How to Make a Greek Salad (Horiatiki)
A real Greek salad has no lettuce. To make an authentic horiatiki (χωριάτικη, meaning “village” or “rustic” salad), you toss rough-cut ripe tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, thin red onion and Kalamata olives with a slab of feta on top, then dress the whole thing simply with good extra-virgin olive oil, a splash of red-wine vinegar, a pinch of dried oregano and salt. No leaves, no fussy vinaigrette, no bottled dressing. That’s the entire trick, and everything below is really just about buying well and not over-thinking it.
What goes in a real horiatiki
The beauty of this salad is that it’s built from a short list of honest ingredients, cut generously. Nothing is grated, shredded or finely diced — you want proper bites. Here’s what to buy and roughly how much, for a bowl that comfortably feeds four as a side or two as a light lunch with bread.
| Ingredient | Rough quantity (serves 4) | Prep & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ripe tomatoes | 4–5 medium (about 600 g) | Cut into thick wedges or chunks. Room temperature, deeply ripe — this is the heart of the dish. |
| Cucumber | 1 medium | Half-moons or thick batons. Peel in stripes if the skin is tough; leave it on if tender. |
| Green pepper | 1 small | Thin rings. The slightly bitter green pepper is traditional, not red or yellow. |
| Red onion | ½ medium | Sliced into thin half-rings. Soak in cold water for 10 minutes if you find raw onion too sharp. |
| Kalamata olives | A generous handful (about 100 g) | Left whole, stones in. Warn guests, or use pitted if you prefer. |
| Feta | 1 slab (about 150–200 g) | Laid on top in one piece, not crumbled. Look for genuine PDO Greek feta (sheep’s, or sheep-and-goat’s milk). |
| Extra-virgin olive oil | 4–5 tbsp | Be generous — a fruity Greek oil is ideal. This is the dressing. |
| Red-wine vinegar | 1–2 tsp | Optional but common. A small squeeze of lemon works too. Go easy. |
| Dried oregano | A good pinch | Greek rigani if you can find it. Crumble it over the feta at the end. |
| Sea salt | To taste | Salt the tomatoes lightly — it draws out their juice, which mingles with the oil. |
If you want to read more about which fruit is worth reaching for, our olive encyclopedia covers Kalamata and its cousins, and the olive-curing guide explains why a properly cured Kalamata tastes the way it does.
Method: how to put it together
There’s no cooking and barely any technique — the order and the timing are what matter.
- Cut everything into proper chunks. Tomatoes into wedges, cucumber into thick half-moons, pepper and onion into thin rings. Rustic is the whole point; if it looks like restaurant garnish, you’ve gone too fine.
- Combine the vegetables and olives in a wide, shallow bowl. Add a light pinch of salt over the tomatoes now, not later — it starts them weeping their juice.
- Lay the feta on top in one slab. Don’t stir it through. Part of the pleasure is breaking off a corner of creamy cheese with each forkful.
- Dress it. Pour the olive oil straight over the feta and vegetables, add the vinegar or lemon if using, then crumble the oregano over the top. A twist of freshly ground pepper is welcome; more salt usually isn’t needed once the feta and olives are in play.
- Rest for five minutes, then serve. Give it a moment for the tomato juice and oil to pool in the bottom of the bowl. That pool — the papara — is the best bit, and it’s why crusty bread belongs on the table.
Serve it at room temperature, never fridge-cold, ideally within an hour of assembling. A cold tomato is a dull tomato, and a horiatiki that has sat too long turns watery.
A few honest tips
Buy the ripest tomatoes you can find and let them sit out of the fridge for a day — this dish lives or dies on them, so it’s worth planning around a good tomato season. Use olive oil you’d happily taste from a spoon; because there’s so little else, the oil’s flavour carries the plate. And resist the urge to add lettuce, balsamic vinegar, croutons or a shower of crumbled feta. Those all make a perfectly nice salad — just not a horiatiki.
Greek salad: common questions
Does a real Greek salad have lettuce?
No. Authentic horiatiki contains no lettuce or leafy greens at all. Lettuce-based versions are a later, mostly international adaptation. The traditional village salad is built entirely on tomato, cucumber, pepper, onion, olives and feta.
What kind of olives go in a Greek salad?
Kalamata olives are the classic choice — dark, almond-shaped, with a rich, slightly winey flavour. They’re usually left whole with the stone in. Any good brine-cured black or purple Greek olive will do the job if Kalamata aren’t to hand.
Should the feta be crumbled or in a block?
Traditionally the feta is laid on top as a single thick slab, often dusted with dried oregano, rather than crumbled through the salad. You break pieces off as you eat. Crumbling isn’t wrong, it’s just not the village way.
What dressing does a Greek salad use?
Just extra-virgin olive oil, a small splash of red-wine vinegar or lemon, a pinch of dried oregano and salt. There’s no creamy or bottled dressing — the olive oil and the tomatoes’ own juices are the sauce.