This whipped feta and cucumber salad recipe with dukkah makes a fantastic snack or appetiser that’s made in ten minutes or less. After whipping the feta with finely chopped fresh dill and seasoning, you generously spread it onto a serving plate, sprinkle it with herbs, arrange the cucumber slices on top, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, shower with dukkah and herbs, and you’re done. And it’s so delish.
If you’re looking for a super quick snack or starter to make this weekend, whether you’re having friends over for a casual gathering or just looking for something to nibble on, try this whipped feta and cucumber salad with dukkah, the Middle Eastern nut, seed and spice condiment. You could treat it as a mezze, serving it alongside a few other mezze dips.
It comes together in just ten minutes, requires no special skills, and it’s a great example of how you can transform the humble cucumber into an impressive appetiser just by arranging cucumber slices on a generous spread of whipped feta cheese and showering it with fresh herbs and dukkah.
And it’s nothing if not versatile. You could add some tomato slices to the mix, and juicy Kalamata olives, or pile on a Cypriot salad or Greek salad (minus the feta), or a farmer’s salad, as Lebanese cooks do with a hummus balela salad or as the Turkish do with Antalya-style piyaz, piling salad on white beans. You could also skip the whipped feta and just spread some goat’s cheese on a serving plate.
I’ll tell you more about this whipped feta and cucumber salad recipe with dukkah below. You’ll love this if you’re a Mediterranean food lover. Looking for more cooking inspiration? We have many hundreds of recipes you can browse in our archives, and you can save recipes you like by clicking on the heart on the right of each post to save your favourite recipes and stories in your private account.
Whipped Feta and Cucumber Salad Recipe with Dukkah
I’ve been buying these beautiful long cucumbers that taste so crunchy and fresh, but they lacked the juicy seeds I also love in the centre of good cucumbers, so I wanted to pair it with something and white cheese was perfect. It’s another one of those great pairings, like tomato and mozzarella or melon and ham.
I consider this a bit of a Mediterranean or Middle Eastern style dish but it’s distinctly Australian in many ways, especially the tendency to shower dukkah on everything. I treat it a bit like I would a Mediterranean style mezze, serving it as one dish of an array of dishes of starters and salads.
It would work with this Greek eggplant dip, artichoke dip, tzatziki, taramosalata, and/or these roasted cherry tomatoes on goat’s cheese. And it would be a brilliant side to souvlaki (skewers) and keftedes (meatballs). Or just serve it alongside a few homemade dips if you’re feeding a crowd.
Tips to Making this Whipped Feta and Cucumber Salad Recipe with Dukkah
Just a few tips to how to make this whipped feta and cucumber salad recipe with dukkah. Let’s start with the dukkah. If you don’t have any of the Middle Eastern nut, seed and spice condiment on hand, make your dukkah first using our dukkah recipe, which you can adapt as you like, switching out different nuts, seeds and spices, depending on what you have in the pantry.
I use a mortar and pestle to make dukkah, as I like a rustic texture with unevenly sized nuts including some nuts left whole. You don’t want a fine texture with dukkah; it’s perfectly fine to have some whole nuts or nut halves in the mix. I pound the nuts first, then add the seeds and spices. If you don’t own one, I adore this handcrafted KROK mortar and pestle.
Next you need to make the whipped feta. The easiest and quickest way, which results in a creamy whipped feta, is to use a small food processor or a blender with a hole in the lid. Because after you add the white cheeses, yoghurt, herbs and seasoning, you’ll need to slowly pour the olive oil through the hole in the top.
NOTE: I only blend it all just until everything is combined and the texture is creamy but still a little firm, because I like texture. If you’d like a lighter, more aerated and even fluffy texture, blend longer, but only until it’s reached the ideal texture. Don’t over-blend.
If you can find a softer Persian style feta cheese and spreadable goat’s cheese, then you may not even need to add the yoghurt. If the cheeses are on the firmer side, then you will have to add the yoghurt. I’ve tested both firm cheeses, which needed a little mashing first, and spreadable cheeses (from Aldi!) that was absolutely perfect.
Regardless of what texture you prefer, it’s a good idea to refrigerate the whipped feta until you’re ready to eat and plate it at the last minute. Don’t put the cucumber slices on then refrigerate it, as the cucumber releases water, which will gather in a droplets or small pools on top of your whipped feta.
I adore using fresh dill and fresh flat leaf parsley. As well as going into the whipped feta itself, I sprinkle the fresh herbs on top of the whipped feta after spreading it onto the serving plate, then sprinkle a little more on top of the cucumber slices, along with the dukkah.
A generous drizzle of olive oil on top is a must. Always use the best quality extra virgin olive oil you can source and afford; any Mediterranean-style olive oil will work. I’ve been using Australian extra virgin olive oils and they’re just wonderful.
I put so much cucumber on the whipped feta I call this a salad, but you could also skip the cucumber slices and serve it in a bowl as a whipped feta dip. It’s scrummy on its own. However, you use it, serve with toasted sourdough, homemade croutons or crispy pita chips.
Whipped Feta and Cucumber Salad Recipe with Dukkah
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp dukkah
- 150 g feta cheese
- 100 g goat’s cheese - preferable spreadable
- 2 tbsp creamy Greek yoghurt - optional
- 1 tbsp fresh dill - finely chopped
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil - divided
- 1 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley - roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh dill sprigs - no stems
- 1 cucumber - sliced
- ¼ tsp ground cracked black pepper
Instructions
- First make the dukkah using our recipe on the link above if you don’t have any dukkah on hand, and set aside.
- To the bowl of a small food processor, add the feta cheese, goat’s cheese, creamy Greek yoghurt (optional), finely chopped fresh dill, salt and garlic powder; with the top hole open, blend, then slowly drizzle in 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, and continue to blend until you have a smooth texture. Scrape it out into a bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until you’re ready to serve.
- Scoop the whipped feta out and pile it onto a serving plate, using the back of a big spoon to spread it around. Sprinkle on half of the roughly chopped fresh flat leaf parsley and half of the fresh dill sprigs, and arrange the cucumber slices on top.
- Drizzle on the remaining tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, shower on the rest of the fresh flat leaf parsley and fresh dill sprigs, sprinkle on the dukkah, and grind on the ground cracked black pepper.
- Serve with warmed bread, toasted sourdough or pita crisps.
Notes
Nutrition
Please do let us know in the Comments section below if you make this whipped feta and cucumber salad recipe with dukkah as we love to hear how recipes we share turn out for our readers.
