Made using freshly chopped veggies, Kachumber is a fresh, crunchy Indian onion cucumber tomato salad that doesn’t need any cooking and can be rustled up whenever hunger strikes. Pair it with any Indian meal for a taste lift (vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free)
Want more easy peasy Indian salads like this Kachumber, then you can try these too – Old Fashioned Kidney Bean Salad, Sprouts Salad, and Kakdi Chi Koshimbir.
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About This Recipe
A healthy salad is a must in our home, especially at lunchtime. To go with our Indian-style meals, we need something simple, tasty, and light to serve on the side. And those are the days, I make Kachumber Salad (Kachoomer, Indian Cucumber Onion Tomato Salad).
Well, you must be thinking what does Kachumber mean? Kachumber is a Hindi word, that is often used for something that is a simple mixture of two or more vegetables and this simple salad is made using cucumbers, onions, and tomatoes, hence the name.
Kachumber can also be called Indian salsa as it is made very similarly to the all-time favorite Mexican Pico De Gallo or Tomato Salsa. This crunchy salad is served at most Indian restaurants and is also the everyday Indian salad made in most Indian homes.
Kachumber Salad is oil-free, vegan, and gluten-free and this crunchy and colorful salad comes together in just 10 minutes. It is great for your clean eating menu too.
The best part about this salad is that it is very customizable. Add the veggies you like and skip the ones you don’t.
Kachumber recipe is vegan and gluten-free and you can easily double or triple it if making it for a crowd.
Health Benefits Of Kachumber Salad
This salad is a great way to include raw veggies in your diet. Eating veggies in their raw form has many health benefits.
They are low in calories and loaded with fibers, vitamins, and minerals.
Raw veggies aid digestion, make the skin glow, helps in the weight loss journey, and improve heart health.
They have high water content which is great for the body.
Ingredients
Vegetables – The traditional kachumber is made using tomatoes, cucumber, green chillies, cilantro (fresh coriander leaves), lime, and onions.
Try to use English cucumbers as they are seedless and super crunchy. My second choice is Persian cucumbers which are also seedless but less flavorful than their English cousins.
If using regular cucumbers, make sure to peel them and remove the large seeds.
Add more or less green chilies as per your taste. You can also use serrano pepper, jalapeno pepper, or cayenne pepper in place of green chilies. Remove their seeds to reduce the heat.
If red onions are very pungent, soak them in cold water for 10 minutes, drain and use them in the salad. You can also use white onions in place of red onions.
Pomegranate – This is completely optional! I like to add it for extra crunch and also a little hint of sweetness.
Salt and Pepper – To season it you will need just salt and black pepper powder. That’s it! If you like it to be tangier, you can add in some chaat masala powder and black salt (kala namak) too.
Lime Juice – This provides the much-needed tang in the kachoomer. You can use fresh lemon juice in place of lime juice.
Variations
Some people add ground cumin and red chilli powder to their kachumber. You can try it too.
Add fresh herbs like mint leaves, basil, parsley, etc along with coriander leaves.
You can also add roasted peanuts or other nuts like almonds, walnuts, etc for a lovely crunch.
Seeds like sunflower seeds, toasted flax seeds, or hemp seeds are also great to add crunch.
Bean sprouts and alfa alfa sprouts also go very well in this healthy salad.
To make the salad even more interesting, you can add finely chopped mixed bell peppers, shredded or sliced radish, shredded cabbage, corn, shredded beetroots, and boiled potatoes. Avocado is also a great addition.
When green mangoes are in season, add some to give it a nice tang and crunch. Gujaratis add chopped ripe mangoes to their Kachumber. It gives a lovely hint of sweetness to this otherwise spicy and tangy salad.
You can also use vinegar in place of lemon or lime juice. Try adding different varieties of vinegar for change in taste.
Cooked chickpea or red kidney beans can also be added. They are rich in protein and will add to the health benefits.
If you eat eggs and chicken, then add chopped boiled eggs or grilled shredded chicken to it.
