Simple Avocado Cucumber Tomato Salad

Step 1

Dice the tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, and onion. I cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, sliced it into ½ inch moon pieces, finely sliced the red onion, and roughly diced the tomato (for smaller cherry/grape tomatoes, you can halve them) and avocado.To open the avocado, slice all the way around the avocado lengthwise, then gently twist to pull apart. Remove the seed by tapping it (with some force) with your knife, twisting slightly, and pulling to remove. Peel the avocado by hand or scoop the flesh out with a spoon, then roughly dice.

Step 2

Place the diced ingredients in a large bowl and add the fresh cilantro leaves. Feel free to finely chop the herbs if you prefer them to be more evenly spread throughout the avocado salad.

Step 3

In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well to combine.

Step 4

Pour the dressing over the avocado cucumber tomato salad mixture and toss gently to combine, then serve immediately or leave to ‘marinate’ for 10 minutes first.The longer the salad sits, the more the flavors will develop.The bite from the raw onions will also reduce as it sits in the lemon juice. However, if you want to reduce this as soon as possible, you can leave the raw onion to soak in the lemon juice for 10 minutes before preparing this salad. Alternatively, soak the onion in a bowl of ice water, stirring a couple of times.

Step 5

Like any recipe using avocado, this avocado cucumber tomato salad is best enjoyed fresh. The lemon juice will help to keep the avocado pieces from browning, but I still recommend enjoying this salad within a day. Press plastic wrap against the surface of the salad, then another layer over the top of the bowl to avoid as much oxygen as possible and avoid the avocado browning too soon.Make ahead: if you want to make this salad ahead, I recommend preparing the salad minus the avocado and cilantro and storing the dressing separately (all of which you should add just before serving). That way you can enjoy salad for several days.The flavor will continue to develop over time, so you may want to add in a little extra lemon juice or seasoning before serving.