Cucumber Shrimp Salad
105 Comments
Updated May 23, 2024
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This cucumber shrimp salad is a deliciously fresh twist on a classic. Juicy, bite-sized shrimp gets tossed with crisp cucumbers, green onion, fresh dill, and a creamy lime dressing. It will hit the spot for an easy-to-make and protein-packed lunch or dinner idea!
It’s a Chopped Shrimp Salad!
Just when I thought I created the best shrimp salad ever, in comes this cucumber version with a creamy lime dill dressing. As luck would have it, it miraculously came together with leftover veggies in my fridge, plus a new frozen bag of shrimp. But it’s these types of “throw together” recipes that always turn out the best (similar to my salmon salad).
This cucumber shrimp salad is crisp, creamy, and one of those meals you can just keep on eating – yes, it’s that good. Plus, it’s the perfect balance of protein and veggies. So if healthy meal prep is on your mind, consider this a quick-to-make, super tasty shrimp recipe that will elevate your weekly meal prep in a heartbeat.
Cucumber Shrimp Salad Ingredients
Think of this as a classic creamy shrimp salad, with an extra green spin. And with how bite-sized the pieces are, it’s almost like a creamy shrimp ceviche. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Shrimp: You can use freshly caught shrimp (if you live near the water) or a frozen bag of peeled and deveined shrimp. Either works!
- Cucumber: I’m using an English cucumber for a heartier, crunchy bite. But you could also use Persian cucumbers if that’s more your thing.
- Green Onions: A few green onions keep the green theme going!
- Creamy Things: The base of the dressing is a combination of mayonnaise, sour cream, and a hint of Dijon mustard.
- Limes: If you can, grab a bigger lime for this recipe. But if you only have access to smaller limes, grab two.
- Herbs: Fresh dill is the best herb to complement the rest of the flavors happening in this salad. But you could also use parsley, cilantro or tarragon.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below
How to Make Cucumber Shrimp Salad
30-minute meals are something we all love to hear, and this cucumber shrimp salad is just that. Heck, this can even be made in 25 minutes if you’re speedy in the kitchen! Here’s how you make it:
Make the dressing. Stir together the mayonnaise, sour cream, lime zest and juice, dill, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. Set aside or place in the fridge.
Cook the shrimp. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Then add the shrimp and cook for a short 2 to 3 minutes, until cooked through and pink.
Chill the shrimp. While the shrimp are cooking, prep an ice water bath. Transfer the shrimp to the ice water bath with a skimmer. Let them cool for 3 minutes, then drain them in a colander.
Stir everything together. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the chilled shrimp (that you’ve chopped into bite-sized pieces), green onion, diced cucumber, and dressing until it’s all combined. Now, it’s ready to serve!
Ways to Serve Shrimp Salad
This cold shrimp salad works wonders for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I personally love to wrap it with butter leaf lettuce. But here’s some other tasty options to use as the base for this salad.
- Lettuce wraps: Spoon this salad on top of butter leaf lettuce or romaine lettuce. And if you want this as more of a salad, top it on a bowl of your favorite leafy greens.
- Stuffed Avocados: Since this shrimp salad is diced up into smaller pieces, you can stuff a spoonful in avocado slices (just like my tuna stuffed avocados).
- Tortilla wrap: Use any type of tortilla to wrap this up with some spinach or alfalfa sprouts. And if you’re gluten-free, I highly recommend my cassava flour tortillas. They mimic that soft and chewy flour tortilla we know and love.
- Sandwich: Make this into a shrimp salad sandwich with layers of spinach in between.
Storage Tips
Fresh shrimp salad is always best (and will probably get devoured the day you make it). But you can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days if you decide to meal prep it.
Helpful tip: Since this has mayo in it, don’t leave it out at room temperature past a few hours. It will spoil quickly!
More Easy Shrimp Recipes
It’s always a good idea to incorporate shrimp into your protein rotation. And if you want more fresh salad ideas for summer, this list of salad recipes won’t disappoint.
