Cucumber Vinegar Salad has thinly sliced cukes, red onions, seasonings, and a sweet vinegar dressing. This healthy cucumber salad is easy, crisp, and refreshing.
Cucumber salads should be a staple at picnics and get-togethers on lazy summer days. You know, like a tradition.
I'll admit I never had a cucumber salad until I was in my 20s, but as soon as I took my first bite, I was hooked.
I bet you love them, too. Not especially the mayonnaise kind but the fresh and light marinated kind. Marinated with distilled white or apple cider vinegar that has been sweetened with sugar and spices.
Salads are such a welcoming treat, too. Whether leaf salads or made from other vegetables, they always seem like a great addition.
And pasta salads can become a complete lunch! I have about 15 salads on this blog, and each one is very different from the other.
And this healthy cucumber salad is right in keeping with my theme of beautiful, tasty, and unique salads. Cucumbers and red onions are the stars.
Table of Contents
What is an English cucumber?
An English Cucumber has a thinner skin than a regular cucumber, and its seeds are smaller.
They are mild in taste with no bitter taste.
English Cucumbers do not cause you to burp, so their other handle is burpless cucumbers. I've seen them as hothouse cucumbers, too.
Sometimes, each cucumber comes in its own tight, clear wrapper. Just look at those smooth, long, and thin English cucumbers in the photo below.
English or young regular cucumbers are this salad's main crispy flavored vegetables.
Red onion - gives a flavor contrast in a milder way than other onions.
Celery seeds - are surprisingly flavorful and are often used in brines.
Salt - a little bit goes a long way for this seasoning.
Vinegar - is acidic and helps the flavors become infused into the vegetables.
Water - helps dissolve the sugar when it is heated.
Sugar - counterbalances the acidic flavor of vinegar and makes the best dressing when combined.
Instructions
Bring vinegar, water, and sugar to a boil in a small saucepan and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
Take off the heat and let it cool while preparing the vegetables.
Slice cucumbers and onions and place in a large bowl.
Sprinkle on celery seed and salt.
Pour the vinegar mixture over the cucumbers and mix well. You can enjoy the recipe right now, but it gets even better after it has rested and marinated in the dressing overnight.
Place in an airtight container, cover, and seal.
Place in refrigerator. to meld.
Cucumber salad variations
Even though I consider this cucumber vinegar salad recipe perfect there are additions and changes that you can make.
I quickly mentioned this above but you can use apple cider vinegar instead of white distilled vinegar. It is slightly less acidic.
You can substitute coconut sugar for the granulated sugar. It is a wonderful flavor and that is what I did for this Mildly Marinated Cauliflower recipe.
You can switch out the celery seed for fresh dill or dill seed.
Sprinkle in a little black pepper.
There are many more things that can be done including adding more seasonings and maybe even chopped tomatoes but then you'd have to change the salad name.
More great raw salads
Apple Pecan Salad with Raisins
Superfood Salad with Maple Vinaigrette
📋 Recipe
Cucumber Vinegar Salad
Ginny McMeans
Cucumber Vinegar Salad has thinly sliced cukes, red onions, seasonings, and a sweet vinegar dressing.
Pour the sauce over the cucumber and onion while it’s hot?!
Ginny McMeans
It has to cool. I thought I had that in there Debra. Thanks for the heads up.
Kaelin
This was delicious! It reminded me of the cucumber salad I had years ago and then I forgot about it. So glad to have this back in my life. Thank you for the easy recipe too.
Ann Marie
My dad use to make cucumbers and apple cider vinegar…loved it. Was looking for something a little more. Made this tonight and it was AMAZING! My husband is away, but I can’t wait to make it for him! I’m going to make this every chance I get! Thank you!!!
Janice
Great flavor. I used white wine vinegar, dill weed and muck fruit in place of the sugar. This will cut back in the carbs. Love this recipe.
Because this is vinegar based and essentially pickles, this cucumber salad can last in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. Of course it won't last that long because it's so good, but it should be good for at least two weeks.
