How to Make the Perfect Greek Salad

Making an authentic Greek Salad is so easy and is something I make at least once a week in our household. It’s a great way to use up veggies in our fridge and add veggies to a meal, and it’s so easy you really can’t go wrong with it. Greek salad ingredients are simple, and fresh, and typically include ripe tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, peppers, and sweet red onions with the saltiness from olives and feta. The dressing is an easy one with olive oil and lemon as the star ingredients, and with those few, simple ingredients you’ll have a delicious Greek Salad.

Here is the perfect Authentic Greek Salad Recipe

Core Ingredients

Tomatoes 🍅

There are few, simple ingredients in an authentic Greek Salad, so let’s first talk about the tomatoes. There aren’t rules on the type of tomato you use in a Greek Salad, what you want is just something juicy, ripe, and preferably in-season. Tomatoes like heirloom, roma, beefsteak, and even cherry or grape can work. You’ll also want to ensure you avoid mealy tomatoes. Look for tomatoes that are heavy for their size, and springy to the touch. You’ll also want to choose locally grown if you can for the optimal flavor.

Cucumbers 🥒

The next star ingredient is cucumbers which add a nice crunch to Greek Salad. You’ll want to look for English cucumbers for your salad. These have thinner skin than other varieties, fewer seeds, and a mild flavor, making them easy to eat and enjoy in your salad. If you can’t find English cucumbers you can use Persian or mini cucumbers instead, and the best part is, you don’t even have to peel them if you don’t mind the skin!

Kalamata Olives 🫒

Let’s talk about the olives in your Greek salad–one of my favorite ingredients. Olives add a saltiness and flavor to your salad, and they are also full of healthy fats, antioxidants, and fiber. For a Greek Salad, I prefer to use Kalamata Olives. These olives have a briny flavor and are slightly sweet which works so well in a Greek Salad. It’s also important that you use pitted olives to make your salad easier to eat, and that you opt for high-quality olives. To find the best olives, look for:

• Texture: Olives should be firm and plump vs. shriveled or easily breakable
• Brine: The brine should be clear
• Jar: Look for olives in glass jars, as these offer better protection against light and oxidation than plastic containers

Feta Cheese 🧀

Feta cheese is also essential for a great Greek Salad as it adds a saltiness that compliments the other ingredients. You can look for crumbled or cubed feta in your grocery store, but the most important thing is to look for a feta that has “Made in Greece” somewhere on the label. If you don’t see that, look for a feta made with sheep’s milk as that is what authentic feta is made with (vs. cow’s milk). You will also want feta that is in its brine. This will ensure you have the best feta on hand in your fridge for easy salads and other recipes.

Essential Greek Salad Ingredients

Although the above Greek Salad ingredients are the core ingredients, the below ingredients are essential to make it top-notch and authentic.

Red Onion 🧅

You can use other onions in a Greek Salad but red onion is best as it provides a sharp, tangy flavor that cuts the richness of the feta and the sweetness of the tomatoes. It also adds a good crunch and texture to the salad. To prepare for your Greek Salad, I prefer to slice them thin.

Bell Peppers 🫑

Another must-have ingredient in your salad is bell peppers. Bell peppers are not only loaded with vitamins and nutrients, but they add flavor, color, and texture to your salad. Green peppers are often seen as the most authentic addition to your salad are they’re slightly more subtle in flavor, and a bit bitter. However, you can use whatever color of bell pepper you have on hand or that you prefer.

Fresh Herbs 🌿

Last but not least is the herbs. You can use fresh or dried, but the key one here is oregano which you’ll find in almost every Greek recipe, and is one of the star Greek Salad ingredients. Oregano is widely cultivated in Greece and has been used in Greek cooking for centuries. It adds a warm, earthy, and pungent flavor to your salad.

Finishing Touches

The finishing touches to your Greek Salad is the dressing. This will bring your whole salad together and it only takes a few simple ingredients to make.

Olive Oil 🫒

The key here is a high-quality olive oil. What you’ll want to look for is the name “Extra Virgin Olive Oil” (EVOO) on the label. What makes EVOO the best for flavor is how it’s made. To make EVOO they extract the olives using mechanical means (cold-pressed) and no heart or chemicals. This helps minimize processing and preserves the flavor and nutritional value.

Red Wine Vinegar 🍷

Red wine vinegar is the other key dressing ingredient. It’s acidic and adds a tang and bite to the vegetables. It also harmonizes so perfectly with the oregano. Any red wine vinegar will work great in your salad but if you’re looking for the best, look for “aged” or “reserve” on the menu.

Lemon Juice 🍋

Last but certainly not least, lemon juice is great in a Greek Salad. It is optional but I love the flavor it adds. It also helps preserve the freshness of the salad and adds additional vitamin C.

Here is the perfect Greek Salad Dressing

Variations

Outside of the traditional ingredients, there are so many other ways you can make an authentic Greek Salad your own with your own unique Greek Salad ingredients. Here are some ideas:

• Pepperoncini peppers (to add a little kick)
• Capers (adds saltiness and tang)
• Artichoke hearts (use marinates artichoke hearts)
• Protein (add chicken to make this Greek Salad a complete meal)

Greek Salad is also already gluten-free and vegetarian, but you can also make it vegan by just simply substituting the feta with a vegan alternative.

How to Make Greek Salad Taste & Look Great

There are a few essential tips to making your Greek Salad look and taste its best. Here’s my advice:

• Olive Oil: The key to a great taste is your olive oil. You want to look for a quality extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) that is ideally from Greece or one of the largest olive oil producing regions (Spain, Italy, California).
• Feta: We chatted a bit about finding the best feta but for serving, use a good chunk of it on your salad. Greek’s don’t usually cube it but instead cut a block so you have a nice big chunk on your salad.
• Herbs: The key herb in a Greek Salad is oregano and you want to make sure your oregano is fresh (hasn’t been sitting in your cupboard for too long), dried oregano is good when it’s no longer bright green and is more of a light brownish green to darker green color. 
• Vinegar: Red wine vinegar and/or lemon really helps elevate the flavor.
• Veggies: You want veggies that are fresh, ideally grown locally and in-season. That’s when your salad is going to taste its best. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t make it all-year-round.

Best Served With

Make It a Full Meal: If you’re enjoying this salad on its own, you may want to add a protein to it (or on the side) to make it a complete, filling meal. Try our Greek Gyro, Greek Souvlaki or Greek Burger Patties.

Serve It as a Side: A Greek Salad is a great side salad to serve with a main course to get your veggies in. Try it with our Greek Pastitsio Recipe or our Greek Shrimp and Orzo Bake.

On Its Own: You can totally just enjoy a Greek salad on its own. It’s loaded with nutrients and so yummy. However, when I’m eating just a Greek Salad, I always like to pair it with some Fluffy Greek Pita to soak up all the dressing.