- Garlic Grilled Shrimp Skewers
- Shrimp Tacos
- Shrimp Fried Rice
- Garlic Butter Shrimp
- Creamy Chipotle Shrimp
This cucumber shrimp salad is truly a summer staple, or any time of year for that matter. If you make it, let me know how it turned out in a comment below!
Cucumber Shrimp Salad
Description
Video
Ingredients
- 2 pounds shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1 English cucumber, small diced
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
Creamy Lime Dressing
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 1 large lime, zested and juiced (about 2 teaspoons zest and 2 tablespoons juice)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Make the dressing. To make the dressing, stir together the mayonnaise, sour cream, lime zest and juice, dill, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. Set aside or place in the fridge.
- Cook the Shrimp. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the shrimp and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until cooked through and pink.
- Make an Ice Water Bath. While the shrimp are cooking, prepare an ice water bath. Remove the shrimp to the ice water bath using a skimmer. Let them cool for 3 minutes, then drain them in a colander. Chop them into bite-sized pieces.
- Stir it all together. In a mixing bowl, stir together the chopped shrimp, green onion, diced cucumber, and dressing, until creamy.
Lisa’s Tips
- Make sure you’ve got a good, juicy lime. If you have smaller Mexican or Persian limes, you may want to grab two of them.
Nutrition
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I had some pre-cooked shrimp and loads of cucumbers from my garden, so this was just what I needed! So easy, tasty and the dressing is delicious! Served it for lunch with pita chips and it was perfect!
So happy you loved it, Adrienne!
A very good cucumber salad, thanks Lisa. I used it in an odd manner, serving as a starter for marinated grilled chicken thighs and roasted corn. No one complained and all loved the salad!
That sounds amazing served with grilled chicken thighs, Ray! Glad everyone enjoyed this shrimp salad.
Delicious and so quick to stir up! Our family loved it!
Amazing! Glad you loved this shrimp salad Joy.
This is such a wonderful salad for hot days, thank you. Just finished making my second batch as the first did not last a day!
Amazing! Happy to hear you’re loving this shrimp salad Leanne.
I love this! Easy to make, portions put well and even my 10 and 5yo like it! A tasty addition to my low carb diet. I didn’t have green onions so I used celery and I like the extra crunch. I bet this would taste good on pasta too.
Happy to hear you enjoyed this shrimp salad!
Hi Lisa. Just a curiosity question: Why is this salad so high in sodium?
Hi Janine – shrimp is naturally high in sodium.
Delicious! My husband is looking forward to this recipe again!
Happy you both loved it!
I bet this salad is amazing! I was actually looking for a cucumber dressing to compliment my shrimp tacos. I found your recipe and decided to just put everything together, except the shrimp. I prepared the shrimp, Mexican Scampi style. I fry up flour tortillas, and layer these ingredients: Rice, shrimp, pepper Jack cheese, lettuce, tomato and Your Dressing! They are So Delicious!
Thank you!
This cucumber and shrimp salad is absolutely delicious and refreshing!
Hi Christine – I’m so glad you love this cucumber shrimp salad!
So yummy
Delicious and light. A perfect summer dish. My husband is not really a cucumber lover but inhaled this dish. I didn’t have a lemon, so I used white wine vinegar, and it worked out really well. It’s definitely going on our regular rotation.
Hi Ginette – Happy to hear you love this shrimp cucumber salad!
Hi. The salad looks refreshing and delicious. How much would it change the taste of the dressing if the mustard was omitted? My hubby hates mustard. Any substitution suggestions?
Hi Judy – The Dijon adds a delicious flavor to the sauce. But you can omit it if you’d like.
Hi Judy! Trust me when I say this… Don’t tell him that the mustard is in it ! I have been adding things my hubby says he hates for 25+ years! He brags about the dishes I sneak stuff in! What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him! (Unless he is allergic…those ingredients are not sneak-able.)
This recipe was delicious! Just going through the recipe again I noticed I forgot the spring onions but it was still so good! Love the dill! I did use already cooked shrimp! Very refreshing!
Hi Terry – I’m glad you enjoyed this cucumber shrimp salad!
Yum! Stuffed a tomato with it and served with wheat crackers.
