A Greek salad is a mealtime staple in Greece. It's called horiatiki, or country salad, village salad, or peasant salad. Tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, feta cheese, Kalamata olives and olive oil are the standard traditional ingredients in a Greek salad. Bell peppers are also sometimes added. Lettuce, vinegar and seasoned dressing are not part of a genuine Greek salad.

Dried oregano is sometimes placed on top of a Greek salad. The olive oil should be added at the table when the salad is served, as this is how they serve a Greek salad in Greece. Greek salads should be prepared at the last minute from refrigerated ingredients. The tomatoes and feta cheese should be added last so they don't get too crushed.

Thick beefsteak tomatoes are usually the type of tomatoes used for Greek salads and they should be left in good-sized chunks. It's important that all of the vegetables in a Greek salad be left fairly chunky. Some restaurants grate the feta, perhaps to save money, but genuine Greek salads feature fairly large cubes of feta cheese. Cucumbers used in Greek salad should first be sliced lengthwise and then chopped into chunks.

Greek salads are served at many different types of meals in Greece. Large feasts may have dozens of meat and seafood dishes, but a Greek salad is usually always included. The cool refreshing taste of the raw vegetables contrasts well with the heavy, flavorful main dishes. The Cypriot salad of Cyprus is similar to a Greek salad, but the ingredients are usually more finely chopped and parsley rather than oregano is often used.

A Greek salad served with pita bread and an ice cold drink makes a simple, but delicious summer dinner. You can just combine all of the Greek salad ingredients that you have all ready in the refrigerator together at the last minute. Plus, a bowl of Greek salad and its accompaniments are easy to transport outside onto a patio or deck.