Italian style Tomato Cucumber Basil Salad recipe made with the best of summer’s heirloom tomatoes, fragrant basil, crisp cucumber and onions tossed in a classic olive oil and red wine vinegar dressing.

Tomato Cucumber Basil Salad

The quintessential salad of summer, easy to make, good for you plant based goodness, without a doubt the best thing I ever ate. A nod to the man in the photo for eternity!

Ingredient Notes

Heirloom Tomatoes – the royalty of tomatoes, sweet, juicy, aromatic, gorgeous. Use a mix of different colors and shapes for the ultimate flavor profile and visual effect.
Cucumbers – use a seedless variety if available, skinny English cucumbers or the small Persian variety are perfect here. There’s no need to peel those varieties and you can slice them into rounds or use a peeler to make ribbons.
Basil – fresh Genoese basil rustically torn with your hands to avoid bruising. Alternatively you can roll up the leaves and thinly slice them with a serrated knife into a “chiffonade”. I like to grow purple basil so I throw some of that in there together with its pretty purple blossoms.
Onion – use both sweet green onion and crunchy red or even shallot. They each add unique flavor and texture to the salad.
Olive Oil – use only the finest cold pressed extra virgin olive oil you have. Something smooth and fruity that won’t overpower the delicate flavor of the heirloom tomatoes.
Vinegar – red wine vinegar is my go to classic for this salad. Apple cider vinegar and even lemon could work as a substitute but please stay away from any balsamic or sweet vinegars.

Tomato Cucumber Salad Dressing

Vinaigrettes and dressings are more of an American thing. Growing up we always added the dressing components directly into the bowl with the tomatoes and tossed them all together. We didn’t actually whisk it in a separate bowl. Start with a splash of vinegar then just a light drizzle of olive oil, taste as you go seasoning and adjusting with salt and pepper 11 times until your taste buds are doing the happy dance. The official vinaigrette ratio is 1 part acid to 3 parts fat, i’m more of a 50/50 kind of girl.

How to Make Tomato Cucumber Basil Salad

Slice the tomatoes, cucumbers and onions into irregular shapes and sizes.
Season with a pinch of sea salt and black pepper.
Drizzle with red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive then and toss to coat well.
Allow the salad to sit and macerate for about 5 to 10 minutes then stir in the fresh basil and adjust seasonings to taste.

Recipe Tips

Make ahead – seriously not recommended! A 30 minute window is fine to give your salad time to macerate and for the flavors to marry. Anything longer that requires refrigeration is a no go as tomatoes become mealy, the cucumbers get soggy and the basil turns brown. You can still store and enjoy any leftovers but i wouldn’t serve them as the star of a meal.
Add ins – avocado, olives, capers, crumbled vegan feta or fresh mozzarella bocconcini. Go crazy with chives, thyme or dill or toss in some Italian tomato bruschetta and turn it into a pasta or Panzanella salad.
Measurements – there are specific measurements listed in the recipe card, however this truly is a no recipe recipe, you taste as you go.

Serving suggestions

Pesto Quinoa

Mashed Potatoes

Italian Pizza

Farro or Brown Rice Pilaf

Italian Cabbage and White Beans.

5 from 6 votes