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This authentic Greek salad stars ripe tomatoes, crisp cucumber, red onion, and briny olives. Add feta for a real taste of Greece!
After my trip to Santorini, what better an inspiration to take home than the ubiquitous Greek salad? Nearly every restaurant I encountered in Greece serves this salad. And in the hot Grecian sun, there’s not much that tastes more refreshing than the combination of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, Kalamata olives, and salty feta.
While in the country, I learned a bit about how an authentic Greek salad is made. Got ripe, fresh tomatoes? This is the recipe that will bring a taste of sun to you.
5 Star Reader Reviews
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “This was delicious! I added a can of chickpeas, served it with a toasted sourdough bread, and called it lunch. So yummy!” -Jessica
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Beautiful on the plate…and absolutely delicious. I soaked the thinly sliced red onions in cold water for a few minutes, patted dry, and enjoyed every bite!” -Karen
What’s in an Authentic Greek Salad (Horiatiki)
There are lots of versions of Greek salad here in America, and many of them are not so “authentic.” First of all: Greek salad isn’t served with lettuce. I grew up thinking that Greek salad was a romaine lettuce-based salad served with sliced black olives and a few feta crumbles. Oh, and usually some pink, mealy tomatoes too. Not in Greece!
Here are the elements of an authentic Greek salad:
- Ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
- Cucumber, sliced thick (I like an English cucumber best)
- Red onion, thinly sliced
- Kalamata olives, briny and firm
- Feta cheese, traditionally served as a large block on top of the veggies
- Olive oil and red wine vinegar to dress
- Dried oregano, sprinkled over the feta
Personally, I like to crumble the feta or cut the feta into cubes. While it’s traditional to serve the feta in a big block on top that’s broken with a fork, I find it’s easier to serve it to multiple people with the cheese broken. You can use either method for the feta: both are delicious!
Choosing the Best Tomatoes and Feta
Like any simple recipe, you’ll find that Greek salad is 100% dependent on the quality of the ingredients. Here are the two things matter most:
- Ripe in-season tomatoes: Bonus points if they’re locally grown — or if you grew them yourself! Buying local tomatoes helps support your local farmers: so if there’s a chance to do so, I heartily recommend it. If all you can find is off-season, mealy pink tomatoes, do not even think about making this salad! The flavor here is 100% dependent on the quality of your tomato.
- Quality feta: Equally as important is the feta cheese you purchase. Skip the pre-crumbled stuff, and go for a block of full-fat feta cheese. I’ve found that this kind of feta has the best flavor, and it’s most like the feta served in Greece. If you can find it, Greek feta (feta made in Greece) has incredible flavor; I’ve found it at my local grocery store.
How to Make Greek Salad the Greek Way
Here’s how I put it together (or jump straight to the recipe card below).
- Salt the tomatoes first. Chop your tomatoes into rough chunks, remove the seeds, and add a few pinches of kosher salt.
- Prep the cucumbers and onion. Peel the cucumbers in alternating strips, halve them, scoop out the seeds, then cut into half-inch pieces (or use an English cucumber, which you don’t have to peel). Slice the red onion as thinly as you can.
- Combine the veggies. Add the cucumbers, red onion, and olives to the tomatoes in a large bowl. Pour over the olive oil and red wine vinegar, then sprinkle in the oregano.
- Add the feta and toss. Add the feta on top as a block, or crumble it in and gently toss to combine.
Ways to Serve Greek Salad
I have a confession: I am a former tomato hater. Perhaps you know one, or are one yourself. It wasn’t until I discovered ripe, red local farmer’s market tomatoes that I was able to overcome my distaste. Now, I’m absolutely obsessed with Greek salad with some ripe summer tomatoes. Here are some great ways to serve it:
- Side dish for a grilled meal on the patio in the summer
- As a starter with warm bread
- As a light lunch, with crusty bread and olive oil for dipping.
- Stuffed into pita alongside Greek Pita Sandwiches for a handheld meal.
- Made into dinner with a can of chickpeas or a piece of grilled chicken, or part of this Greek chicken meatballs plate
- In a mezze spread with Tzatziki Sauce and Baked Feta with Tomatoes.
Variations To Try
There are numerous variations on the salad (like my recipe for shepherd’s salad). Some Greek salad recipes are made with green pepper, or a block of feta instead of crumbled. As I mention below, you can also add capers.
Feel free to switch up this Greek salad as much as you’d like — skip the olives if you’re not a fan, or use cherry tomatoes or heirloom tomatoes. It’s easily customizable to your tastes.
Dietary Notes
This Greek salad is vegetarian and gluten-free.
Frequently Asked Questions
A traditional Greek salad (horiatiki) contains tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, Kalamata olives, and feta cheese, dressed with olive oil, red wine vinegar, and dried oregano. It does not include lettuce.
Greek salad is one specific dish from Greece with a fixed set of ingredients. “Mediterranean salad” is a looser term that can include grains, beans, or greens from anywhere around the Mediterranean, so it varies from recipe to recipe.
There’s no creamy bottled dressing involved. The vegetables are dressed simply with good olive oil, red wine vinegar, and a sprinkle of dried oregano, often right before serving.
It comes from Greece, where it’s known as horiatiki, meaning “village salad.” It became a staple of Greek tavernas and restaurants.
Greek Salad
This authentic Greek salad stars ripe tomatoes, crisp cucumber, red onion, and briny olives. Add feta for a real taste of Greece!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 4 to 6 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Raw
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
- 4 large ripe tomatoes
- 1/2 large red onion
- 2 large cucumbers
- 1 cup Kalamata olives
- 4 ounces high quality feta cheese: crumbled, cut into squares, or in a block (Greek feta, if you can find it!)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons capers (optional)
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Chop the tomatoes into rough chunks; remove and discard the seeds. Place the tomatoes in a large bowl and add a few pinches of kosher salt.
- Thinly slice the red onion. Peel alternating strips from the cucumbers, making a striped pattern with the peel (alternatively, remove the peel entirely). Cut the cucumbers in half and use a spoon to remove the seeds; then, cut them into ½-inch pieces.
- In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, red onion, and cucumbers with the Kalamata olives, feta cheese crumbles, olive oil, and red wine vinegar. If desired, add the dried oregano and capers. Gently mix to combine.
- Serve immediately, or let sit at room temperature for several minutes to allow the flavors to meld.
This was delicious! I added a can of chickpeas, served it with a toasted sourdough bread, and called it lunch. So yummy!
Beautiful on the plate…and absolutely delicious. I soaked the thinly sliced red onions in cold water for a few minutes, patted dry, and enjoyed every bite!
In the recipe it calls for red wine vinegar – but in the directions, you have white wine vinegar??????
It should be red wine! Typo fixed: thank you.