This Cucumber and Radish Salad is sweet, tangy, and delicious. Dressed in a sweet red wine vinaigrette and flavored with fresh dill, it’s the perfect refreshing, low-carb side to any meal.
A lot has happened over the past few weeks! In case you missed it on instagram and facebook, Zach and I welcomed our second daughter, Eleanor “Ella” Grace, into the world on April 12. I’ve been resting and recovering and smothering Ella in all the love I can. And Zoey too, of course! Who, by the way, is the best big sister ever. It’s been a very happy, tiring, and joyful time in our house. Here she is:
But I’m diving back into the blog in full force because um, I’M STARVING. All the time. Between feeding this little milk monster and general recovery, I want to eat all the food!
And in an effort to be healthy and eat as many veggies as possible, I’m bringing you this Cucumber and Radish Salad with Dill. (Side note/brag: the radishes and dill are from my vegetable garden! So it’s extra delicious.)
I love cucumber salads in the warm weather. They’re so cool and refreshing and hydrating. In this salad, the cool sweetness of the cucumbers balances the warm spiciness of the radishes perfectly. The fresh dill and the red wine vinaigrette add a tangy, sweet flavor to balance the whole thing out. It’s absolutely delicious!
The vinaigrette is made of nothing more than red wine vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, and some sugar. I skipped the salt and pepper and chose to season it just before serving, since salt draws out the moisture from the vegetables and makes it soggy. This way, you can make it ahead of time and keep it in your fridge for a few days.
I love this salad not only for the taste, but for its looks. How gorgeous are those bright red and green colors together? And the super thinly sliced circles all layered together in the dressing… this would be perfect to make for company.
I used a mandoline slicer to cut the cucumbers and radishes. You can do it by hand if you want, but the mandoline makes the process much faster and the cuts consistent and uniform. Just be careful- those things are sharp!
If you like this recipe, you’ll love this Spiralized Sesame Cucumber Salad.
Here’s the printable recipe for Tangy Cucumber and Radish Salad with Dill :-)
Tangy Cucumber and Radish Salad with Dill
Equipment
- Mandoline
Ingredients
- 1 large cucumber thinly sliced
- 5-7 radishes thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill chopped
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- kosher salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Whisk together the red wine vinegar (3 tablespoons), olive oil (3 tablespoons, and sugar (1 tablespoon) in a the bottom of a large bowl until sugar is fully dissolved.
- Add the cucumbers, radishes, and dill on top of the dressing.
- Stir to coat the dressing on all the veggies.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. It's best served immediately.
Notes
- Time saving tip: I used a mandoline slicer to cut the veggies very thin- I definitely recommend one to save time and energy, and to make sure the cuts are uniform!
- I had a regular cucumber in my fridge, so that's what I used. You can use an English cucumber if you prefer- they have less water and seeds, so the salad won't get as watery as easily.
- For a variation, try using fresh mint instead of dill.
- To make this paleo compliant, use honey instead of sugar.
- The provided nutrition information does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. Feel free to calculate it yourself using this calculator or by adding the recipe to Yummly.
Nutrition
Nutrition Information Disclaimer
The provided nutrition information is my best estimate and reflects one serving of the recipe (total servings indicated at top of recipe card). It does not include any added sodium from seasoning to taste, any optional ingredients, and it does not take brands into account. I use an automatic API to calculate this information. Feel free to calculate it yourself using one of these tools:
Cathy L Wooten
Made this for a ladies’ luncheon. It was a great success. I did add some salt and pepper to the dressing. I used dry dill since it was all I had on hand. Next time I will add some thinly sliced red onion. Definitely made it again :)
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Eve Pines
Thank you for sharing this recipe. We grew too many radishes in the garden, and I was looking for a way to use them. Made this for a family gathering, and there were no leftovers! This surprised me, because radishes are not usually so popular. Will definitely be making this again.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! I always have too many radishes in my garden too – they are so easy to grow but no one eats them, hah!
John
Used fresh mint (in place if dill), and honey (in place of sugar). Put honey in microwave for 10 seconds to make it warm and easier to dissolve. Added peas (thawed frozen) to provide texture & bulk to presentation. Also added a couple thin slices of red onions. Guests were a little wary of peas/radishes at first but once tried, loved it. Will do it again.
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it! Love the idea of fresh mint in here.
D
Can I replace red wine vinegar with something else ?
Elizabeth Lindemann
Sure! Another acidic ingredient would work, such as lemon juice, or another vinegar like apple cider vinegar. Hope that helps!
Kim
This was really wonderful!
Elizabeth Lindemann
So glad you liked it!
Merri W Cullen
Delicious!
Elizabeth Lindemann
Glad you liked it!
Savannah
Delicious and refreshing! Didn’t even need salt/pepper.
Elizabeth Lindemann
Thanks! So glad you liked it!
CruznV
Would dried dill I buy in the spice section at the grocery store work? If so, how much would I add? I seldom have access to fresh dill except a few months in the summer.
Elizabeth
I think fresh dill is much better than dried in this situation, so I would try to find that at the store, but if you don’t have access to it, dried will probably work! I would add it to the dressing, so it has a chance to rehydrate and absorb some of the liquid, rather than adding it to the radishes and cucumber in the beginning. The general rule is to use 1/3 the amount of dried herbs that you would for fresh, so one teaspoon for every tablespoon. By that rule, you should use two teaspoons in this. However, you may want to start just with one and taste the dressing before adding more. Hope that helps, and hope you like it!
Sabrina
I love cucumbers and radishes together! This salad looks beautiful!
Elizabeth
Thanks so much! It’s definitely one of my new favorite veggie combos :-)