Greek Salad with Lemon

Ingredients:

Preparation mode:

👉 A real Greek salad – horiatiki, or “village salad” – has no lettuce and no complicated dressing. It is all about ripe summer tomatoes, crunchy cucumber and peppers, good olive oil and a thick piece of feta on top. This version adds a squeeze of lemon for extra freshness.

🍳 How to Make Greek Salad

1. Prepare the vegetables. Cut the tomatoes into wedges and the cucumber into thick half-moons. Slice the peppers into rings and the onion very thinly.
2. Season. Put the vegetables in a wide bowl, sprinkle with salt and toss gently. Let them sit for 5 minutes so the tomatoes release a little juice.
3. Add olives and feta. Scatter over the olives and lay the feta on top in one piece or a few thick slices.
4. Dress. Drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice and sprinkle the oregano over the feta.
5. Serve. Serve right away with crusty bread to soak up the juices at the bottom of the bowl.

💡 Tips

• Use the ripest tomatoes you can find – they make the dressing.
• Some cooks add capers or a few lettuce leaves, but the classic is simply vegetables, olives and feta.

❓ FAQ

Does Greek salad have lettuce?
The traditional horiatiki does not; lettuce versions are a later restaurant variation.

Can I make it ahead?
Chop the vegetables ahead, but salt and dress the salad just before serving.

👉 More salads: browse all recipes.

Footnotes:

A bright Greek village salad of ripe tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, red onion, olives and a slab of feta, dressed simply with olive oil, lemon and oregano.