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This watermelon feta salad pairs juicy watermelon with cucumbers, feta cheese, mint, and a tangy dressing for the most refreshing summer salad.
I know that this is primarily a baking site, but I still love sharing savory recipes with you all from time to time.
After all, we can’t survive on cheesecake alone, as much as I wish we could.
Summer is one time of year when I really love to dig into savory recipes. Simple grilling recipes, appetizers, and especially easy summer salads are things I love to make at home, so of course I want to share them with my readers!
This watermelon feta salad is one recipe that I’m really looking forward to making all summer long and I think you’ll feel the same way.
What is watermelon feta salad?
Some of you might be reading this post and thinking, “Watermelon? With feta cheese? Has Jamie lost her mind??”
I promise you I haven’t! Even though watermelon is sweet and refreshing and perfect in things like watermelon lemonade or popsicles or fruit salad, it is also amazing in savory recipes.
If you’ve ever tried a Mexican candy shot or put tajín on a slice of watermelon, then you already know that the mild sweetness of watermelon pairs perfectly with salty ingredients. Some people will even just sprinkle salt on their watermelon before they eat it!
So it’s no surprise that fresh watermelon and feta cheese are a match made in heaven. Add some cucumber, red onion, mint, and a tangy dressing and you have the most refreshing salad for a hot summer day.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love a big green salad with homemade ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing, but this is the salad I want to eat after a long day in the pool.
How to make my watermelon feta salad
Add this watermelon feta salad to the list of easy summer salads alongside cucumber salad and easy coleslaw. It’ll take you longer to prep the ingredients than to toss it all together!
Ingredients you’ll need
For this salad, you will need:
- ½ red onion, thinly sliced
- 3 generous cups diced fresh watermelon
- 1 English cucumber, seeded and large diced
- 6 ounces crumbled feta cheese
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh mint
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Splash of red wine vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
If you don’t usually like raw red onion because it’s too harsh, hang on before you decide to skip it. I’m going to share a trick with you in a minute that will take some of the bite out of it!
When you’re dicing the cucumber, you want the pieces to be roughly the same size as your pieces of watermelon.
You can buy feta cheese in blocks or already crumbled. The pre-crumbled stuff is convenient, but buying the blocks and crumbling it yourself actually tastes better. But use whatever is most accessible to you!
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Pin ItMaking this salad
Before you start assembling this watermelon feta salad, we are going to make the raw red onion more mild so it doesn’t overpower the rest of the ingredients.
Place the sliced red onion in a colander and rinse thoroughly with cold water, then let it drain. Doing this reduces the “bite” of the onion while still letting the flavor shine through.
Once you have rinsed the onion and let it drain thoroughly, add it to a large bowl with the watermelon, cucumber, feta, and mint. Dress the salad with the olive oil, lemon juice, and a splash of the vinegar, then taste and add salt and several grinds of pepper as desired.
Remember that the feta is quite salty, so make sure to taste as you season the salad so you don’t over-salt it!
Serve the salad right away.
Serving suggestions
This watermelon feta salad is a great accompaniment to just about any summer dinner!
If you’re making grilled pork chops, grilled chicken, or grilled shrimp skewers, this is a light and refreshing salad to serve on the side.
It also pairs well with hatch chile burgers and other sandwiches such as grinders or Italian beef sandwiches.
And if you’re having a cookout, it is right at home alongside other summer salads such as greek chicken pasta salad, easy potato salad, and bacon ranch pasta salad.
Prep ahead tips
As soon as you mix together this watermelon feta salad, the watermelon starts to release its juices. Because of this, I suggest serving it immediately after mixing it together.
The leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, but just keep in mind that it will get very juicy, so it’s better to snack on for lunch than serve to guests at that point.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t prepare the ingredients for this salad ahead of time to make assembly easier!
You can slice and rinse the red onion, dice the watermelon, dice the cucumber, crumble the feta, and chiffonade the mint up to a day ahead of time. Store these ingredients in separate containers in the refrigerator until ready to mix.
You could even whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, and vinegar up to a day ahead of time and store this mixture in the refrigerator as well.
When you’re ready to eat, all you’ll need to do is mix everything together in a large bowl and taste for seasoning before serving your beautiful watermelon feta salad.
Watermelon Feta Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ red onion thinly sliced
- 3 generous cups diced fresh watermelon
- 1 English cucumber seeded and large diced
- 6 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- 1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh mint
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- Splash of red wine vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Place sliced red onion in a colander. Rinse thoroughly with cold water; let drain. This will help reduce the overpowering “bite” of the onion while still letting the flavor shine through.
- In a large bowl, add the drained red onion, watermelon, cucumber, cheese, and mint. Top with the olive oil, lemon juice, and a splash of red wine vinegar. Add a pinch of salt and several grinds of fresh black pepper.
- Stir to combine; taste and add additional salt, pepper, olive oil, or vinegar as desired.
- Serve immediately.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
