The Greek salad is a traditional recipe of the gastronomy of Greece that is made with the typical ingredients of this country and the Mediterranean diet. The ingredients of this rich and easy salad are tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, bell pepper, olives and feta cheese. In addition, it is traditionally seasoned in a very simple way with olive oil, salt, pepper and oregano. It is a light, fresh and healthy option for lunch, dinner or served as a side dish.
Feta cheese is the star ingredient in this dish, along with cucumber, and by following the steps of this recipe that I share, you will learn how to prepare a vegetable and dairy-free substitute to cook this delicious Greek salad in a vegan way . Feta cheese is a type of soft cheese, also traditional in Greek cuisine, which is made from sheep’s and goat’s milk. However, you will be surprised by my version of vegan feta, whose main ingredient is chickpea flour. The flavor of this cheese is very characteristic, since it is submerged in brine, so I have used brewer’s yeast, lemon juice and salt to add that strong flavor to our preparation. Chickpea flour-based cheese is a healthy non-dairy alternative, since it helps improve digestive and cardiovascular health, as well as being very satiating and nutritious. If you like the idea, keep reading and discover how to make a traditional Greek salad
Ingredients to make Traditional Greek Cucumber Salad:
For the salad
- 1 cucumber
- 1/2 green bell pepper
- 1/2 red onion
- 1 handful of pitted black olives
- 1/2 red bell pepper
- 10 cherry tomatoes or 2 tomatoes
- 1 feta cheese (can be vegan)
- 1 teaspoon of oregano
- 1 splash of olive oil
- 1 pinch of black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the vegan feta cheese
- 50 grams of chickpea flour
- 200ml of water
- 1 tablespoon of oat flakes
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 2 tablespoons of brewer’s yeast
How to make Traditional Greek Cucumber Salad:
To make the vegan feta cheese, heat a saucepan with half the water (about 100 ml) until it comes to a boil. If you prefer to make the original Greek salad, you can skip this step and use regular feta cheese, although we anticipate that the vegan version has nothing to envy. While the water is heating, mix all the other ingredients in a bowl: chickpea flour, oatmeal, salt, oil, lemon juice, thyme, oregano, brewer’s yeast and the rest of the water. Stir until a homogeneous and smooth mass remains.
Add the resulting mixture to the saucepan with the hot water and stir continuously for 1-2 minutes, until the mixture thickens. Pour it into a square mold or Tupperware, smooth the surface and store the mold in the fridge until the homemade vegan cheese cools and hardens. Unmold the cheese and cut it into cubes. Cut the vegetables for the traditional Greek salad: cut the onion, pepper and cucumber into medium pieces, cut the cherry tomatoes and olives in half.
In a salad bowl, mix all the ingredients including the cheese and dress it with a good splash of olive oil. Also add the salt, pepper and oregano and stir well. Serve Greek Salad with Feta and Cucumber as a rich starter or a side to other dishes. In line with traditional Greek recipes, you can try the Greek skordalia or the popular tzatziki sauce.
Greek Cucumber Salad – Benefits
As we have already mentioned, to make the original Greek salad recipe it is necessary to use feta cheese of animal origin. However, whether we follow a vegan diet or not, the version of homemade feta cheese that we propose in the previous recipe is a delight that we encourage you to try, for this salad and for all those that we like.
On the other hand, the typical Greek salad always includes cucumber, an ingredient present in many dishes of Greek cuisine. Therefore, if we look for the recipe for the traditional Greek salad, we do not recommend eliminating this product from the plate. Likewise, it should be noted that cucumber is a food with a high nutritional value, since it has vitamins of group B, vitamin C and A, minerals such as calcium, iron, potassium, phosphorus and magnesium. In addition, being composed mainly of water, its caloric intake is very low. In this way, we see how cucumber is a product that cannot be missing from our diet, vegan or not, for all its benefits and properties. Therefore, we can prepare a cucumber and avocado salad, for example, or a cucumber and tomato salad, with nothing more than a splash of olive oil.
The rest of the ingredients, such as tomato, onion, pepper and lettuce, are also foods rich in vitamins and minerals, and low in calories. In this way, the Greek salad includes the benefits of the Mediterranean diet in the same dish, making it an ideal meal to lose weight or keep in shape. The only exception is the black olive, which is higher in calories and it is recommended to remove it if you want to lose weight. Cheese, if animal origin is used, it is also advisable to remove it, although if the consumption of these ingredients is balanced with the rest of the day’s meals, there should be no problem. In any case, it is always better to consult a nutritionist.
