Easy Viennese Cucumber Salad with Lemon and Vinegar

Salting cucumber slices draws out their natural water content through osmosis. When you skip this step, the cucumbers release that liquid directly into your dressing, diluting the flavor and creating a watery pool at the bottom of the bowl. The two-hour salt rest in this old fashioned Viennese cucumber salad recipe produces firmer, more flavorful slices that actually hold onto the lemon vinaigrette rather than washing it away.

Traditional Viennese cucumber salad uses paper-thin slices, a salting technique to remove excess moisture, and a light vinegar-based dressing rather than the creamy, sugar-sweetened dressings common in American versions. This 1974 recipe follows that Viennese tradition closely and adds lemon juice alongside the vinegar for a brightness that most modern cucumber salad recipes do not have. The result is sharper, cleaner, and considerably less sweet than the classic American deli-counter version.

They are closely related but not identical. Traditional German Gurkensalat often includes sour cream or a light cream dressing and sometimes sugar, while the Viennese version stays leaner and more vinegar-forward. This 1974 easy Viennese cucumber salad skips both the sour cream and any sweetener, keeping the dressing bright and acidic. The sour cream variation listed above is a nod to the German style if that is the direction you prefer.

White wine vinegar gives the most delicate and balanced result and is the closest to what a traditional Viennese recipe would call for. Apple cider vinegar adds a subtle fruity background note that works particularly well when you are using lime juice in the variation. Plain white distilled vinegar is too harsh for this salad and tends to overpower the lemon component. Red wine vinegar is acceptable but creates a pinkish tint in the finished dish.

English cucumbers are an excellent choice for this vintage marinated cucumber salad. They have thinner skins, fewer seeds, and less inherent bitterness than standard garden cucumbers, which means you can skip peeling them entirely if you prefer. Their water content is also slightly lower, so you may find the two-hour salting step produces results faster. Two large English cucumbers are roughly equivalent to eight medium standard cucumbers in this recipe.

Bland cucumber salad almost always comes down to two things: under-seasoning and skipping the squeeze step. After wringing out the cucumbers, taste a slice before dressing them. If they taste flat, add a small pinch of salt and give them five more minutes. Then taste the dressing on its own before pouring it over the cucumbers. The dressing should taste slightly assertive on its own because it will mellow once it hits the cucumbers.

Fresh dill is the most traditional and complementary herb for this style of salad, added just before serving so it stays bright green and fragrant. Fresh chives or thinly sliced green onions also work well and contribute a mild allium note without competing with the lemon and vinegar. Avoid dried herbs other than dill, as most become dusty and bitter in a cold, acidic dressing.

This recipe scales very well for a crowd. Double or triple all ingredients in equal proportion and use a large mixing bowl with enough room to toss everything without crowding. The salting and squeezing steps work the same way regardless of volume, though you may need to squeeze in two batches if your towel cannot handle the full quantity at once. The dressing ratio stays consistent at 3 parts oil to 1 part each lemon juice and vinegar.

A light olive oil works well in this recipe and adds a very gentle fruitiness that complements the lemon juice. Avoid a bold, peppery extra virgin olive oil, which will compete with the vinegar and overpower the dry mustard. A delicate everyday olive oil or a neutral avocado oil both perform excellently here. The original 1974 recipe simply calls for "oil," which gives you full flexibility to use what you have.