This creamy radish salad brings the often-overlooked vegetable to the front of the stage. A simple trick of briefly salting the radishes reduces their spicy harshness and increases their crispness, while a yogurt dressing made with fresh dill and lemon brighten the whole dish. This is one of my easiest salad recipes.
Easy Slicing Tips
A mandoline makes quick and easy work of slicing tons of radishes and the shallot. It also makes the slices uniform throughout. If you don’t have a mandoline you can easily get the job done by using a chefs knife to slice them 1/8-inch thick.
Salting the Radishes & Shallot
The thinly sliced radishes and shallot first get a brief soak in salt water before getting tossed with the uber-simple Greek yogurt dressing. I learned this trick from Mark Bittman and it’s a great way to take the spicy edge off the radishes and reduce some of the potency of raw shallot. After 15 minutes, the shallot and radishes get drained and the rest of the salad is made right in the same bowl.
Draining and Drying
It is absolutely key to drain and thoroughly dry the radishes. If the radishes are still wet, the dressing won’t stick to them and the salad will come out watery and soggy.
I like to use a salad spinner to spin them dry and then pat them with a clean kitchen towel to ensure they are dry.
If you’re using a regular strainer, lay them on a clean kitchen towel and pat them dry.
Make Ahead Tip
This radish salad can be made up to 1 day ahead of time. The radishes won’t be quite as crisp and the dressing will be a bit thinner (but it will take on a gorgeous pink hue). If you do make this ahead of time, I recommend waiting to add the fresh herbs, or adding some additional fresh herbs, right before serving.
Try These Variations
- Use sour cream instead of Greek yogurt for an ultra-creamy and tangy salad.
- Use chopped scallions (aka green onions) instead of shallots for a more mild onion flavor. (Skip the soaking in salt water.)
- Swap the shallots out for red onion and add fresh cilantro instead of the dill.
- Add thinly sliced English cucumber.
- A drizzle of olive oil at the end is beautiful.
- Add crumbled goat cheese for a bit more creaminess.
Serve This With
- Use the fresh herbs you’ve got on hand to make my 5-Ingredient Lemon Dill Salmon.
- I love to pair this with a grilled skirt steak—which cooks up in a short 6 minutes.
- My dry-rubbed oven-roasted pork tenderloin is perfect here. Make some extra yogurt dressing as a sauce for the tenderloin.
5-Ingredient Radish Salad with Herbs
Description
Ingredients
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 3 bunches radishes, thinly sliced (1½ pounds)
- 1 small shallot, thinly sliced
- ½ cup plain whole milk Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup chopped fresh tender herbs such as dill, mint, chives, basil, or cilantro
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together 3 cups cold water and 2 teaspoons kosher salt until dissolved. Add radishes and shallots; let sit 15 minutes.
- Drain radishes and shallots in a colander. Wipe bowl dry then add yogurt and lemon juice; whisk to combine. Add drained radishes and shallot, dill and mint. Toss to coat; season with salt and pepper to taste.
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Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
This article was most recently updated on January 16, 2025 with additional tips for clarity.
Can you add the nutrition information?
Yes! They have been added, thanks for the reminder.
I made this recipe twice. I liked it the first time – but the second time I was short on ingredients so I did this:
Mix mayo with vinegar. Add small amount of half & half to thin it out. Add crumbled feta cheese. Add dill and black pepper to taste.
Slice radishes, yellow bell pepper, and red onions. Salt these and wait a bit.
Fold in the veggies.
Let sit in frig for 20 mins.
Can I add cooked shrimp to this recipe
Absolutely! I would cut the shrimp into chunks. Let me know how it is!