32 Cucumber Recipes You'll Want to Make All Summer Long

Cold Creamy Vegan Cucumber Soup
Photo: Jennifer Causey

Enjoy a fresh and summery meal with these cucumber recipes. Whether you use them in a salad, drink or side dish, cucumbers add a refreshing note to any dish. Try the seasonal vegetable in recipes like Salmon with Curried Yogurt & Cucumber Salad and Vegan Cold Cucumber Soup for a healthy and delicious bite.

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Salmon with Curried Yogurt & Cucumber Salad

Three ingredients you probably already have on hand--curry powder, yogurt and lemon juice--meld into a mouthwatering sauce that transforms simple grilled salmon. This healthy and easy dinner recipe comes together in just 20 minutes.

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Cucumber & Avocado Salad

Cucumber & Avocado Salad

This healthy cucumber-avocado salad takes just five minutes to prep. Lime juice and fresh herbs boost the bright flavors in this crunchy and creamy salad that's a perfect side dish for grilled chicken, fish or steak. This recipe calls for an English cucumber, which doesn't have to be peeled, but regular cucumbers work well too--just peel them before slicing.

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Watermelon, Cucumber & Corn Salsa

This refreshing summer salsa combines cooling watermelon and cucumber with the kick from jalapeño. The heat from jalapeños can vary widely. For those that like the heat, use a whole jalapeño. Serve with tortilla chips on the side.

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Chicken & Cucumber Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce

We love the crunch from sliced cucumber and jicama in these savory chicken lettuce wraps. Serve with the simple peanut sauce for an easy dinner recipe that will impress kids and adults alike.

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Vegan Cold Cucumber Soup

Cold Creamy Vegan Cucumber Soup
Jennifer Causey

Silken tofu thickens this cold cucumber soup while letting the flavor of fresh cucumber shine. The herbs and olive oil add an extra layer of flavor to this refreshing soup which will continue to thicken as it chills. But perhaps the best thing about the soup is that it comes together in 10 minutes in your blender!

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Cucumber Juice

Cucumber Juice
Victor Protasio

This beautiful bright green cucumber juice is packed with fresh cucumber flavor. Coconut water and apple add natural sweetness to this refreshing drink.

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Cucumber Turkey Sub Sandwich

two sandwich halves on a board

When you're craving a sub but you don't want all the carbs, these turkey-and-cheese deli sandwiches on cucumber rolls are a healthy alternative. Hollow out a cucumber and fill it up with your favorite sandwich fillings for a crisp sub with less carbs and calories. Plus, you can easily pack these up for work, school or a picnic--no soggy bread!

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Tomato, Cucumber & White-Bean Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

This no-cook bean salad is a delicious way to use summer's best cherry or grape tomatoes and juicy cucumbers for a light dinner or lunch. Fresh basil elevates an easy vinaigrette recipe that dresses up this simple salad into something extraordinary.

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Cucumber-Lime Mexican Mojitos

This refreshing cucumber-lime flavored cocktail is a great choice for warm summer evenings. You can easily make it a mocktail by substituting lime-flavored sparkling water for the tequila.

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Cucumber-Yogurt Salad

A refreshing accompaniment to a main course of meat or fish, this cucumber-yogurt salad also makes a tasty filling for pita bread. If the cucumbers are grated instead of chopped, this mixture can be served as a dip.

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Greek Chicken & Cucumber Pita Sandwiches with Yogurt Sauce

Cucumbers do double duty in this healthy Greek chicken pita recipe--they're grated to lend a refreshing flavor to the quick cucumber-yogurt sauce and sliced to provide cool crunch tucked into the pita. Serve these Mediterranean sandwiches for a healthy dinner or light lunch.

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Thai-Inspired Pork & Rice Noodles with Cucumbers

The sauce for this healthy noodle dish is made of just 3 ingredients: honey, fish sauce and store-bought chili-garlic sauce, which you can find in the Asian aisle of many grocery stores. The sauce is combined with rice noodles, pork, veggies and herbs for a simple dinner recipe that's also impressive.

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Watermelon Cucumber Basil Seltzer

Watermelon, cucumber, fresh basil, and lime juice flavor a summer drink that's fancy enough for guests. The soda takes only minutes to put together. Keep the fruit concentrate, simple syrup, and seltzer water separately in the fridge, then mix just before serving.

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Cucumber Salsa

This fresh, tangy cucumber salsa is perfect for grilled fish or on its own as a simple side salad. Well balanced and easy to make, the flavor mellows and the cucumber softens as this sits, so it can easily be made a day or two ahead of time--or enjoy it right away, fresh and crisp.

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Cold Cream of Cucumber Soup with Shrimp

This chilled creamy shrimp soup delivers slices of cool cucumber and zesty radishes in each bite. Topped with toasted walnuts, it's a refreshing lunch on a hot summer day.

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Smashed Cucumber Salad with Lemon & Cumin

bowl of Smashed Cucumber Salad with Lemon & Cumin

Don't skip salting the cucumbers in this quick cucumber salad recipe--just 10 minutes pulls out some of their excess moisture, concentrating the flavor and keeping the salad from being watered down. Serve as a healthy side dish at a summer cookout alongside burgers and hot dogs.

