This tasty traditional Greek Salad recipe is made with tomatoes, cucumbers, green bell pepper, red onions, kalamata olives, and feta cheese. A homemade herbed Greek Dressing perfects the dish, making it perfect for lunch or a side salad with dinner. If you’re looking at the photos, you may be wondering where the lettuce is! In Greece, this salad wouldn’t be served with lettuce, but Greek salad with lettuce is an American twist on this recipe. Adding lettuce to Greek salad is up to you! It’s delicious either way. The dressing for Greek Salad is made from quality extra virgin olive oil and a splash of red wine vinegar, plus dried oregano and simple seasonings. This is such an easy recipe, you’ll be making it all the time. Add pasta to Greek salad to bulk it up and make it super satisfying. My Orzo Greek Salad is always a hit!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Greek Salad Ingredients
Because there are only a few ingredients in this recipe, it’s important that they are all as fresh and high quality as possible. Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Tomatoes: Juicy, fresh tomatoes will soak up the flavors from the dressing. If using large tomatoes, dice them. For cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes, just cut them in half. Cucumbers: Rather than common cucumbers, choose English cucumbers or the smaller Persian/Lebanese cucumbers. The skin on these is thin and tasty, so there’s no need to peel them, and they are mostly seedless too. Red Onion: Slice the red onion in half and then slice it thinly before adding it to your Greek Salad. Bell Pepper: I love the flavor and color of green bell pepper in this salad. While green peppers are traditional, any color of bell pepper can be used instead. Feta Cheese: Start with an 8-ounce (225g) block of feta. Avoid using crumbled feta to make a traditional Greek salad. Kalamata Olives: Get olives from the deli or olive bar if you want them to be fresh and extra tasty. The ones that come in the jar are fine otherwise. Other olives can be used as well, including regular black olives or green olives, and they can be whole, pitted, or sliced.
For the Greek dressing:
Olive Oil: Good quality, extra virgin olive oil is important in this recipe. I you can find Greek olive oil, definitely use that! Vinegar: Any type of vinegar can be used in this dressing, but red wine vinegar is ideal. For a different flavor, use freshly squeezed lemon juice instead. Seasonings: a simple sprinkle of salt, pepper, and dried oregano gives this Greek salad the perfect traditional flavor.
How To Make Greek Salad and Greek Dressing
Greek Salad Recipe Tips
Cut the vegetables into medium chunks: everything in this chopped salad should be approximately the same size. I like to use the kalamata olives as a guide and chop the vegetables to match. A good chef’s knife will make your prep work easy. I love this classic 8-inch knife from Henckels, and I use it every single day. Use the freshest ingredients possible: Because there aren’t many ingredients in this recipe, you should be sure that everything you add in tastes great. Try a different style of Greek Dressing: Ladolemono is another easy Greek dressing. Replace the vinegar in this recipe with fresh lemon juice, and add a clove of minced garlic. Add Garlic: Leave the dressing recipe as is, but add a clove of minced garlic. Garlic makes everything more tasty! Kalamata Olives: These are the traditional Greek olives for this salad. You can buy pitted olives, but the whole ones will be juicer. I like to remind people that the olives have pits when I serve this salad, so they aren’t surprised. If you’d like to add lettuce: Try adding up to 8 cups of chopped romaine. This will make your Greek salad more in line with what you’d get at a Greek restaurant in the US.
Storing Tips
You can store leftover Greek salad in the fridge for up to two days. As the salad sits in the fridge, it will soften a bit and absorb more flavor from the dressing. If you want to keep the salad fresh, store it without the dressing added for up to two days, and add the olive oil and vinegar dressing right before serving.
What To Serve With Traditional Greek Salad
A simple, rustic salad like this one goes perfectly with roasted or grilled meats or fish. It’s easy to create a healthy Mediterranean-style meal. Grilled Chicken: Light up the grill and make Grilled Spatchcock Chicken or easy Grilled Chicken Tenders to go with your fresh Greek Salad. Other Grilled Meats: The Perfect Grilled Steak or Garlic Grilled Shrimp are both great options to mix things up for dinner. Fish: In Greece, fish is very common, since they are so close to the ocean. Grilled Tilapia or Baked Salmon will help you to create a Greek Salad meal just like you might have while visiting! Keep it vegetarian, and serve your Greek salad with a traditional Spanakopita spinach pie. If you like delicious salads, make sure to check out my Cobb Salad Recipe and Strawberry Spinach Salad next! If you can’t take a trip to Greece, this traditional Greek Salad is the next best thing! Make sure to pin this recipe for more people to enjoy. © Little Sunny Kitchen
