All those fresh tomatoes and cucumbers popping up everywhere let's put them to good use in this dish, and with the high temps taking you out of the kitchen, the only thing you should be doing is cooking nothing and just enjoying this delicious Authentic Greek Salad salad and the dog days of summer.
I am crushing hard on this Mediterranean salad at the moment and for good reason. The Authentic Greek Salad is full of nature's perfection and tossed with a tangy dressing and loads of Greek feta.
Whether you're looking for a healthy summer salad recipe or making a summer salad feed a crowd at your next get-together or just trying to put dinner on the table without turning on your oven. We've got you covered with this authentic greek salad. Just add the cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, olives, and other fresh ingredients and toss with our extra easy greek dressing. And you're ready for a party!
I've searched the web to find everything I can about the famous Greek salad! Which is one of my personal faves salads any time of the day even for dinner. Yep, you heard me: I love this salad as dinner with just some sourdough bread on the side!
What is Greek Salad?
There's no denying that everyone loves Greek salad! It's one of the most well-known Greek dishes outside and inside of Greece. Did you know this traditional version of Greek salad is called "Horiatiki" which is translated as village in English?
Greeks love their horiatiki, in the summer months, you can find it being served on most Greek tables at home and even at the local taverns.
The Greek salad relies on simple ingredients: Tomatoes, cucumbers, olive oil, olives and feta. You can find some variations of this salad around Greece, for instance, on the island of Crete, they pile the tomato and feta on to a large barley rusk that has been bathed with a bit of water and olive oil.
What's in an Authentic Greek Salad?
Traditional Greek salad comes with very few ingredients. ⏤ You'll only need 6 ingredients, plus a super basic vinaigrette.
- Tomatoes
- Cucumbers
- Green bell peppers
- Red onions
- Kalamata olives
- Feta cheese
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Oregano
- Red Wine Vinegar
How to keep the Greek salad Authentic?
To keep this salad truly Authentic, here are a few guidelines;
- Skip the greens!⏤It's a green-free salad.
- Go for blocks of feta instead of cubes to keep it more authentic.
- No need to practice your knife skills. ⏤ Big even chunks of vegetables are best.
- Throw in the olives whole, no slicing needed.
- Serve in a large shallow bowl, skip the deep salad bowl.
- A loaf of crusty bread is the best company for this salad.
Tips for making Authentic Greek salad
- Use feta cheese from Greece if you are able. It is so much better than the common feta. Feta is traditionally made with a mixture of goat & sheep milk.
- Chose the freshest ingredients you can. Use the reddest ripest tomatoes and firm green cucumbers and green bell pepper.
- Chop the veggies into similar sizes. Fancy knife skills aren't needed, although cutting the vegetable into similar will combine the flavours more evenly and it will be easier to eat.
- Don't Toss the salad You don’t want to bruise any of the ingredients. It’s not a salad that needs to be mixed with a dressing, so just drizzling of oil & vinegar on top will do.
Frequently asked questions
What do you serve with Greek salad?
You can serve Greek salad with meat, fish, chicken and veggie dishes. Most importantly, it’s perfect for picnics or as a BBQ.
Can you make it ahead of time?
Absolutely! There are no greens in this salad so, you can make this salad a couple of days ahead of time and keep it covered in the fridge. Therefore, making this dish it’s a great dish for any outings you will have during the summer.
Can this be served as a main dish?
Yes! I love to eat this a meal during the summer months and it is a tradition with the Greeks to eat this as a meal too. To make this a meal serve with some good crispy bread. However, that's not to say that an authentic greek salad won't make a great side dish.
Looking for more Mediterranean Salads?
Check out some of these:
Healthy, Flavorful, Easy.
This one really is all of the things. We hope this Authentic Greek Salad recipe felt as miraculously easy to you as it does to us. Let us know how it all went down! Snap a photo of your salad and maybe even a video of the beautiful people you feed it to. Tag us on Instagram using @deliciously.mediterranean and #deliciouslymediterranean. Happy eating!
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