These cucumbers and onions in vinegar have the tang you want without tasting harsh or overly sweet. Rice vinegar and just enough honey give you a lighter dressing that soaks into the thinly sliced cucumbers and onions while keeping them crisp. After about 30 minutes in the fridge, you’ve got a cold, crunchy side that belongs next to burgers, grilled chicken, or anything coming off the grill.
I’ve been eating cucumbers and onions in vinegar for as long as I can remember. My dad made his version when I was growing up with white vinegar and white onion, so this is one of those recipes that has always felt familiar to me. Mine has changed over the years, but the point is still the same: cold, crisp cucumbers with enough vinegar to be tangy without making your mouth pucker.
The biggest changes I’ve made are switching to red onion, slicing everything thinner, and using rice vinegar instead of white vinegar. Rice vinegar still gives you that vinegar flavor, but it isn’t quite as sharp, and a little honey takes the edge off without making the salad taste sweet. The thinner slices matter too. They pick up the dressing faster, and the onion softens just enough while the cucumbers still keep their crunch.
I also add fresh dill because I like what it does with the cucumber and vinegar, especially after the salad has sat in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes. You still get the old fashioned cucumber and onion salad I grew up with, but this version is a little less harsh, a little more balanced, and much closer to how I want it to taste now.
Why You’ll Love These Cucumbers and Onions
- The vinegar isn’t too harsh. Rice vinegar gives you plenty of tang without overpowering the cucumbers.
- It’s lightly sweet, not sugary. Just a little bit of honey is enough to take the edge off the vinegar without making the dressing taste sweet.
- The cucumbers stay crisp. English cucumber holds up well during the short marinating time.
- It gets better after about 30 minutes. The onion mellows out just enough, and everything else has time to pick up the flavors and soak in.
- It’s easy to make. Other than slicing the cucumbers and onion, this recipe really is just mixing together all of your ingredients. It’s a simple recipe that’s easy to throw together.
Ingredients for Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar
English cucumber: This is the first choice here because the skin is thin and the seeds are small, so there’s no need to peel or seed it. Persian cucumbers also work well.
Red onion: Red onion gives the salad a little more bite and color. Because it’s served raw, thin slices matter.
Rice vinegar: I prefer rice vinegar here because its milder than plain white vinegar, but still gives the cucumbers the vinegar flavor this salad needs.
Honey: Just enough to soften the sharpness of the vinegar. It also dissolves into the dressing easily, so you don’t end up with undissolved sugar sitting at the bottom of the bowl.
Fresh dill: Use fresh here if you can. Dill is a big part of the flavor in this salad, and dired dill won’t taste quite the same.
Coarse kosher salt: Salt pulls a little moisture from the cucumbres as the salad rests and seasons the dressing at the same time.
Ground black pepper: A small amount is enough. You want a little pepper in the background without covering up the cucumber and dill.
How to Make Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar
Detailed instructions and measurements to make old fashioned cucumbers and onions in vinegar are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
- Cut the English cucumber into thin, even slices. If you don’t have much time to let the salad marinate, go a little thinner so the cucumber picks up the dressing faster.
- Slice the onion very thin. Because the red onion stays raw, you don’t want thick pieces throughout the salad. A sharp knife works, but a mandoline makes it much easier to get consistently thin slices.
- Put the cucumber and onion in a medium mixing bowl. Add the rice vinegar, honey, kosher salt, and black pepper.
- Toss until all of the cucumber and onion slices are coated. The honey should be distributed through the vinegar rather than sitting at the bottom of the bowl.
- Chop the fresh dill and mix it into the cucumbers and onions.
- Chill the salad for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator so that the dressing can soak in.
- Serve the salad up with your favorite main dish!
Kara’s Tips
- Thin onion slices make a big difference. You want little bites of onion throughout the cucumbers, not a thick piece of raw onion taking over the whole bite. This is one place where I really like using a mandoline; just use the guard and watch your fingers.