How To Make Kachumber Salad
Preparation
Start by preparing the ingredients
- Peel the onions and chop them.
- Chop the tomatoes and cucumber. You can chop the cucumbers with skin on them if it’s very fresh or peel the skin using a vegetable peeler before chopping. Remove the seeds of the tomatoes before chopping.
- Chop green chilies and cilantro too. If making it for kids, you can skip adding the chili. Wear gloves while chopping the chilies if you have sensitive skin.
- Take out the kernels of pomegranate.
Note – Do not chop the veggies in a food processor. It will chop the veggies finely making the dish more of a salsa than kachumber.
Make The Salad
Add 1 cup chopped onions, 1 cup chopped tomatoes, 1 cup chopped cucumber, 1 teaspoon chopped green chillies, 2 tablespoon chopped cilantro (coriander leaves), ½ cup pomegranate seeds, salt & pepper to taste, and 2 tablespoon lime juice to a medium-size non-reactive (glass is best) mixing bowl.
Mix everything properly using a spoon or with your clean hands and serve immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can mix the chopped veggies and pomegranate seeds together and store them in an air-tight container for up to a day. When ready to serve, add the spices and lime juice and mix well.
It’s a personal choice. If the cucumbers are very fresh, then you can leave the skin on. It not only adds a nice crunch but it’s healthier too.
Cucumbers taste bitter a lot of times. The best way to get rid of the bitterness is to chop off the top part and rub it against the remaining cucumber. A foam-like substance will collect around the edges of the cucumber. Wash it and it will not taste bitter anymore.
If you have already chopped the cucumber without tasting it before, then add some salt to it and keep it aside for 10 minutes. Now rinse and use.
Yes, if you do not eat onions, you can simply skip adding them. Kachumber tastes great without onions too. You can add in finely chopped carrot in this no-onion version for some extra crunch.
To make Kachumber raita or Kachumber with yogurt, just add chopped onions, tomatoes, and cucumber to the whisked plain yogurt (dahi) and flavor it up with some cumin powder and salt.
Yes, that’s it! For extra flavor, you can also give a tempering of oil, asafoetida, and red chili powder to your raita. This kachumber raita pairs very well with biryani.
Serving Suggestions
This salad pairs well with any Indian meal. Apart from my everyday meals of dal and Indian curries, I like to serve it with biryani and pulao.
Dal Tadka, Gobi Aloo, Kachumber, and Roti make the best meal ever. I also like to serve this salad along with my Tandoori Chicken.
You can also add it to your sandwiches, wraps, burritos, tacos, burgers, or to a buddha bowl.
Mix it with yogurt and serve it as a dip with chips, nachos, spicy crackers, etc.
It can also be served over fried popadums (papad).
You can also serve this classic Indian salad as a healthy snack.
When the salad is kept for some time, the veggies release some liquid and it gets collected at the bottom of the bowl. It is gold guys! I like to sip this tangy liquid as it or drizzle it over my dal rice.
Storage Suggestions
Kachumber doesn’t keep well so I suggest you make it fresh. You can chop the veggies in advance and mix them with the rest of the ingredients when ready to serve.
But if you still have leftovers, store them in a sealed container for about 2 days in the fridge. Just take a few minutes before serving, so that it comes to room temperature.
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Recipe Card
Kachumber Recipe (Indian Cucumber Onion Tomato Salad)
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 1 cup chopped tomatoes (seeds removed)
- 1 cup chopped cucumber (preferably English cucumbers)
- 1 teaspoon chopped green chilies (adjust the amount according to your liking)
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (coriander)
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
- salt & pepper
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a medium-size non-reactive mixing bowl.
- Mix everything well using a spoon or with your clean hands.
- Check for salt and lime juice and serve immediately.
Michelle
Can this be prepared in a food processor to save time?
Neha Mathur
I don’t suggest this Michelle, it wil become more like a salsa than kachumber.