Easy Avocado Salad
I truly believe that some of the best recipes are created using simple ingredients and enhancing their star qualities! It’s important to let their true flavor and colours shine through without overpowering them, and this avocado salad does just that! Crunchy cucumbers, juicy cherry tomatoes, bold red onion and creamy avocados are tossed in a homemade cilantro lemon dressing that adds such a brightness to the dish!
Simple, Short Ingredient List Super Easy To Make And Super Quick Customizable Delicious & Healthy
This may be one of the easiest recipes on the blog, there’s not much to it – but that’s the beauty of it, the simplicity. Requiring only a handful of fresh ingredients, this salad packs a punch in the flavor department and proves that you don’t need a lot of bells and whistles to steal the show! Whether you’re eating this dish all on its own, or as a healthy side, you’re bound to go back for more.
Ingredient Notes
Dressing
Olive Oil – Substitute sunflower, safflower or avocado oil. Lemon Juice – I recommend using freshly squeezed! Cilantro – Fresh cilantro, chopped. Salt & Pepper – To taste.
How To Make Avocado Salad
Tips
Storing
This salad is best eaten right away! If you wait too long, it will allow the avocado to oxidize too much, resulting in a brown mushy mess. If you use enough lemon juice you may be able to prevent your avocado from going brown. Store in an airtight container for a day or two. I definitely don’t recommend freezing this dish, the quality and texture will not last in the freezer.
More Great Salad Recipes To Try
Avocado Chicken SaladCucumber Tomato SaladWaldorf SaladGreek SaladCaesar SaladChef SaladCobb SaladTabbouleh SaladFattoush SaladTossed Salad
title: “Avocado Salad” ShowToc: true date: “2024-11-06” author: “Keith Butler”
Creamy avocado, ripe and juicy tomatoes, crisp cucumber, tangy red onion, and fresh parsley meld perfectly to create a tasty, nutritious, and fulfilling summer salad.
Ingredients & Substitutions
How to make avocado salad
Variations
Serving Suggestions
Storage
Questions
More Avocado Recipes
More Salad Recipes
With its healthy fats and plenty of fiber, the avocados make this salad a good candidate for a quick everyday summer lunch. But pair it with a slice of rosemary focaccia or warm pita bread and a dip of your choice (we love it with tzatziki), and you’ve got a delicious and satisfying dinner for the whole family. We keep this healthy salad recipe simple, so you can make it without running to the store. However, please take this as a guideline and customize it with your favorite add-ins and dressing. Then, let’s see how it’s made!
Tomatoes
Use ripe tomatoes that are firm to the touch. Most tomato varieties are okay to make this avocado salad recipe. Try cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, Heirloom tomatoes, Yellow Cherry, and San Marzano tomatoes. We recommend mixing two or more varieties with different textures and colors in the salad.
Cucumber
You can use English cucumber, American garden cucumber, or Persian cucumber. We like to keep the peel on, but you can peel it if you prefer or remove only part of the peel. If the cucumber is seedy, you can cut off some of the seeds and discard them.
Onion
We recommend red onion for an avocado salad. It reminds us of guacamole, and its sharp, slightly spicy flavor melds perfectly with avocado’s creamy and mellow taste. Slice it as thin as you can, then if you like a milder flavor, soak it in cold water for ten minutes before using it in the salad. You can substitute shallots, scallions, or spring onions for the red onion. Also, if you are more of a garlic fan, you can substitute a crushed garlic clove for the onion or add both.
Olive oil
Extra-virgin olive oil would be the best choice to add a fruity flavor and tie together the other ingredients.
Lemon
Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds a fresh, vibrant kick to the salad; however, don’t add too much of it because it can make the meal too acidic. Fresh lime juice would also work, especially if combined with fresh cilantro. You can substitute balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar for lemon juice.
Fresh herbs
Our herb of choice for this salad is flat-leaf parsley. It’s fresh, easy to find, and everyone loves it. As a second choice, we have chopped fresh basil, which has a rounder flavor than parsley and fits perfectly with tomatoes and avocado. Other excellent choices are chives, dill, and cilantro, although not everyone likes that, so double-check with your guests before adding it in.
Salt and Pepper
Avocados and tomatoes require a good pinch of sea salt and some freshly ground black pepper to bring out their flavor.