Why is the sodium content so high? And for the dressing can you sub the mayo and sour cream for Greek yogurt to reduce the fat content and add more protein?
Hi Denny – the sodium content is due to the shrimp, which is naturally high in sodium. Yes, you can make that substitution. Hope you enjoy!
How long will this last in the fridge? Looks SO delish!
Hi Molly – I mention that above, but it will last for about 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Enjoy!
this is an amazing recipe. Followed exactly. Fresh. Refreshing. Delicious!
Thanks so much, Barbara!
The best! I swapped the sour cream for plain Greek yogurt (it’s all I had) and it’s so good! I served it for dinner on a slice of baguette. Light, fresh and perfect for summer. My 6 year old approves too.
If it’s toddler approved that always counts as two thumbs up. ;) Thanks so much!
This salad was delicious! I will save recipe and make it often. Thank you
Hi Cat – Happy to hear you loved this shrimp salad!
Made this tonight after a long day and a tough workout – I was in need of something quick and easy. I went with thawed precooked shrimp from TJs, swapped out lime for lemon since I had it on hand, and forgot the green onions. Still really really good! I love a recipe that can take swaps like this and still taste delicious!
Threw it on top of some chopped romaine with a leftover orange bell pepper. Yum!
Those swaps sound great, and I’m happy you created a meal that you love!
I came in here looking for this option I was wonder if precooked shrimp would work also
Hi Roxanne – That’s totally fine!
This recipe is fantastic and will definitely be part of my rotation. It’s fresh and light, and keeps well for a few days.
Hi Carole – Happy to hear you’re loving this shrimp salad!
Looks great but what is the serving size? I know it serves 4 but what are the measurements for each portion?
Yummy
This was sooooo good! Thank you Lisa!
Hi there! Happy to hear you enjoyed this cucumber shrimp salad.
What is the serving size?
Awesome taste! I love adding avocado and crushed red pepper served on tostadas(flat hard taco shell) my family loves it!
Love those tweaks, sounds yum!
Perfect balance of lightness from the cucumber and creaminess with the yogurt! So versatile too! I can put it into a wrap with some additional greens or just eat it the way it is.
Yes, it’s great in a wrap. Though like you, I usually just eat it straight out of the bowl, haha. Enjoy!
I made 1/2 recipe. Loved the fresh vegetables and fresh dill. I added radish to it and this added a beautiful red color.
I’m sure the radish was a fresh and delicious touch to this shrimp salad!
Everybody loves when I make this. I may be addicted to it-it’s so fresh and filling and super easy to make- it’s ridiculous. Thank you for this recipe!! <3<3<3
Happy you love it!
Delicious! My Book Club ladies were impressed and almost smacking their lips. My daughter forwarded this recipe to me. Thanks Robyn.
I’m happy you and your book club loved the recipe!
This salad was absolutely delicious. It was easy to make and my family loved it, so much so I will need to double the recipe next time around. What a cool refreshing salad on a hot and humid Florida summer day.
Glad everyone enjoyed this shrimp salad, Terry!
What can I substitute for the mayo? Yoghurt? Or make a vinaigrette?
Yes, you could use yogurt if you’d like.
I’m in south Florida, out gardening in 90+ degrees. I came in and found this in my emails. This is just what I needed! Super easy, super good! I added fresh avocado since my tree has been overproducing this year. (I always follow a recipe exactly the first time I make it but the avocados are taking over my kitchen!) Thank you for a wonderful, delicious treat.
Yay, I’m happy you enjoyed the recipe, Christine! Hopefully, it helped cool you down in the heat. :)
I don’t care for boiled shrimp so I made a marinade with lime juice olive oil and garlic then sauted also added chopped romaine was easy and delicious …TY
I’m sure it’s delicious with the shrimp sauteed as well!
What a spectacular salad!! I rarely make changes to your recipes, but as I didn’t have sour cream at home, I substituted it with Greek yogurt. The result was surprisingly creamy and divine – simply wow! I absolutely adored this recipe. Although it’s perfect for the summertime with its refreshing qualities, the addition of shrimp gave it a comforting and cozy twist. Thank you for this wonderful dish!
