Food Recipes Smashed Cucumber Salad With Spicy Feta and Olives 5.0 (1) Add your rating & review This simple cucumber salad relies on a number of smart techniques to make each one of its ingredients shine. By Grace Elkus Grace Elkus Grace Elkus is a food writer and editor with over a decade of experience in culinary media. Highlights: * Associate food editor at Real Simple, where she developed recipes, wrote food stories, and assisted with styling * Deputy food director at Kitchn, where she and her team were responsible for 100 recipes a month * Currently the content lead for JOKR Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 21, 2022 Print Rate It Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Jennifer Causey Hands On Time: 15 mins Total Time: 25 mins Yield: Serves 4 (serving size: 1 cup) Jump to Nutrition Facts What makes this salad extra special? Smashing, salting, and draining the cucumbers. The process draws out moisture, resulting in crisper, crunchier cucumbers. It also makes for more nooks and crannies, allowing dressing and toppings (in this case feta and olives) to reach more places. Ingredients 1 ½ pound Persian cucumbers, halved lengthwise (about 10 Persian cucumbers) 1 ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, divided 6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1⅓ cups) ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste ¾ cup olive oil 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar ½ cup mixed olives, pitted and coarsely chopped Directions Place cucumbers, cut side down, on a cutting board. Smash cucumbers with a rolling pin or heavy skillet until slightly flattened and beginning to split. Using your hands, tear cucumbers into bite-size pieces. Transfer to a colander set over a bowl, and toss with 1 teaspoon of the salt. Let stand 10 minutes. Toss together feta, crushed red pepper, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Add oil, making sure that feta is submerged. Let stand 10 minutes. Drain feta, reserving oil. Set feta aside. Transfer cucumbers to a large bowl; toss with vinegar and 2 tablespoons of the reserved oil. Arrange cucumber mixture on a platter; top with feta and olives. Season with several grinds black pepper to taste, and drizzle with desired amount of reserved oil. (Use any remaining oil for salad dressings or for drizzling over fish or veggies.) Rate it Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 303 Calories 27g Fat 10g Carbs 6g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Calories 303 % Daily Value * Total Fat 27g 34% Saturated Fat 8g 41% Cholesterol 38mg 13% Sodium 1230mg 53% Total Carbohydrate 10g 4% Total Sugars 2g Protein 6g *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.