German cucumber salad is a low carb, healthy side dish that comes together easily with just a handful of ingredients. Made with fresh cucumbers, red onion, sour cream, vinegar, and dill it’s a refreshing side dish for a hot summer night.
Growing up, my mama would always slice up cucumbers to go along with summer dinners.
I’d turn my nose up at them, because ew, green things. Kids don’t eat green things, Mom. Why do you even try? 😉
I was actually in my 30s before I started enjoying cucumbers that were not pickled.Makes me sad to think of all the time I missed chowing down on these crunchy, refreshing, low carb vegetables! Cucumbers are life, man.
I still peel and slice cucumbers and serve them with a sprinkling of salt for a simple summer side dish, but you’ll more often find my cucumbers in this German cucumber salad recipe.
It’s creamy, it’s refreshing, and it goes great with just about anything.
How to make cucumber salad with sour cream:
You’ll start with a couple of English cucumbers. Slice them nice and thin using either a sharp knife or a mandoline.
Line a baking sheet with a tea towel and lay the cucumber slices out on the towel. Sprinkle them with salt and let them sit for 30 minutes.
This will help the cucumbers to release some of their water so that your salad doesn’t end up too runny.
Pat the cucumbers dry and toss them in a big bowl.
Slice up some red onion, mince some garlic, and chop some dill.
Add all of this to the bowl of cucumbers and add some sour cream and apple cider vinegar. I put in about a teaspoon of sugar substitute for just a hint of sweetness, but you can skip this entirely if you prefer.
I often use Swerve as a sugar replacement. It doesn’t have a funky aftertaste, has zero net carbs, and can be purchased on Amazon through my affiliate link here.
Stir everything together and serve!
It doesn’t get much easier than this cucumber onion salad recipe, right?
What to serve with cucumber dill salad:
Asparagus Stuffed Chicken: Chicken breast stuffed with cheese and asparagus and wrapped in bacon.
Steak Bites: Always a hit in my house!
Lemon Baked Cod: Such a simple dinner, but packed with flavor.
Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast: The easiest way to get greens in my kiddos! 😉
Give this German cucumber salad recipe a try and let me know what you think! For more recipes, be sure to follow me on Facebook!

German Cucumber Salad
This cool and creamy cucumber salad recipe is made with fresh cucumbers, red onions, garlic, and sour cream. It's perfect for a hot summer night.
Ingredients
- 2 English cucumbers
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1/2 red onion, sliced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon sugar substitute
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with a tea towel.
- Thinly slice the cucumbers and lay on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle with the salt.
- Let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature to allow the cucumbers to release their water.
- Pat cucumbers dry and add to a large mixing bowl with the red onion and garlic.
- Whisk together the sour cream, vinegar, dill, sugar substitute, and pepper in a small bowl.
- Pour the dressing mixture over the cucumbers and toss to coat.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Update - lately we've been adding fresh tomatoes to this and it's SO GOOD. Highly recommend, but be sure to count from the in the nutrition.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 76Total Fat: 6gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 17mgSodium: 1068mgCarbohydrates: 5gNet Carbohydrates: 4gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 1g
All information and tools presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information is accurate.
Terri Phillips says
I am diabetic as well as both of my parents. I made this salad for them today and I tried some too. We all loved it. Thank you for your recipe.
Karly Campbell says
So glad you enjoyed it, Terri!
Debora Gleason says
I made it up before breakfast & put it in the fridge because we weren’t going to be home all day. What a great salad to pull out of the fridge & eat for dinner around 6 p.m. on a hot summer day!
Karly Campbell says
So glad you enjoyed it, Debora! 🙂
Dee says
This is great!!!! I’ve had it before but never had the recipe, and my attempts have been ok, but not quite the same. Technique counts as much as measurements!!!! Love your low carb recipes and am thrilled to find your site! Sometimes I opt for slightly higher carb count in order to lower fat count, (like in your sausage and cabbage recipe.) But your recipes are consistently delicious and thank you for all the tips and techniques.
Karly Campbell says
Thanks so much, Dee! Really appreciate that! And so glad you enjoyed the cucumber salad. 🙂
Melanie says
Just made this salad tonight as a side dish. Looks wonderful and so easy to assemble. If you have an abundance of cucumbers in your garden, this is a perfect way to use them up.
Karly Campbell says
Thanks, Melanie! 🙂
Baltisraul says
Making this salad today for our 4th celebraton. Only change is I will use dill vinegar I fusioned last summer. I try to use it whenever the recipe calls for dill and vinegar.
Karly Campbell says
Oh my, that sounds fabulous!
Cheyenne Stallings says
Yum! This sounds so good. I was wondering what the serving size was?
Karly Campbell says
Hi Cheyenne! I just divide this into 6 servings, haven’t measured it by volume. 🙂
Rhonda says
Can I get these recipes thru my email?
Karly Campbell says
Yep! You can sign up here: https://buns-in-my-oven.ck.page/e12ae3d77e!
Carol says
I tried making a half recipe and it didn’t turn out very tasty. I made a couple of mistakes – misread my half recipe figures and used way too much salt and sweetener. The main thing was the cucumber tasted somewhat bitter. First time I’ve eaten an English cucumber so don’t know if it’s supposed to taste like that or if I just don’t know how to pick a good one.
Karly Campbell says
Hi Carol! Sorry to hear this didn’t work out for you. English cucumbers really taste the same as regular though usually LESS bitter. The skin is just thinner and easier to digest.
Susan says
Hi Carol, if you cut the end off and rub it in circles around the other cut end you will see some bubbles come out. My grandmother swears that doing this draws that bitterness out. Give that a try and see if you notice a difference.
New says
I just found out I am pre diabetic less then a week ago. Ive been using your recipes and they are amazing!! Thank you
Helen says
OOOHHH MY! This recipe is the bomb! It’s so surprisingly delicious! Instead of sugar, I added Truvia, couldn’ttell the difference! This recipe is a keeper! LOVED IT!
Maria Harris says
This sounds delicious. However, I’m wondering about the salt content.
1065 mg of salt sounds wrong. Is it possible that its an error?
Karly Campbell says
It’s tricky to calculate on this one – the tablespoon of salt goes over the cucumbers to help them release their liquid. Then you drain/pat dry and remove some of that salt. So, technically, you’re not getting all of it, but it’s hard to calculate how much you are eating so I just left it as is. 🙂