Glad this turned out perfectly with Greek yogurt instead, Mel :)
Lisa, you were right about quick meal prep!
I cheated by using precooked large prawns, which made it even easier! I also added fresh English celery for added crunch.
I served in a seeded wrap with leaves of romane lettuce. One was plenty with our yoghurt and fresh fruit pudding 😋
Keep the ideas coming… very inspirational 👏
Dawn
I’m sure this tasted great with the prawns! :)
It looks like you chop the shrimp after you chill it? I don’t see that step written.
Thanks for catching that! I just updated the post to include that step :)
I tried the cucumber shrimp salad, and everyone in my house loved it.
Wonderful! I’m so happy to hear that!
This recipe was easy, tasty and refreshing. The ingredients were readily available and so simple to make for meal prep.
Glad you’re loving this shrimp salad, Kim!
This is so yummy, I added fresh arugula too
Sounds like a great addition with the arugula!
Oh Lisa!! New favorite salad hands down!! Thank you so much! This one is probably going to be on constant repeat for me!!
Happy to hear you’re loving this shrimp salad Maria!
Hi Lisa I love your recipes! I’m dairy free and would very much like your suggestions on making this salad without sour cream. Thank you for all your hard work!
Hi Tina – you could use a vegan sour cream option. :)
Hi Tina, I replaced the sour cream with Greek yogurt and it was delicious!
Super delicious! This salad packs a punch of flavour but it’s so simple to prepare. I love the creaminess and freshness it has. It’s a perfect, tasty meal to prepare for the summer months.
Glad you enjoyed this shrimp salad Marina! It truly is a summertime staple :)
We made this last night. It was ok, I think it might have been better if I had chopped up the shrimp – I didn’t see that as a step. We recently made the Downshiftology ultimate chicken salad and that was off the charts!! This, by comparison, was a nice meal but not sure I’d make it again. I tend to make shrimp salad with bell peppers, avocado, mango and lime dressing and that’s incredible. But I’m still a huge Downshiftology fan, this recipe is just less for me :o)
This was a great recipe, so easy to make.
I actually purchased precooked shrimp and just took the tails off, so made it even easier and faster. I was able to eat this over a couple days, dinner the first night and then lunches for a few days.
I also added avocado for extra creaminess. I used new avocado every serving, so they didn’t get brown.
Perfect! That’s a great way to speed up this recipe. ;)
Thanks for the delicious recipe. It is the perfect dish for a hot summer day! Your blog and pictures show ground black pepper but it is not listed on the recipe so I missed it the first time.
This truly is the best for a warm, sunny day. Glad you enjoyed it Julie!
I have never EVER put mayo in anything in my life but I knew I could trust you with this.
As I didn’t have enough shrimp, I added some celery and it turned out perfect 😍
Really yummy summer salad!
Yay, I’m happy you loved it, Cristina!
Just made this and it taste so good! I was surprised recipe calls for 2lbs of shrimp but I followed it and it was good with all those shrimps in it!
It’s a good balance between shrimp and veggies! Glad you enjoyed it though Amy.
Oh my gosh! This might be one of my favourite salads! The dressing really pulls everything together. I had my friend take a bite and shes a fan as well!
So glad you (and your friend) are loving this shrimp salad Olivia!
This was a pleasant surprise! The salad is delicious. Crunchy and creamy and light! The dill dressing is fantastic. The only alteration I made was to use garlic powder instead of fresh garlic (due to dietary restriction) and also I added 1 teaspoon of sugar to take the edge off the lime a bit. This recipe is easy to make and it’s a real hit!
So glad you enjoyed this shrimp salad Robin!
Hi Lisa, I love your recipes! What mayonnaise do you use for this salad? Thanks!!
Hi Jessica – I used my homemade mayo for this recipe. :)
What’s the recipe for your home made mayo?
Thank you
Hi Coleen – You can find the recipe using the search bar up at the top of my website.
We don’t get sour cream here in Nepal. What can I use as a substitute in the dressing?
How about yogurt or creme fraiche?