Cucumber Salad Dressing

By: Jane · Updated: 19 Jun, '22 · This post may contain affiliate links · 82 Comments

This cucumber salad dressing is so easy to make and perfect for green salads, pasta salads, or a dip. It's light and refreshing with a hint of lemon. If you're looking for a tasty and healthy salad dressing that can be made ahead, give this cucumber salad recipe a try!

Contents

🌟 Why this recipe works
🍽 Key Ingredients
🔪 How to make Fresh Cucumber Salad Dressing
Fresh Cucumber Salad
💭 Cooking tips
📖 Recipe Variations
🥗 What to serve
🙋 Frequently Asked Question
🧊 Storage
🍳 Related Canning Recipes
👪 Serving Size
Cucumber Salad Dressing
💬 Comments

🌟 Why this recipe works

Cucumber dressing is easy to make for any home cook and can be used on various salads. The salad dressing is made with simple pantry ingredients that will enhance the flavor of any dish.

This cucumber salad recipe is creamy, tangy, and slightly sweet. It's perfect for salads with fresh fruits, vegetables, or pasta recipes.

This recipe is perfect for summer picnics and barbecues. It's also a great way to use up any leftover cucumbers in the fridge. Cucumber dressing can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge.

Cucumber dressing is a simple recipe used as a marinade, dressing, or even as a sauce. It's perfect for summer BBQs and parties because it's light and refreshing but still has enough flavor to stand up on its own.

It's versatile, and the base ingredients can be easily adjusted to suit your taste. If you like your dressings on the sweeter side, add more sugar. If you prefer a tart dressing, add more lemon juice and for a spicier dressing, add a touch of chili.

🍽 Key Ingredients

The key ingredients in this cucumber salad recipe of cucumber, mayo, and Worcestershire sauce come together to create a balance of fresh and savory flavors with a slight acidity from the lemon. This

Cucumbers - Use English cucumbers or Persian cucumbers, peeled and diced.

Flavor - Use garlic salt and one small sweet onion for sweetness and a less acidic flavor. These classic ingredients in salad dressings really help to round out the flavors.

Mayo- Use good quality mayonnaise-like Hellman's or Best Foods.

Acidity - Lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce help to brighten the flavors.

Sugar - Adds a touch of sweetness to counteract the tangy lemon juice.

🔪 How to make Fresh Cucumber Salad Dressing

This is a delicious and easy salad dressing to make. Just mix all ingredients together, and you've got a flavorful dressing for your salad. Enjoy!

Instructions

You will need a box grater to grate the cucumber and onion. The next time I make this dressing, I will use my food processor, but this recipe came out of an OLD cookbook so I followed the directions as printed.

Step 1
First, grate the cucumber using the large holes on the grater.

Step 2
Allow the cucumber to sit for a few minutes and then drain off the liquid.

Step 3
Grate the onion using the small holes of the grater.

Step 4
This will produce some onion liquid but save the liquid! It gives the dressing a wonderful flavor.

Step 5
Place the grated cucumber and grated onion in a bowl. Add 1 cup of mayonnaise.

Step 6
Next, add ⅛ teaspoon garlic salt, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce and mix it all together.

Step 7
Pour it into a container and refrigerate. Oops, I was a little messy, try pouring it into the jar.

Step 8
Clean the jar, wipe the rim, add a lid and seal hand tight. As you can see I actually doubled the recipe when I made it today so I could share with my sister-in-law.

Sealed jars with cucumber salad dressing

Fresh Cucumber Salad

Our favorite quick and easy summer salad is made with tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers.

The dressing is just fabulous with the salad.

💭 Cooking tips

If you want a thinner consistency, add some of the onion liquid back into the dressing or a tablespoon of water.

Add 1 teaspoon of mustard or red pepper flakes for a spicier flavor.

For a creamier dressing, add a tablespoon or two of sour cream.

📖 Recipe Variations

You can easily customize this cucumber dressing recipe to your liking. Try some of these variations with fresh herbs, Greek-style, or tangier with vinegar.

Cucumber dressing with herbs

Add in 1-2 tablespoons of chopped fresh herbs, such as fresh basil, fresh dill, parsley, or chives, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cucumber dressing with yogurt

Swap out the mayo for Greek yogurt and add in a tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice. You could also add in 2 tablespoons of crumbled feta cheese.

Cucumber dressing with vinegar

Add 1-2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar for a tangier dressing. Start with less and add more to taste. You may also need to add a little bit more salt to balance out the acidity.

Cucumber and olive oil dressing

For a lighter dressing, combine ¼ cup of cucumber juice (from about ½ a cucumber) with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. This dressing is best used right away, as it will separate if stored.

🥗 What to serve

This dressing is delicious in easy salad recipes, or you can use it as a dip for fresh vegetables. It's also lovely spooned over grilled chicken or fish.

Salads:

Pasta salad with tortellini: This creamy cucumber dressing would be delicious on this Italian pasta salad with tortellini, tomatoes, feta cheese, olives, and cucumber.

Garden salad: A simple green salad is a perfect canvas for this dressing. Try this orzo salad with cherry tomatoes, sliced cucumber, fresh herbs, and peppers.

Cucumber salad: Of course, this dressing is perfect on a cucumber salad! Try the fresh flavor of a refreshing version of cucumber spread with grated cucumbers, cottage cheese, and onions in lime jello.

You can also check my collection of best cucumber salad recipes for more ideas.

Dipping Recipes

Fresh vegetables like carrot sticks, celery, or cucumber slices work best for dipping into the creamy dressing. Or try these tasty appetizer recipes: cheesy tomato puffs, cheesy mushroom puffs, and zucchini fritters.

🙋 Frequently Asked Question

Is cucumber dressing healthy?

This cucumber salad recipe is made with mayonnaise, so it's not the healthiest option. If you're looking for a healthier version, try one of the yogurt or vinegar variations.

Is cucumber ranch dressing the same as cucumber mayo dressing?

Cucumber ranch dressing is similar to cucumber mayo dressing - but it usually has more herbs and spices added to give it a ranch flavor and also buttermilk instead of mayo.

🧊 Storage

This dressing can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. Store it in a jar or jug covered with plastic wrap or an airtight lid. Be sure to give it a good stir before using, as the ingredients may separate.

I don't recommend freezing this dressing because it is mayo-based, which means it will not thaw well, and the consistency will change.

I have a lot of famous canning recipes worth checking out. But my best ones are sweet cucumber relish, homemade canned spaghetti sauce, and zesty bread and butter pickles. You can't go wrong with any of these recipes!

👪 Serving Size

You only need 3 or 4 tablespoons of this cucumber salad recipe mixed into salad and pasta recipes. So this amount will easily provide enough for 4 or 5 recipes, depending on how much you use.

Cucumber mayo salad dressing is a refreshing and easy option to whip up in a hurry! Try this recipe, and let us know what you think in the comments below. And don't forget to share this post with your friends on social media!