Is it good to eat cucumber with vinegar? You may ask yourself what do cucumbers and vinegar do to your body? This Asian cucumber vinegar salad is widely known for its many health benefits. It contains plenty of nutritional value, boosts your immune system, and greatly helps in detoxifying your body.
Thinly sliced and cooked in a hot skillet or wok, cucumbers still maintain some crunch and freshness even when cooked, like in our Sautéed Cucumbers With Green Herbs recipe. Or give sliced cucumbers a quick stir fry with ground beef or sliced steak, it's a perfect pairing.
Checking the Quality of Your Refrigerated Cucumber Salad
A sour or unpleasant taste is a red flag. Check the Storage Duration: Cucumber salad is at its optimum within 3-4 days of being stored in the refrigerator. After four days, it is best to toss the cucumber salad.
Does Vinegar Go Bad? Vinegar is a fermented product to begin with, and the good news is that it has an “almost indefinite” shelf life. According to the Vinegar Institute, “Because of its acid nature, vinegar is self-preserving and does not need refrigeration.
Apple cider vinegar isn't likely to be effective for weight loss. Proponents of apple cider vinegar claim that it has numerous health benefits and that drinking a small amount or taking a supplement before meals helps curb appetite and burn fat. However, there's little scientific support for these claims.
Cucumbers are rich in nutrients that can help with weight loss. It is rich in antioxidants, essential vitamins, and other beneficial compounds that support a healthy lifestyle. So not only can cucumber help reduce belly fat, but it can also provide additional health benefits.
Weight Management: Cucumber is one food that can go with yoghurt, be a detox drink and be consumed in the form of salad as well. It has vitamin C, vitamin K and other nutrients that make it a healthy option. Due to its fibre content, and low calorie count, it is one of the ideal summer additions for burning belly fat.
Cucumber is relatively high in vitamin K. Eating too much cucumber could affect how a person's blood clots. People who use warfarin (Coumadin) or similar blood-thinning drugs should not increase their intake of cucumber dramatically or suddenly without consulting a doctor.
From weight loss, better heart health and soothing aches, pains and swellings, there is a good reason why cucumbers are a great choice to have regularly.
Because cucumbers have seeds in the middle and grow from the flower of a cucumber plant, they are botanically a fruit. Botanical vegetables may be other edible structures of a plant, such as the leaves, stems and roots, and they do not have seeds.
"Cucumbers are loaded with minerals that aid in keeping you hydrated, but they also have a feature that interferes with the absorption of Vitamin C," says Tanya S. Kapoor, nutritionist, and dietitian, Wellness by Tanya. Therefore, most of the time, the combination of cucumber and tomato is advised to be avoided.
Zucchini is richer in vitamin B and vitamin C as compared to cucumbers. Both vegetables have relatively equal amounts of calcium but zucchini is richer than cucumbers in potassium and iron. Zucchini also has a higher amount of protein and fiber.
Smashing gives you varied textures with desirable nooks and crannies. Larger pieces will be crunchy. Mushed bits of the gel-like cucumber insides will meld with the dressing (in pai huang gua, that means soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, and garlic) and thicken for better coating and more pickle-like flavor.
It's important to always store marinated cucumbers in an airtight container in the fridge to prevent the growth of bacteria. If the cucumbers start to look or smell off, it's best to discard them to avoid any risk of foodborne illness.
How long do pickled vegetables last? Your quick pickled vegetables will last at least three to four weeks in the fridge, possibly longer if unopened. Pickles that have gone through the correct water bath canning process will typically keep for about a year.
Vegetables preserved in vinegar last for years, and their nutritional value remains unaltered. This occurs when preserving in vinegar because the pH of the vinegar is inferior to 4.6: this gives the foods the characteristic sour flavor and allows for the elimination of most bacteria.
Vinegar help preserve food , because of its acetic acid content and low pH, vinegar is used as a preservative for both domestic use and in the food industry. It is in fact used for the preservation, or pickling, of a wide variety of foods such as vegetables, meat, fish products, and spiced fruits.
Introduction: My name is Gregorio Kreiger, I am a tender, brainy, enthusiastic, combative, agreeable, gentle, gentle person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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