Greek Cucumber Salad

[GB]

Greek Cucumber Salad

1 cup cucumber diced (I use 1/2 to 1 full English cuke)
1 cup tomato chopped (I used 1 lg tom)
3/4 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup kalamata olives sliced
3-6 scallions slices
handful of parsley chopped
juice of 1 lemon
1 clove garlic minced
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper to taste
2-3 tablespoons EVOO
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
toasted pita bread torn (optional)



Combine the cukes, tomato, chickpeas, olives, scallions, and parsley in a bowl.

Whisk lemon juice, garlic, sugar, salt, and pepper. Drizzle EVOO into lemon mixture while whisking. Stir in mint. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Toss salad with vinaigrette and toasted pita (if using). Serve at room temp.

This would be good with feta, grilled chix in a pita pocket as a sandwich.

 

[DampCharcoal]

A local restaurant has a variation on this that's simply called "Greek Salad." It's basically chunks of cucumber, tomato, whole Kalamata olives and cubed feta tossed in a basalmic vinaigrette and that's about it. Not quite as interesting as GB's recipe but appealing nonetheless!

 

[kitchenelf]

wow GB - looks awesome - I can't eat anything called Greek without Fetal though - I'm definately going to be making this! Thanks for posting it!!!!

 

[Lifter]

This is a really interesting insight of how to do a fabulous salad...

Can I ask a couple questions?

I'm totally with GB on the English Cuke, the more the better, use the whole thing, just wash and slice away but please do it in spears, or in "big" chunks, with the skin on...

Likewise, don't hold yourselves back on the tomato, either, and feel free to add more, for my sake! I can't really express this well, but perhaps "wedged and halved" would be better than saying "chopped"?

I'd really, really like to see a good deal of "ringed" red onion in there, as opposed the scallions, unless you are accessing scallions down in the States that we just don't get up here (or its perhaps a "language" difference?)

Now, this is once more "me being me", but I want to have those black olives put in "whole", pits and all, as opposed "pitted and sliced"...something about the taste experience of biting into a really good, ripe, black olive, that is "lost" when you slice it...

Honestly, if it lacks Feta Cheese, it loses appeal to me...and I'm a "branded heretic", I know, but without a few wedges of radiccio, and other compact, yet juicy lettuces, its just not the same...

The toasted pita bits are a superb concept! (Fresh, toasted and cut or "torn", I hope!...nearing the "burnt" level of toasting?) What a great "balance" this gives!

Je ne sais quois on the chickpeas...but I'd be willing to try that!

What with me adding lettuce, from my own stubborness, we'd have to up the EVOO quantity, ensuring the tomato chunks all caught a good dose of it!...could we toss some oregano or margoram, perhaps a little tiny bit of fresh dill and/or parsley in as well?

Not sure that this would require basalmic vinagrette, but if you did, it wouldn't take much!

This is a really good recipe to mark down, as aside from people like myself who just "have to" tweak everything, it "explains" the basic methods and ingredients, and we can all do our "regional" things to get what we all wish for...

Thanks, GB!

Lifter

 

[kitchenelf]

Lifter,

I think we need to do this salad one night next week - as a cyber meal. Because I keep wanting to go to classic Greek I see red onion too. The thing that DOES intrigue me is the mint. I can only imagine how good it is and it would be so much like basil anyway it would be hard to tell the difference. A little fresh oregano leans towards that classic Greek too, along with the red onion. I probably would do the whole kalamatas pits and all myself - there is something about getting every bit off the pit!!!

This is a salad that is "different" than the classic so the chickpeas I'm sure are perfect in this. But if I didn't have any I wouldn't worry about it. I will make it exactly as the recipe calls for and then some my way - or is it Lifter's way - or is it "our" way!

GB - you've got me wanting this salad!!!!!!

 

[GB]

I can't wait to hear how all the different variations work. They all sound great! Please make sure to post the results