Classic Greek Salad Recipe (Horiatiki)

Traditional Greek Salad is made with juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, creamy feta cheese, and savory Kalamata olives. It's topped with plenty of healthy extra virgin olive oil and dried oregano. It's a very simple, no-mix salad to make, bursting with Mediterranean goodness!

Greek Salad in Greece is called Horiatiki Salata, which translates to Village Salad. The name implies that it's a rustic, humble, and simple garden-fresh salad.

Table Of Contents

• Ingredients
• Additional Ingredients
• How To Make
• The Best Greek Salad
• TIPS
• Make It Vegan - Lactose-Free
• Serve With
• Recipe

An authentic Greek salad can be served as an appetizer, side dish, or even as a main meal salad on its own. The feta cheese makes it very filling and satisfying, without making it feel too heavy. In other words, it's a great, quick, and easy summer meal.

A Greek salad is my go-to dinner during the whole summer. I can live on it. Sometimes with slight adjustments to the basic ingredients for some variation (like the ingredients I mention below).

Ingredients

The ingredients to make an Authentic Greek salad are sun-ripened tomatoes, crunchy cucumbers, sliced onion, sliced green pepper, briny Kalamata olives, plenty of extra virgin olive oil, and dried Greek mountain oregano.

Additional Ingredients

Other than the basic ingredients used in making a Greek salad, there are a few other popular additions such as:

• Lettuce: not used in the Authentic Greek Salad recipe, but it goes well. If you want to add it to the Greek salad, shred it and add it to a mixing bowl with the other ingredients. Cut the feta cheese into small cubes or crumble it and toss it into the bowl as well. Add a few drops of red wine vinegar or fresh lemon and mix everything well. The blend of flavors is heavenly!
• Arugula: not a very popular addition, but a truly tasty one! Use baby arugula leaves (or rocket, it's the same thing) and just toss them in the salad.
• Capers: This is a popular addition in Greece. A few baby capers tossed in the salad add a nice savory boost to the flavors of Horiatiki. You can even use brined caper leaves.
• Kritamos: a more extravagant addition, with a salty, savory flavor. Kritamos is sea fennel that's preserved in brine. It gives a unique flavor to this delicious summer salad.
• Paximadi: Greek rusks are a favorite addition to Greek salad. Either wheat or traditional Cretan barley rusks, broken down into smaller pieces and mixed into the salad. These soak up all the juices from the tomatoes and olive oil, turning this salad into a truly filling Mediterranean meal!
• Avocado: not a Greek addition, but it's one of my favorite ones. I usually add some chopped creamy avocado sprinkled with fresh lemon juice whenever I want to skip the feta cheese. Trust me, it tastes superb!
• Red wine vinegar: sometimes, a few drops of red wine vinegar are added to Greek salad for extra acidity, but that depends on personal preference.

How To Make

The process of making a Classic Greek Salad is very simple. You first cut the tomatoes into chunky pieces and add them to a soup plate or deep plate. Next, add the cut cucumbers, sliced green pepper, and red onion.

Lastly, top the vegetables with a big piece of feta cheese, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, and sprinkle with dried oregano. You don't need to mix anything; it's traditionally served this way!

The Best Greek Salad

To make the best Greek salad, you need seasonal, sun-ripe tomatoes. These are the whole essence of the salad. You can get away with cucumbers if they're not in season. But not with tomatoes. If tomatoes are bland, then the Greek Salad will also be!

So seasonality is key here. Always make a Greek salad during the warmer months of the year, when tomatoes are in season, ripe, sweet, and full of flavor!

If you want to make a Greek salad during winter, use cherry tomatoes instead. They are sweet and flavorful all year round. However, they won't make the salad as juicy.

TIPS

• Season the Greek salad with coarse, unrefined sea salt. Just this simple thing will add so much flavor!
• Let the salad sit for 30 minutes before serving. The tomato juices and olive oil create a light, flavorful dressing that's perfect for scooping up with a slice of rustic bread.
• Use Greek mountain oregano to experience the authentic flavor. Its aroma isn't comparable to simple dried oregano.

Make It Vegan - Lactose-Free

To make a Vegan Greek salad, substitute the feta cheese with Vegan Feta Cheese. If you can't find it in a grocery store, you can try making Vegan Feta Cheese yourself at home; it's tastier and healthier, too!

Serve With

The No. 1 food that goes well with a Classic Greek Salad is a piece of rustic, crusty bread to mop up the flavorful juices that collect at the bottom of the plate. Sourdough bread is the best option here.

You can also grill some bread slices, drizzle them with olive oil, and sprinkle them with oregano and coarse sea salt, just as it's served in Greek Tavernas.

Some Tzatziki or Pita Bread on the side is also great. And of course, this salad is the perfect pairing to any grilled meat or fish like Souvlaki, Grilled Sea Bream, or Grilled Sardines to bring the taste of

Recipe