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Cucumber Pasta Salad

This light and tangy cucumber pasta salad is fresh and bright. The orecchiette pasta holds the dressing for flavor in every bite, but you can use another small pasta shape if you like. This easy salad is perfect for a warm day or to serve as a lunch dish for company! For a fruitier flavor, try apple-cider vinegar in place of white distilled vinegar.

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Salmon Burgers with Quick Pickled Cucumbers

These healthy salmon burgers call for canned salmon, which makes them an economical and easy dinner. The quick-pickled cucumbers in this recipe are a great introduction to the world of pickling. If you enjoy them, you can make additional batches by following Steps 1 and 2.

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Spiralized Mediterranean Cucumber Salad

Spiralized Mediterranean Cucumber Salad

Save time and spiralize crisp cucumber instead of chopping it for this easy, healthy vegetable side. Want to make it a meal? Just add grilled chicken, shrimp or canned chickpeas.

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Lemon, Cucumber & Mint Infused Water

Lemon, Cucumber & Mint Infused Water

Refresh and hydrate with this citrusy spa water. Adding fresh fruit, veggies and herbs to still or sparkling water is a great way to boost flavor without adding calories or sugar. Serve in a pitcher for a party or bottle individually for on-the-go hydration.

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Cucumber Sandwich

The English cucumber sandwich gets a healthy fiber bump with sprouted whole-grain bread. This easy open-face sandwich recipe is a great healthy snack or packable lunch idea.

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Sesame Noodle Salad with Smashed Cucumbers

These noodles will serve you well when the weather is sweltering and you just want something cool to eat. Robust buckwheat noodles are coated in a nutty sauce made with tahini and sesame oil and topped with crunchy cucumbers with a hint of heat from sambal oelek. You'll find sambal oelek with the Asian foods in most supermarkets; if you can't find it, you can substitute chile-garlic paste or Sriracha. This makes a good-size batch with enough leftovers for a few easy, no-reheat lunches.

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Flank Steak with Grilled Tomatoes & Cucumber Herb Relish

Halved tomatoes keep their shape but get smoky-sweet flavor when grilled alongside the spice-rubbed steak in this healthy dinner recipe. The cool, crunchy cucumber relish is also spectacular served with grilled pork or chicken.

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Cucumber-Avocado Cauliflower Rice Sushi

Cucumber-Avocado Cauliflower Rice Sushi

Use cauliflower rice to turn classic cucumber-avocado sushi into a low-carb snack, lunch or appetizer. This roll is vegetarian-friendly and a no-egg mayo makes it great for vegans too. Make these rolls as you eat them, instead of letting them sit. The cauliflower rice can dry quickly, which makes rolling tricky.

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Cucumber, Tomato & Avocado Salad

plate with cucumbers, tomato and avocado

This vibrant and healthy summer salad is perfect for BBQs and backyard parties. The dressing is whisked together right in the salad bowl before you add the vegetables, so it's also incredibly easy to make. Choose a fairly firm avocado so it holds its shape in the salad.

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Cucumber with Basil, Yogurt, Walnuts & Browned Butter (Yanik Tereyagli Cacik)

You may not typically serve your cucumbers bruised, but intentionally smashing them releases their flavorful juices. Taking the time to soak the walnuts for this dish gives them a special soft texture and plumpness. Serve this vegetable dish with pita as part of a mezze platter or as a side salad.

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Cucumber-Mint Spritzer

Cucumbers and mint pair delightfully in this refreshing spritzer that's perfect for a summer afternoon on the porch.

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Pineapple & Cucumber Salad

Enjoy this sweet, refreshing salad alongside grilled meat or fish to cut through the richness and refresh the palate. If you like a little heat, adding jalapeño will give you the kick you crave. While packs of prechopped pineapple are convenient, they're almost always more expensive. When pineapple is in season, it's best to buy fresh and chop it yourself. Look for a pineapple with a golden-yellow exterior, which is a good indicator of ripeness.

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Hot Dog with Cucumber-Avocado Slaw

These days, your hot dog can be more than the ketchup-and-mustard variety. Try this turkey hot dog, topped with a cucumber and avocado slaw. The creamy slaw is made with low-fat yogurt and gets a slight kick from sweet pickle relish and lime juice--a welcome change from plain old sauerkraut!

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Fruit & Cucumber Relish

Celebrate spring with this colorful and crunchy fresh salsa recipe! The healthy relish is a fabulous accompaniment for grilled fish, pork, chicken or beef.

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Honeydew & Cucumber Salad with Burrata

We doubled down--deliciously--on the green in this summer salad with melon, cucumber, basil, arugula and pepitas. Creamy burrata makes this easy salad extra luxurious, so it's perfect for summer parties. It would be lovely with grilled chicken or as part of a cold buffet spread.

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Shrimp and Cucumber Salad with Creamy Avocado Dressing

This is a great appetizer, salad or healthy lunch. Try serving individual portions in a martini glass for added flair.

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