Add-ins
Our avocado, cucumber, and tomato salad are delicious as is. However, if you feel like turning it into a more substantial main, then you can add one or more of the following:
crispy air fryer chickpeas or spicy roasted chickpeas non-dairy feta or feta cheese drained and rinsed canned chickpeas black olives or Kalamata olives air fryer croutons or oven-baked croutons diced red bell pepper a short pasta cooked al dente (fusilli, rotini, farfalle) chopped lettuce or arugula corn kernels plant-based chicken or chicken plant-based shrimp or shrimp
Also, if you want a bolder dressing, then try our:
Italian dressing (tangy and bold with an oregano flavor) Mustard dressing (sweet, creamy, bold, it adds a ton of flavor) Cilantro and lime juice dressing (more delicate, it adds a delicious Mexican flavor)
Cut the red onion into thin slices, then pinch it to separate the layers. Soak the sliced red onion in a bowl with cold water for 10 minutes before adding it to the salad. Dice the tomatoes and cucumber into bite-size pieces. Cut the avocado in half, remove the pit, then score it with a knife to create small squares and scoop it out. Finely chop the parsley. Add the chopped veggies to a large bowl, then season with freshly squeezed lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Toss gently until the vegetables are coated in the condiments and slightly creamy from the avocado. Taste and adjust for salt before serving. There’s something about adding pasta to it that makes this avocado salad even better. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted boiling water until al dente. It’s important that you salt the pasta water. Drain the pasta, run it under cold water for 15 seconds, then add it to the other ingredients. For example, you might need to add more olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add a can of rinsed chickpeas to make this an even more nutritious and fulfilling meal with a complete and healthy plant-based protein profile.
Avocado Salad Bruschetta
Bruschetta is simply toasted bread slices with fresh toppings. It’s excellent as an appetizer or as a quick lunch or dinner. This avocado salad is the perfect topping for bruschetta. You don’t have to change anything; toast some bread slices, rub them with garlic while still warm, and top them with a couple of tablespoons of the salad. Drizzle with good olive oil and boom! Best bruschetta ever. Avocados and tomatoes on crunchy bread are irresistible. Check out our bruschetta recipe to learn more.
Avocado Salad + Add-Ins
Stir in one or more of these delicious add-ins to make this simple avocado salad more personal:
crispy air fryer chickpeas or spicy roasted chickpeas non-dairy feta or feta cheese drained and rinsed canned chickpeas black olives or Kalamata olives air fryer croutons or oven-baked croutons diced bell pepper a short pasta cooked al dente (fusilli, rotini, farfalle) chopped lettuce or arugula corn kernels plant-based chicken or chicken plant-based shrimp or shrimp
We made the one in the picture above with dill, olives, and crispy air fryer chickpeas.
Focaccia bread (flour, instant dry yeast, rosemary, sugar, salt, etc.) Bruschetta (cherry tomatoes, basil, garlic, bread, balsamic vinegar, etc.) Crostini (bread, salt, pepper, garlic, olive oil, etc.) Pita bread (flour, instant dry yeast, olive oil, etc.) A slice of crusty bread Tacos Hummus (chickpeas, lemon, tahini, salt, garlic, etc.) Tzatziki sauce (yogurt, cucumber, garlic, olive oil, etc.)
Pita Bread
Focaccia
Crostini Recipe
Bruschetta
Refrigerator: store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 24 hours. Some juices might float around from the cucumber and tomatoes; you can drain those and add fresh olive oil and parsley. Freezer: this recipe is not suitable for freezing.
Tips
How to choose ripe avocado at the store?
First: look for the stem. It’s generally better if the avocado has it still on. This way, it will stay fresh for longer after buying it. Second: look at the color. Ripe avocados are generally darker than unripe ones. So try to find ones with a dark green, almost black color. Third: avoid shiny ones. Ripe avocadoes generally have a dull, matte peel. Shiny avocados usually are unripe. Fourth: avoid indentations or bruise spots. If you see evident bruises that are soft to the touch, that’s not good. I wouldn’t recommend buying those, even if they are on offer. There’s not much you can do with bruised, overripe avocado. Fifth: feel it. If the avocado yields to firm, gentle pressure, you know it’s ready to eat. To feel the avocado, pick it up in the palm of your hand, and apply gentle pressure with the whole hand. Do not squeeze with your fingertips, as you might damage the avocado. If the avocado feels mushy, it could be overripe. However, if the avocado feels hard (it does not yield to gentle pressure), you can still buy it and let it ripe at home for a few days. To speed up ripening, put the avocado in a paper bag with an apple or banana for a few days.
Avocado spread (tahini, lemon juice, garlic, avocado, salt.) Guacamole (red onion, avocado lime juice, cilantro, etc.) Tofu salad (romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, tofu, corn, tahini, lemon juice, etc.) Black bean salad (roasted sweet potato, black beans, avocado, corn, lime, etc.)
Avocado Spread
Guacamole
Tofu Salad
Black Bean Salad
Cucumber tomato salad (cucumber, tomato, basil, parsley, olive oil, etc.) Tomato salad (tomato, basil, red onion, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, etc.) Rice salad (olives, wholegrain rice, pickled cucumber, cherry tomatoes, etc.) Zucchini salad (cherry tomatoes, zucchini, olive oil, basil, mint, etc.) Sweet potato salad (sweet potatoes, avocado, olive oil, etc.)
Cucumber Tomato Salad
Side Salad
Tomato Salad
Rice Salad
35 Healthy Pasta Recipes
25 Easy Eggplant Recipes
25 Easy Zucchini Recipes
30 Vegetarian Recipes
