Beet And Cucumber Salad

This cucumber and beet salad is refreshing, simple, colorful, and flavorful. It’s made with crunchy cucumbers, tender beets, a light lemon-olive oil dressing, and some lemon zest for brightness. If you already have cooked beets, this easy salad comes together in 10 minutes and looks so beautiful on any dinner table.

About my beet and cucumber salad

For this cucumber and salad, I prefer dicing the ingredients into 1-inch cubes. It helps these two vegetables blend better, so every bite has a balance of flavors and textures. And, small cubes make this salad more elegant and make it easier to eat. No need to wrestle with big chunks of beet that might stain your mouth or napkin.

My little signature touch – I freeze a lemon beforehand and grate frozen zest on top of the salad right before serving. It looks beautiful, makes the salad have an unexpected taste, and helps each ingredient stand out more.

Recipe ingredients

This minimalist salad requires only a few ingredients.

• Cucumbers: the crunchiest cucumbers to use are English Cucumbers or Persian Cucumbers.
• Fresh beets: choose smaller beets for a sweeter taste and they cook faster. 
• Olive oil: I have a quality extra virgin olive oil for my salads. It is pricey but lasts a long time and makes a big difference.
• Lemon: you will need some lemon juice and lemon zest.
• Salt and pepper: add to the dressing and later adjust if needed after tasting the salad.

How to make cucumber and beet salad

Squeeze out some lemon juice before freezing the lemon (1-2 hours before making a salad). Just cut off the top of the lemon and squeeze out about 1–2 teaspoons of juice. Avoid cutting the lemon in half, as frozen halves are harder to hold when grating the zest later. Once you’ve squeezed out the juice, place the lemon in the freezer for a few hours. If you’re using two lemons, freeze one whole and use the second one for the dressing.

Note: If you’re short on time, you can still use fresh zest—it’ll still bring a nice, bright touch.

Cook the beets. Wash and scrub the beetroots. Place them in a large pot and fill it with water. Bring it to a boil, and cook them on medium heat for about 30 (small beets) – 40 minutes (medium beets), until they are tender. Let them cool down completely and place them in the fridge to chill. You can also cube them so they get cold faster. 

Shortcut: you can buy pre-cooked beets at the grocery store. But I still like to cook mine at home, as they taste better.

Cut the vegetables: Peel the cucumbers and cooked beets. Dice the vegetables into 1-inch cubes.

Dress and season the salad. Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix the salad. Place it in the fridge to chill if possible.

Add lemon zest. Using a lemon zester or cheese grater, grate frozen lemon zest over the salad right before serving.

Recipe tips

• You can cook the beets and freeze the lemon the night before.
• If you want to add fresh herbs, dill is the best choice for this salad.
• Chill the salad before serving.

How to store it

While it is best to enjoy this salad the same day, it can last in the fridge for up to 2-3 days.

More refreshing cucumber salads

• Cucumber, lettuce, and tomato salad
• Korean cucumber salad
• Polish cucumber salad
• Radish and cucumber salad

Recipe