Gaby’s Cucumber Salad
Gaby's cucumber salad recipe is the best cucumber salad I've ever had! It's made with crisp cucumber and creamy avocado tossed in a simple balsamic vinegar dressing.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 3, 2024
Let’s clear up a few things about this cucumber salad. First of all, it’s Gaby’s Mom’s recipe, but we’re calling it Gaby’s for short.
Second, it’s the most delicious cucumber salad I’ve ever met. Somehow, crisp cucumber, creamy avocado and a super basic balsamic dressing create a stellar cucumber salad.
This recipe comes from Gaby Dalkin’s new cookbook, What’s Gaby Cooking: Everyday California Recipes. Perhaps you know Gaby’s blog, which has the same name. I’m always admiring Gaby’s simple, colorful, fresh-from-the-farmers’-market recipes.
The Best Cucumber Salad Recipe
Here’s what Gaby says about this salad: “My mom made this salad just about every night when I was growing up. It was so yummy that I’d eat half the bowl before we even sat down for dinner, even though I’d get yelled at for not saving any for my dad and sister… Now it’s my go-to side salad, and my husband eats half of it before we sit down for dinner.”
Here’s what I have to say about this salad: I’ve demolished this cucumber salad all on my own in one sitting. I want to plant Persian cucumbers in my garden so I can eat cucumber salad all summer long. I’d grow an avocado tree if I could—well, I’d grow an avocado tree for many reasons. Anyway, it’s that good.
Watch How to Make Gaby’s Cucumber Salad
Cucumber Salad Tips
- I found Persian cucumbers at Trader Joe’s. They’re smaller in diameter, extra-crisp, and less seedy and watery than regular old cucumbers. If you can’t find them, opt for English cucumbers, which are similar in texture.
- Don’t overdo the garlic in this recipe, or it will overwhelm the other flavors (speaking from experience here). Two small-to-medium cloves or one large clove will be just right.
- No need to bust out your thick, expensive balsamic vinegar for this recipe. Regular balsamic will do great.
- This recipe is best served immediately, since the avocado browns over time. However, if you toss it well, you can refrigerate leftovers for a few hours.
- Gaby suggested tossing in arugula and cherry tomatoes, if you want this salad to go further. I added a chopped radish mostly for color, honestly, but it’s also nice and springy.
I got so excited about this salad that I made a couple more of her simple side dishes from her book the other night, her charred sugar snap peas and Omi’s haricots verts salad. They were both so easy and so tasty.
I’m dying to make her Cobb salads for all seasons, poblano scallion queso and green rice burrito bowl. The book isn’t vegetarian, but I found lots of recipes to make in there.
If you’re looking for fresh recipes to make on the grill this summer and appealing fresh comfort food, I think you’ll really enjoy What’s Gaby Cooking.
Gaby’s Cucumber Salad
Gaby’s cucumber salad recipe is the best cucumber salad I’ve ever had! It’s made with crisp cucumber and creamy avocado tossed in a simple balsamic vinegar dressing. Recipe yields 4 servings.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 small-to-medium cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 ripe avocado, pitted and sliced or diced
- 4 Persian cucumbers or 2 medium English cucumbers (12 ounces), thinly sliced
- Optional additions: 1 to 2 cups arugula, ½ cup halved cherry tomatoes, and/or 1 to 2 chopped radishes
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, balsamic vinegar and garlic until blended. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the avocado and cucumbers to the bowl and toss to combine. Season with additional salt and pepper if necessary. Serve immediately.
Notes
Recipe adapted just a tiny bit from What’s Gaby Cooking by Gaby Dalkin.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
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I made this for a camping trip. Very good. Left out the avocado as I didn’t want it to spoil. But will add it next time. Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome, Lynn!
I made this and loved it except I found I was searching for avocado so I just added a 2nd one along with all the cherry tomatoes I had from my u-pick at the CSA. Delicious!
Thanks for sharing, Christina!
Made as a side for dinner tonight! Oh so delicious and super easy! Will be making this on a regular basis. Thanks Kate and Gaby!
I’m obsessed with this, it gets made in my house at least once a month. We aren’t big on radishes, so we stick to cucumber, cherry tomatoes and avocado and it’s incredible. So easy (and cheap!) to make!
