Cucumber, Tomato & Avocado Salad

This cucumber tomato avocado salad is a healthy side dish that takes no time to put together! It’s a go-to summer recipe and fits nearly every diet.

Need a salad for when summer tomatoes are at their peak? Here’s our pick for you: this cucumber tomato avocado salad! This one is all about the ingredients: ripe and juicy tomatoes, cool cucumbers, and creamy avocado. They’re mixed with lime juice and cilantro for a tangy pop that perfectly accentuates their flavors. This one is great as a side dish for any meal; it specifically jives well with Mexican flavors with the lime and cilantro. Here’s how to make it!

Ingredients for this cucumber tomato avocado salad

This salad is all about knife skills! That’s right, the only real work in this salad is chopping. Luckily, Alex and I happen to be knife skills experts: we have a whole video series devoted to it! So we’ll walk you through some of the most important techniques. Here are the ingredients you’ll use for this cucumber tomato avocado salad:

• Ripe tomatoes, multi-colored if desired (best during tomato season!)
• Cucumber
• Avocado
• Red onion
• Cilantro
• Lime juice
• Salt
• Red pepper flakes (optional, but they add a subtle complexity

Eat it right away!

It turns out perfectly flavored: tangy and salty, and highlighting each vegetable to it’s fullest! This salad tastes best right away and leftovers don’t save so well. We recommend eating this salad the day it is made — and store it at room temperature if you make it a little ahead of eating. Some liquid will build up in the bottom of the bowl, so it’s best to serve it with a slotted spoon.

How to thinly slice an onion for salads: french cut!

Have you ever tried to cut an onion into thin slices, and then the half moons end up being large, floppy, and hard to eat? Here’s a method for thinly slicing an onion for salads that ends up with pieces all roughly the same size. Some people call this method “french-cut”. Whatever the case, it’s how we always slice an onion for salads because it ends up with beautiful thinly sliced slivers. Here’s how to slice an onion for salads:

1. Cut off the top and bottom of the onion, then cut it in half.
2. Use the knife to cut thin curved slices from end to end. This method is easiest to watch: so here’s a video of it! Fast forward to 1:45 to watch how to slice an onion for a salad.

How to (safely!) remove the pit from an avocado

Another veggie that requires some technique when chopping is avocado! It’s especially important to practice safe techniques when removing the pit of an avocado. We have a great method for removing the pit, and safely releasing the pit from the end of the knife! Here’s how to cut an avocado:

1. Using a large chef’s knife, cut lengthwise around the avocado. Twist the two halves to separate them.
2. Place a towel in your hand and put the avocado on top. With a gentle but quick motion, tap the knife into the avocado pit.
3. Do not attempt to remove the avocado pit with your hand! Instead, pull the cutting board close to your body, then place the pit against the far edge of the cutting board and pull back to release it from the knife.
4. Use a large spoon to scoop out the avocado from the peel. Place the avocado with the cut side down, then cut it into slices. Turn the slices and cut crosswise to make diced avocado.

How to cut tomatoes and cilantro

In this cucumber tomato avocado salad, you’ve still got to chop the tomatoes and cilantro! We’ll let you head over to these posts to learn more about our techniques for chopping tomato wedges and quickly chopping cilantro:

• How to Cut a Tomato — fast forward to 0:30 to see chopping wedges!
• How to Cut Cilantro

How to serve this cucumber tomato avocado salad

This cucumber tomato avocado salad works well as a summer side dish for any meal! It’s specifically suited to Mexican flavors because of the lime and cilantro, so it’s a great side to go with tacos or serve with fajitas. Since we’re always looking for recipes to fit with Mexican-style meals, we were excited to find this salad concept. Here are a few of the recipes we’d accessorize with this salad:

• Tacos: Try Grilled Shrimp Tacos, Quick Shrimp Tacos, Best Jackfruit Tacos or Loaded Quinoa Tacos
• Fajitas: It’s great with fajita veggies or vegetarian fajitas.
• Seafood: Serve with Cilantro Lime Shrimp or Perfect Grilled Salmon.
• Burgers: Try Portobello Mushroom Burger or Best Veggie Burger.
• Appetizers: Try Best Pico de Gallo, 5 Minute Bean Dip or Easy Refried Bean Dip.
• Drinks: All our 15 Best Margarita Recipes or Micheladas!

This cucumber tomato avocado salad recipe is…

Vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.

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Last updated: May 2020