Our keto cucumber salad is based on a German cucumber salad (Gurkensalat) a friend of mine used to prepare in summer time. A simple, delicious, refreshing summer salad made with only a handful of easy to find ingredients. A low carb, healthy recipe that is keto friendly. This keto cucumber salad is always popular at gatherings and great to prepare for a potluck or for a summer barbeque. Similar to German Gurkensalat this refreshing salad is prepared from cucumbers, sour cream, dill, red onion and vinegar. Cucumbers are mostly water, low in carbs and suitable to eat in moderation on the ketogenic diet.
How to Make this keto friendly cucumber salad
In a bowl, stir together the following dressing ingredients; sour cream, white vinegar, olive oil, dill, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
Thinly slice cucumber and red onion into a large bowl, cover in the mixed dressing ingredients. Toss the cucumber, red onion and dressing together until the salad is well coated. Refrigerate and allow to sit for one hour before serving (can last 2 days in the refrigerator if all ingredients are fresh). The salad is more crispy and nice if it is fresh.
See our step by step guide to cut a cucumber in different ways.
Variations in this keto cucumber salad
- English cucumbers or persian cucumbers work well to make this salad. (English cucumbers are the smooth cucumbers wrapped in plastic at the supermarket).
- Some people prefer to peel the cucumber, I don’t feel this is necessary if you slice it very thin. The vinegar also softens the skin.
- The sour cream can be replaced with Greek yogurt.
- If you like paprika, garnishing the salad with ½ tsp paprika adds a nice flavor and some vibrant color.
- Dry dill can be used instead of freshly chopped dill, if you can not find fresh dill. Use 1 ½ tbsp dry dill.
Is cucumber keto friendly?
Cucumber and sour cream are the main components of the keto cucumber salad. Cucumbers are about 95% water, low in carbs and low in calories, they are a healthy addition to the keto diet. Sour cream is high in fat (more than 80%) and low in carbohydrates (less than 10%) and is also very suitable for the keto diet.
What is the keto diet?
The ketogenic diet is very low in carbohydrates and high fat diet. It involves drastically reducing carbohydrate intake and replacing it with fat. By replacing carbohydrates with fats your body turns to a metabolic state called ketosis to generate energy.
Recipe Card Keto Cucumber Salad
Keto Cucumber Salad
Ingredients
- 275 grams cucumber (1 medium sized fruit)
Salad Dressing
- 80 ml sour cream (1/3 cup)
- 1 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp dill chopped
- 1 gram garlic powder (1/3 tsp)
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl prepare a dressing by stirring together the following dressing ingredients; sour cream, white vinegar, olive oil, dill, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Thinly slice cucumber and red onion into a large bowl.
- Cover in the mixed dressing ingredients.
- Toss the cucumber, red onion and dressing together until the salad is well coated
- Refrigerate and allow to sit for one hour before serving (can last 2 days in the refrigerator if all ingredients are fresh). The salad is more crispy and nice if it is fresh.
Salad Nutrition
Cucumbers are relatively low in carbs, have a high water content and is a particularly good source of vitamin K which is good for bone formation. Sour cream is a good source of calcium, phosphorus, vitamin B12 and other essential nutrients, since most of the calories in sour cream comes from fat it is a very popular ingredient to use in the Ketogenic diet.
The nutrition facts provided in the recipe were calculated with an online tool.
I definitely think om going to make this very very soon. Looks delicious.
I did not think a salad with so much cucumber would work, but I loved it, super healthy so a regular on our table now!