- Don’t judge the dressing before it has had a chance to sit. The cucumbers release a little water as they rest, so the vinegar mixture will taste stronger right after you toss everything together than it does after the salad has chilled.
- Thirty minutes is the sweet spot when you still want crunch. The cucumbers have time to pick up the dressing and the onion mellows, but they haven’t been sitting long enough to turn soft.
- Slice a little thinner if you’re serving it immediately. More surface area lets the dressing get to work faster.
What to Serve with Cucumber and Onion Salad
This belongs next to the kind of summer dinner where something is on the grill, and you don’t want another warm, heavy side on the plate.
Try it with:
I’d also use this beside burgers, barbecue chicken, sandwiches, or a simple summer dinner when you’ve already got corn and tomatoes on the table.
Make Ahead and Storage
Make Ahead
You can make cucumbers and onions in vinegar about 30 minutes before serving and keep them covered in the refrigerator. That’s actually my preference because it gives the cucumbers and onions enough time to marinate.
If you’re making significantly father ahead, keep in mind that the cucumbers will continue to soften the longer they sit.
Refrigerator
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The flavor gets stronger as the cucumbers and onions sit in the dressing, but the cucumbers also lose some of their crispness over time.
I would not freeze this salad. The cucumbers won’t keep their crisp texture after freezing and thawing.
Cucumbers and Onions FAQs
Not if you’re using an English cucumber. English cucumbers have thin, tender skin, so I leave it on. The same goes for Persian cucumbers. If you’re using a standard garden cucumber with thick or waxy skin, peeling it may give you a better texture.
You can eat these cucumbers and onions as soon as they’re mixed, but about 30 minutes in the refrigerator gives the dressing time to work into the vegetables. They’ll still be crisp, but the onion will taste less sharp, and the cucumber will have more flavor.
Salt and vinegar pull some of the natural water from cucumbers as they sit. That’s normal with this style of cucumber salad. The dressing will become a little more diluted over time, which is also why I wouldn’t make it several days before you plan to serve it.
I use rice vinegar because it has enough acidity for a proper vinegar cucumber salad without tasting as sharp as plain distilled white vinegar. White wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar can also work, but they’ll each give the dressing a slightly different flavor.
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Cucumbers and Onions in Vinegar
Ingredients
- 1 whole english cucumber thinly sliced
- ¼ large red onion thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper or to taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill chopped
Instructions
- Slice the cucumber in thin slices. If you don't plan to marinate it for very long, try to go with thinner slices.
- Add the cucumbers to a medium mixing bowl.
- Slice the red onion very thin. The red onion will be raw, so be sure to get your slices as thin as possible. Using a mandoline for this part works really well if you have one, but be careful as it's very easy to cut yourself using them.
- Add the thinly sliced red onion to the mixing bowl with the cucumber slices.
- Add the rice vinegar, honey, kosher salt, and ground black pepper to the mixing bowl with the cucumber and red onion slices and mix to combine. Make sure everything is completely coated in the dressing.
- Chop up the fresh dill. It doesn't have to be tiny, but be sure no one will be biting into a large chunk of dill. You want it to mix in well with the remaining ingredients.
- Add the fresh dill to the mixing bowl and thoroughly mix to combine. You can serve it immediately, but it's better after it's had about 30 minutes to marinate in the refrigerator.
Notes
- For the best flavor and texture, refrigerate the salad for about 30 minutes before serving.
- Slice the red onion very thin so it softens slightly in the vinegar and doesn’t overpower the cucumbers.
- If you’re serving it right away, slice the cucumber a little thinner so it picks up the dressing faster.
- English cucumbers work best because the skin is thin and the seeds are small, so there’s no need to peel or seed them.
- The cucumbers will soften more the longer they sit, so this is best the day it’s made or within the next day or two.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just made it for myself and it’s pretty good, I just had to add a little bit more rice vinegar and I used some sweet onions instead of red
Just like I make but some times I make using sour cream!