It’s so good! Thanks for sharing, Allison.
Such an easy recipe! I cut it in half since I cook for one so I use two cucumbers, a radish, some cherry tomatoes and it’s perfect!
Great!
Just made this salad with radish, long green pepper, avocado and cucumber. I added a little senape mustard to my dressing which made it a little creamy. Delicious!
OMG this was so simple but crazy tasty. I think I might eat this every single day. Thank you so much for share ❤️
I love it!!! So yummy.. thnk you
I don’t know how I’ve lived my life up until now without eating this everyday!!! By far one of my FAVORITE recipes ever! Thank you!
In my garden this year, I grew pickling cucumbers. Do you think they will be okay to make this salad with?
Hey Kelly! If you like the taste of the cucumbers sliced, sure, they’ll be great!
This salad was gone in three seconds flat! Added cherry tomato and onion to it- was thinking of throwing in feta, but glad I didn’t, since avocado really shines as the “soft and creamy” star of the show. Bonus is not needing to peel the cucumbers!
I make a version of this with diced onion , cucummbers, red peppers and celery with the dressing and let marinate. keeps for several days in fridge. Then add greens and avocago and cherry tomatoes before serving with sea salt with added sea vegetables. Delicious!
Really great, Kate!
This is my pregnancy go-to salad! I add some chopped oregano and mint for a little extra flavour and it’s delightful.
Thanks for the recipe!
Congratulations, Elena! Thank you for sharing. I’m so happy you love it!
This was easy and super delicious on a hot day! Very refreshing. This will be a great way to use all of those garden cucumbers this summer!
Made this tonight, and it was absolutely delicious! I served it over spring mix and topped it with edamame, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds! Taking leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
Has anyone tried using frozen diced avocados to last a few hours in fridge?
Hi Michelle, this is really best with fresh. Let me know if you try it!
I made this tonight, and added some cherry tomatoes and radishes as suggested, plus a little feta. Delicious, and so refreshing and light!
Costco has them!!
I have a surplus of cucumbers from my garden and happened to have a ripe avocado so I thought I’d give this a try. I used what I had for cucumbers, since I didn’t have either of the kinds listed. I cut some slices into quarters to make them bite sized. The salad was delicious! Even my 13 year old said “That has great flavor!”
Gaby’s cucumber salad is divine. My husband couldn’t stop talking about it. Says it should be a summer staple. I would rename it cucumber and avacado salad
because the avacado is so key
I’m glad you both love it! Thank you for sharing.
Interesting. I make an almost identical salad but use rice vinegar instead of balsamic and add a bit of sesame oil as well as a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds if I have some on hand.
I’m not a big lover of balsamic vinegar but my dear heart is so will give your version a go just for him. I’m also embarrassed to say I have Gaby Dalkins cookbook but obviously haven’t paid enough attention to the salad recipes. I’m thinking when I see you bringing one of them up, I’d best be doing some more serious reading!
Stay well everyone
This recipe was so good! I added some red onion and cilantro to mine :)
Loved this recipe so much – I made it with your crispy smashed potatoes. Wonderful summer lunch!
I’m happy you loved it, Amber! Thank you for sharing.
This was fine! Next time I will make less dressing and replace some of the balsamic with red wine vinegar. For me, there was just a little too much balsamic and too much dressing overall. Most of it was left in the bottom of the bowl.
In summer I grow “pickling cucumbers” or buy them at the farmer’s market. They are absolutely the best tasting cucumbers you will ever eat. They will be delicious in Gaby’s Cucumber Salad. Thank you!
Well I tried this with regular cucumbers and it was absolutely hideous. And I used a top-of-the-line balsamic vinegar and two avocados and still didn’t help any
I’m sorry you didn’t love it, Carolyn. Thank you for your feedback.
This salad was delicious! My meat-and-potatoes husband ate most of it in one sitting :) I might try it with the suggested arugula next time.
I liked it by adding the radishes and avocado. The avocado added a yummy creamy texture to the crunch of the cucumber and radish.
