Quick & Easy Greek Salad

This easy Greek salad recipe includes all the ingredients you’d expect in a traditional Greek salad. Fresh crisp vegetables are combined with crumbled feta and balsamic vinaigrette to make the most refreshing summer salad.

I’ve become a bit of a salad-a-holic lately, especially where my favorite Greek salad is concerned. As in, if I had friends I actually saw on a regular basis and they knew how many leafy greens I was ingesting, I’m sure someone would stage an intervention. Fortunately, I don’t have a social life and with only like, two friends who I see maybe once or twice a year, my vices are allowed to run amuck unchecked. This also explains why my skin may be turning green shortly.

Today, I am showing you my quick and easy Greek salad recipe. Truly, I eat this two or three (or four or five) times a week. It’s the perfect salad to meal prep for the week ahead. Sometimes it is lunch, sometimes it is supper, sometimes it is a snack, and I’m not gonna lie, sometimes it is breakfast. If you are wanting this for dinner serve this as a side with Greek chicken and potatoes, salmon patties, lemon parmesan chicken, pork chops, or roast chicken and you will have the perfect meal.

The ingredients are what you’d expect to find in an authentic Greek salad: leafy greens, cucumber, tomato, red onion, basil, and feta cheese. We simply toss all of the ingredients together and I drizzle a balsamic vinaigrette over the top. The combination of the tart onion and dressing, crisp cucumber, juicy tomato, and feta cheese is a match made in heaven.

Keep scrolling for suggestions on how to make this salad work for you. You can add veggies, subtract veggies, or switch up the salad dressing. The choice is all yours.

Recipe Ingredients

• Dark leafy greens
• Cucumber slices
• Sliced red onion
• Feta cheese
• Fresh basil leaves
• Tomato wedges
• Balsamic vinaigrette

Helpful Kitchen Tools

• Salad Bowl
• Salad Spinner

How to Make My Easy Greek Salad Recipe

To make the salad, I tear up the basil leaves and mix them with my greens first.

Then I toss these together with all of my fresh vegetables (that are already prepped and sliced 😉).

Once they’re all nicely combined, it’s time to sprinkle the crumbled feta cheese on top.

I have experimented with all sorts of dressings and I find the best for my taste is simply balsamic vinaigrette.

The final touch is a drizzle of that vinaigrette.

Isn’t that a gorgeous salad?

Yeah. Now I’ve got to go eat this. I highly suggest you make your own and join me!

Storage

• The undressed salad will last in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
• You can’t freeze fresh salad.

Recipe Variations

Here are some variations to make this Greek salad recipe work for you:

• Use baby spinach leaves or romaine lettuce instead of dark greens.
• Use cherry tomatoes instead of Roma tomatoes.
• Add a handful of chopped and pitted Kalamata olives or black olives.
• Swap the balsamic for a Greek vinaigrette. Combine a couple of tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil with a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice (or red wine vinegar) and 2 teaspoons of dried oregano.
• Do as Jamie Oliver does (see below), and swap the basil for other fresh herbs like fresh dill or fresh mint leaves.
• Add chopped green bell peppers.
• Add salt and black pepper to taste.
• Serve it with cut blocks of feta cheese instead of crumbled.

Recipe Notes

• For the cheese, I find that it’s usually cheaper to buy a block of it and crumble it myself. It crumbles easily so I just hold it over my salad and break it up with my hands.
• This is such an easy salad recipe to double or triple. Use the meal prep tips below.

Recipe FAQs

Can you meal prep this salad recipe?

Absolutely! This salad is a great lunch idea to make ahead of time for meal prep. Personally, on the weekend I chop everything up and put all of the ingredients in separate containers in my fridge so I can throw this together in a flash.

To store my lettuce for the week, I put it in a large zipper seal plastic bag along with a paper towel. This absorbs excess moisture and keeps your lettuce fresh for at least two or three times longer than normal.

What is a traditional Greek salad made of?

Horiatiki or traditional Greek salad is made with vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion chopped into large chunks. It also includes a block of feta cheese and a homemade Greek salad dressing made with Greek oregano and olive oil.

How does Jamie Oliver make Greek salad?

Here’s Jamie Oliver’s salad recipe. But it includes tomato, red onion, cucumber, green bell pepper, fresh dill, fresh mint, black olives, red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese, and dried oregano.

Does Greek salad contain lettuce?

A traditional Greek salad doesn’t typically contain lettuce. However, American-style Greek salads regularly include lettuce or some sort of leafy green.

You may also like these sensational salad recipes:

Greek Cucumber Salad

Tomato, Onion, and Cucumber Salad

Italian Cucumber Salad

Mediterranean Quinoa Salad With Roasted Vegetables

Creamy Cucumber Salad

Caprese Salad With Chicken and Avocado

“Two things to remember in life: Take care of your thoughts when you’re alone and take care of your words when you’re with people.”

~Anonymous

Submitted by Janet Taylor