cleared up, thank goodness!! I can’t believe your cousin was wearing a sweatshirt! Yuck!
Oh well that’s good at least! I totally was feeling for you. I’m a sun-bake-til-you-crisp kind of girl too.
I don’t mean to brag…but…I can play a pretty amazing rendition of Chopsticks on the piano at my Grandma’s house. I know, I know, quite impressive, and intimidating. Haha! Eric is so sweet that he thinks it’s the piano that sounds bad and not you, love that. And love this cucumber salad. I worked at a restaurant here in town, and the mexican chefs would make a similar salad for us to snack on. But they just did big, thick slices of cucumber with lime, salt & a little cayenne pepper. Yours looks WAY better. Can’t wait to try : )
I always wanted to learn how to play the piano but never got around to it. I’m the same way with knitting. I get so busy that I forget about it, and by the time I have a chance to get back into it, I have to re-teach myself all over again. I’m so glad you found my site because I’m loving what you’re doing over here. This salad looks amazing. Pinning and going to follow you on all your social sites. Let the stalking begin ;)
Aw thanks Jennie! I’m glad you’re following me back, now I don’t look like such a freak :) And I totally get what you mean. I don’t knit, but I’ll learn a song 90% of the way on the piano, then not practice for 3 months, then have to start from scratch. So lame!
Thanks for following me Jennie!
I love cucumbers!!! I can’t play a musical instrument to save my life so you are already way ahead of me :)
Aren’t they the best Chels?
Thanks for the mention of my recipe – your version looks great, and I think I’ll try the Asian one as well. Cheers!
Thanks for the fabulous idea Donalyn! You’re a genius :) PS do try the Asian version. It’s so good. Make it with the salmon burgers I mention in that post, and you will be in heaven!
I was cutting up half a cucumber that was left over from my black bean salsa dip for lunch yesterday wishing that I was more creative with it. I basically just chopped it up and put some ranch salad dressing on the side to dip it in. It was three cheese ranch dressing, but I kept thinking the cucumber needed more. Love the idea of mixing the cilantro and lime juice. I know that cucumbers are big in the summer, but they are also one of the most reasonably priced veggies at the store right now. At least here in Michigan.
My daughter basically lives on cucumbers and ranch dressing. She wouldn’t touch this salad with a 10 foot pole. More for me though!
Did you say black bean salsa dip?