Caprese salad with mozzarella balls! Discover a fresh and flavorful tomato cucumber mozzarella salad recipe, bursting with the vibrant taste of ripe tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, and creamy mozzarella.
Dive into summertime flavors and make your taste buds dance with this tomato caprese salad recipe! Drizzled with a tangy, homemade balsamic dressing, this simple yet delicious side dish is perfect for your next outdoor gathering or a light lunch on a hot day.
Alternate it with a side of these other summer salads: crisp cucumber salad, chickpea tomato salad, and this refreshing cucumber tomato salad!
Jump to:
Why this is the best caprese salad
Indulge in this quick and easy dish that marries the juiciness of tomatoes with the satisfying crunch of cucumbers and pillows of silky mozzarella. Top it off with our delectable homemade red wine dressing or try it with homemade Italian dressing – you'll never look at summer salads the same way again!
- Fresh, colorful, and oh-so-tasty salad – this tomato cucumber mozzarella salad is the ultimate dish you'll crave all season long!
- Whip it up in minutes, and treat yourself to a delightful explosion of flavors and textures!
- Save and share the recipe to become the new salad guru among your friends!
- Easy and healthy - tomato cucumber mini mozzarella balls salad is such a quick and healthy summer salad and it's light and refreshing like an easy quinoa salad. I even feed this one to my toddlers since it is tiny bite-size pieces and they love it!
Key ingredients
See recipe card below for full quantities.
- tomatoes - we use Campari tomatoes, Roma tomatoes, or any size you can use. Make sure to remove extra liquid and scoop out the center then slice the outside for the salad to be less liquid. You can also use grape tomatoes which are also great for a corn tomato salad or cherry tomatoes and just slice them in half or quartered. Be sure to see "Tips" below on choosing tomatoes and learn how to store tomatoes so they last.
- red onion - peel and slice the onion and cut into very small dices. Red onion adds a nice pop of color and subtle flavor. You can also use sweet white onion.
- Persian cucumbers - these are those small baby cucumbers. They work best for cucumber tomato salads since they are nice and small. You can also use an English cucumber just make sure to dice into very tiny pieces.
- garlic - we mince garlic in so there are no large chunks- just gorgeous Italian caprese flavors!
- mini mozzarella balls - mozzarella balls come in water so you want to drain all the water out first and pat the cheese balls dry with a paper towel before using them (or just make sure they are pretty dry).
- caprese salad dressing - we make an Italian vinaigrette dressing by combining olive oil, red wine vinegar, the garlic, salt and pepper. It is so simple and adds all the flavor!
- fresh basil leaves - I use about 2 tablespoons of chopped leaves.
Tips
When choosing tomatoes, pick ones that are ripe and still hard and vibrant red. The more vibrant in color the red fruit, then the sweeter the tomato is!
Caprese salad variations
Change up this salad by turning it into an avocado caprese salad or caprese pasta salad! Here's how:
- Add in 3 cups of cooked pasta such as bow tie pasta, macaroni noodles or fusilli noodles.
- For an avocado addition add in 2 ripe avocados that are still slightly hard (not mushy like you use for guacamole recipe). Remove the skin and seed and dice into small pieces like the tomato and onion.
- You can swap out this red wine vinaigrette salad dressing for champagne vinaigrette dressing or Italian salad dressing.
- Substitute red wine vinegar for balsamic vinegar for a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
- Mozzarella balls can be replaced with burrata cheese. Just break the burrata into mini pieces.
How to make this recipe
Step 1 (image 1): Wash and cut the ends of the cucumbers off. Then cut horizontal and in quarters then into tiny dices. Cut the onion into tiny dices and see my Pinterest tutorial on how to cut an onion. Wash the tomatoes and cut in half then remove the watery centers and cut into dices.
Step 2 (image 2): Peel the garlic and mince it finely by using a cheese grater. Then transfer it to a small mixing bowl for the salad dressing.
Step 3 (image 3): In a small bowl whisk together the garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.
Step 4 (image 4): Using a large salad bowl add the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, cheese, and basil.
Step 5 (image 5): Pour the salad dressing over the salad.
Step 6 (image 6): Mix the salad together and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
This easy caprese salad lasts for about 1-2 days. Consume it fresh for best taste otherwise it can become soggy.
Fresh mozzarella and tomato together - especially with basil and some olive oil is delicious and a healthy snack or side dish when eaten in moderation. Tomatoes are great for your heart, but too much can cause acid reflux in some individuals since it is a highly acidic food.
This caprese salad is a low carb meal and wonderful if you are counting carbs! It is divided into 4 servings with only 7 grams of carbohydrates per serving.
The skin of the cucumber is highly nutritious and rich in fiber, carbohydrates, protein, magnesium, iron, vitamin B, vitamin C, flavonoids, phenolic compounds, and antioxidants which is mostly in the skin. So keep the skin on so you get all those nutrients from the whole fruit.
More delicious summer salads
If you make this tomato cucumber mozzarella salad recipe I would love to see your creations and share it! Follow along with me on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to be featured and for more recipe inspiration! And don't forget to rate the recipe in the recipe area and leave a comment below!
Cucumber Tomato Mozzarella Salad Recipe
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
Plus get latest recipes and emails.
Equipment
- mixing bowl
- paring knife
Ingredients
- 3 cups tomatoes diced - about 4 larger tomatoes
- 3 Persian cucumbers diced
- ¼ cup red onion diced
- 1 garlic clove minced
- ⅓ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 8 ounces mini mozzarella balls drained from water and patted dry
- 3 tablespoons fresh basil chopped
Instructions
- Wash and cut the ends of the cucumbers off. Then cut horizontal and in quarters then into tiny dices. Cut the onion into tiny dices and see my Pinterest tutorial on how to cut an onion. Wash the tomatoes and cut in half then remove the watery centers and cut into dices.
- Peel the garlic and mince it finely by using a cheese grater. Then transfer it to a small mixing bowl for the salad dressing.
- In a small bowl whisk together the garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper.
- In a large salad bowl add the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, cheese, and basil.
- Pour the salad dressing over the salad.
- Mix the salad together and enjoy!
Notes
- Add in 3 cups of cooked pasta such as bow tie pasta, macaroni noodles or fusilli noodles.
- For an avocado addition ad in 2 ripe avocados that are still slightly hard (not mushy like you use for guacamole recipe). Remove the skin and seed and dice into small pieces like the tomato and onion.
- You can also swap out this salad dressing for champagne vinaigrette dressing or Italian salad dressing.
- Substitute red wine vinegar for balsamic vinegar for a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
- Mozzarella balls can be replaced with burrata cheese. Just break the burrata into mini pieces.
Leave a Reply