This recipe. So simple and so stunning. Served it with some mushroom walnut burgers on a bed of spring salad greens with a dab of pesto and cherry tomatoes. So delicious. I just love your recipes. So delicious, fresh and the photography is simply beautiful. Thank you so much!
Thank you, Jennifer! Always happy to share a delicious recipe.
Such a yummy recipe! I don’t usually buy cucumbers because I never found a cucumber salad that I particularly enjoyed but I absolutely loved this one! I already made it twice this week and plan to make it a lot more this summer!
This should have the vegetable to oil & vinegar mixture ratio adjusted. More vegetables or other dry additional ingredients added would result in a much more stable product.
I’m sorry you didn’t love this recipe!
Delicious and super easy recipe. It’s also very versatile—I like it with beans and rice and as a side dish to pasta or pizza.
Thank you for your review, Carolyn!
This was so good! Couldn’t stop eating.
Thanx for all your great ideas. I am going to try and make this for one of the holiday meals. My daughter’s in charge, so it might not fit. But then I can make it for myself. The 5 star rating is based upon my expectations.
You’re welcome! I hope it was a hit.
Your cookbook is my “go to” for healthy eating…we love your recipes! I want to try the cucumber salad soon….funny that I was just thinking of finding a good, healthy cucumber salad recipe.
I am so happy to hear Cookie is doing well, and will keep her in my prayers.
Happy 4th!
Thank you, Roberta! I’m glad you are loving my cookbook and I really appreciate your kind words for Cookie.
This was so yummy when eaten immediately as I had a few tastes.. It got very watery after resting a few hours in the fridge so it was not as good.
I’m sorry you didn’t like the result once it sat. I appreciate your feedback.
Hi Kate. How’s Cookie doing?
Hi Maria! I just posted an update.
Thanx for all your great ideas. I am going to try and make this for one of the holiday meals. My daughter’s in charge, so it might not fit. But then I can make it for myself. The 5 star rating is based upon my expectations.
Today (03Jul), I made it to Target and picked up everything that we didn’t have here. It gets put together tomorrow morning for a late lunch. Getting all the extras raised the price a bit, but we are all looking forward to it.
Yummy in all its simplicity. I added some tomato. I had it with your ratatouille pasta dish which was also delicious!
What if I use Roma tomatoes and what garden herbs should I use?
Hi! I prefer it as written. If you add tomatoes, be sure to cut them smaller.
Yum! This is so fresh and delicious. I love the combination of the crunchy cucumbers and creamy avocado with the zippy dressing. It’s just so good! We have an abundance of cucumbers in our garden right now and this is a perfect new twist on how to use them. Thanks!
I’m glad you loved it, Kelly!
This was a delicious and easy to make salad. I followed the recipe exactly, then added grape tomatoes, which added extra flavor and color (and nutrition). Thank you!
Here in New Zealand Persian cucumbers are called Lebanese. .we have a greenhouse here in Christchurch and this year my husband planted 3 plants. Consequently he is picking at least 5 every day. I am trying all the different salads I can find recipes for. This one will be next
This was easy and yummy.
Thank you for sharing, Julie!
Made it immediately upon reading the recipe! I added red onion slices and radishes. I will say that it is to be eaten the day you make it as it’s not the best the next day.
I love hearing that! Thank you for sharing, Karen.
Made this with white balsamic vinegar which is a pantry staple for me and it was fresh and delicious. Eating this day of making is best. Leftovers day after, while it tasted great, looked pretty dismal and unappetizing!
Thank you for sharing, JJ!
Wow, this was amazing, so refreshing on a hot summer day.
Thank you Kate
You’re welcome, Pamela!
I’m going to be honest. Nothing annoys me like people who comment as a cheerleader for you and haven’t yet tried the recipe.
I have tried this recipe and it is actually delicious. I love how crisp and crunchy the cukes remain due to no salt. When I cared for my mother who had congestive heart failure I was desperate to find low sodium recipes. thank you for this. so few bloggers post recipes for those on low-sodium diets.
YUM. Added an extra tablespoon of balsamic. Diced a whole tomato in there. SO DELICIOUS! Thanks Kate!
I’m glad you loved it, Jean! Thank you for your review.