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Creamy Cucumber Salad

Creamy cucumber salad with tangy dill sour cream dressing clinging to thin cucumber rounds and red onion half-moons. A quick salt-draw step keeps it crisp, then it chills for a cold cucumber salad that’s ideal for BBQ side dish nights.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
chilling 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 210
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cucumbers and onion
  • 3 English cucumbers Thinly sliced.
  • 1 red onion Thinly sliced into half-moons.
  • 1.5 tsp salt Used to draw out excess moisture.
Dill sour cream dressing
  • 1 sour cream For the creamy base.
  • 0.25 cup mayonnaise Helps the dressing cling.
  • 2 tbsp white wine vinegar Tangy balance.
  • 1 tbsp fresh dill Chopped.
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp granulated sugar
  • cracked black pepper To taste.
  • extra fresh dill for garnish Optional but recommended for finishing.

Method
 

Salt the cucumbers
  1. Place the sliced English cucumbers and red onion in a colander and toss with salt. Let sit 15-20 minutes to draw out excess moisture, then pat completely dry.
Make the dill sour cream dressing
  1. Whisk together sour cream, mayonnaise, white wine vinegar, chopped fresh dill, garlic powder, granulated sugar, and cracked black pepper until smooth. Scrape the sides until the dressing looks uniform and glossy.
Coat and season
  1. Add the drained English cucumbers and red onion to the dressing and toss gently to coat every slice. Stop tossing once the cucumbers look evenly covered.
Adjust flavor
  1. Taste the salad and adjust vinegar, salt, or dill as needed. Aim for a tangy, dill-forward flavor with no watery taste.
Chill and serve
  1. Refrigerate the creamy cucumber salad for at least 30 minutes before serving. Garnish with extra fresh dill and cracked black pepper and serve chilled.

Notes

For best crunch, pat the cucumber rounds very dry after the 15-20 minute salt draw; excess moisture will thin the dressing. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days (no freezing). For a lighter option, substitute plain Greek yogurt for half of the sour cream to keep it tangy while reducing richness.