You’ll feel cool as a cucumber with this low-calorie, low-carb salad!
Cucumbers are one of a few vegetables that are near-net zero calorie snacks. A whole cucumber contains roughly 16 calories. One of the reasons for this is the same as why celery is a net zero calorie snack: it’s mostly water. This is the cause for a lot of cucumbers’ benefits, including how cool and refreshing they can be—they literally hydrate you when you eat them!
The water content in cucumbers is also the likely reason for the phrase, “cool as a cucumber.” In fact, a cucumber’s insides are often a few degrees cooler than the surrounding temperature. It’s also a prime carrier for electrolytes like sodium and potassium, which is why they make such delicious pickles!
Cucumbers aren’t just water, though! While being a low calorie, low carb veg, they also carry a healthy dose of vitamins K, C, and B! Adding onions (another low carb, low calorie vegetable) packs in even more vitamin C, making today’s recipe for cucumber salad a phenomenal source of essential vitamins while being refreshing and guilt-free. Add a splash of apple cider vinegar to up the probiotic qualities of this delicious salad, and you’ll have a cooling snack that’s good for you and your gut!
Is Cucumber Salad Healthy?
So healthy!!! Cucumbers and onions, the two main ingredients of our cucumber salad, are low calorie, low carb, vitamin rich foods! That makes them delicious, nutritious, and totally snackable! Apple cider vinegar and honey both bring probiotic goodness to your gut microbiome, fed by the plant fiber in the vegetables and herbs of the salad. It’s truly a match made in health-food heaven, perfect for paleo, keto, and vegan diets (given you swap honey for agave nectar).
Your Microbiome and You
You’ve heard of probiotics and that certain foods are conducive to an active and healthy gut biome, but you may have needed clarification about just how it all works! When people talk about microbiomes, it sort of sounds like they’re talking about climate-controlled terrariums. Still, when people start talking about bacteria in your gut, it can sometimes sound like a bad thing (who wants bacteria inside them?!?).
There are healthy bacteria living in your gut, helping to digest things like plant fiber and protecting your immune system from foreign, unwelcome bacterial bodies. They can be crucial to your overall health and are unduly culled whenever you take antibiotics or go on some juice-style cleanses. These bacteria aren’t like the kind of bacteria you associate with an infection – they’re helpful!
It’s important to feed your gut microbiome lots of fiber to ensure the health of the bacteria that help you digest your food and protect you from otherwise unnoticeable foodborne illnesses. Like in today’s recipe, plant fiber helps ensure that your microbiome is well-fed and capable of taking on your biggest meals!
Next time you think about your microbiome, remember: if you’re hungry, they’re hungry!
INGREDIENTS
- 2 English cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
Combine
Mix cucumber and onion.
Dress
Whisk vinegar, honey, and salt; pour over veggies.
Marinate
Chill salad to blend flavors.
Garnish
Add dill and pepper before serving.
Devour!
FAQs & Tips
Cucumber salad only gets better as it sits in the flavors of apple cider vinegar and honey, so making it ahead and storing it in the fridge for later only results in an even better tasting snack for later! Just make sure your cucumber salad is stored in an airtight container and keep it in your fridge for up to 5 days (any longer and you could begin to cultivate the unwanted bacteria rather than the good kind!)
For a delicate and refreshing zoodle dish, take the cucumber salad recipe and process your cucumber in a vegetable noodler! You’ll have delicious cold noodles that are hydrating and good for you!
Apple cider vinegar is a really healthy probiotic additive for cucumber salad, but if you’re looking for a little extra biome, try swapping it out for Greek yogurt! You’ll have a tzatziki style cucumber salad with protein and healthy microbes!
Serving Suggestions
Cucumber salad is bright, colorful, and refreshing, making it a perfect pairing for any dish requiring a bit of bite to slice through the savor! For a keto pairing, try cucumber salad with keto sloppy joes for some contrast between bright and meaty! If you’re paleo, give cucumber salad a go with paleo baked chicken thighs. Looking to keep it vegan? Cucumber salad pairs wonderfully with cauliflower fritters and hummus! Want something that ticks all the boxes? A similarly vegan, paleo, keto pairing for your cucumber salad is juicy, meaty portabellas!
Ingredients
- 2 English cucumbers thinly sliced
- 1/4 red onion thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill chopped
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Combine cucumber and onion slices in a large bowl.
- In a small bowl, whisk together apple cider vinegar, honey, and kosher salt until well blended.
- Pour the dressing over the cucumber and onion, tossing to coat evenly. Allow the salad to marinate for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Before serving, sprinkle with fresh dill and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Nutrition Info:
Recipes written and produced on Food Faith Fitness are for informational purposes only.
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