This crunchy cucumber and tomato salad is a staple in our home from spring to late summer. I hope you enjoy this easy salad too!
When I think of easy, delicious, refreshing and nutritious salads for summer, this is the one that comes to mind.
Both cucumbers and tomatoes, the stars of this recipe, are hydrating vegetables, accessible in the summer months, and rich in antioxidants. Plus, cucumbers are one of the easiest vegetables to grow (in my opinion).
Cucumbers contain vitamin K, potassium, pantothenic acid, phosphorus, copper, vitamin C and magnesium. Tomatoes are rich in antioxidants, especially lycopene. In addition to chopped tomatoes and cucumbers, I like to add spicy red onion, lots of fresh dill and parsley and occasionally Castelvetrano olives.
What I like most about this salad is its simplicity and flexibility: it takes about 10 minutes to prepare and can be enjoyed as a side dish or main dish.
To make this dish the main dish, increase the amount of fat, protein and starchy carbohydrates following the Five Principles system for a balanced dish. Some ideas to increase the components of a balanced meal include: avocado, edamame, grilled shrimp, fish, smoked salmon, chicken, tofu, boiled eggs, hemp seeds, cooked quinoa and the list goes on.
