Shopska Salad (Bulgarian Shopska salad)

Quick answer

Total time: 15 min
Level: Easy
Servings: 2 servings
Ingredients: 7

About this dish

Shopska salad cuts ripe tomatoes, cucumber, green bell pepper, and onion into rough bite-size pieces, dresses them lightly with olive oil and red wine vinegar, and tops the whole thing with a thick mound of finely grated feta cheese.

No separate dressing is needed because the juice flowing from ripe tomatoes mingles with the vinegar and oil to coat every piece naturally, forming a light, pool-free dressing at the bottom of the bowl. The salty, tangy fermentation character of feta stands in pointed contrast to the watery freshness of the raw vegetables, and the green bell pepper's mild herbaceous bitterness adds a layer of complexity that pushes the salad past simple freshness. Because feta already contributes considerable salt, seasoning the vegetables lightly at first prevents the finished dish from becoming overly salty. Removing the seed cavity of the cucumber reduces the amount of excess liquid released, keeping the dressing from diluting. The salad should be assembled just before serving so each vegetable retains its texture rather than softening in the accumulated juice.

Ingredients (2 servings)

Ingredient	Amount	Unit
tomato	220	g
cucumber	160	g
green bell pepper	100	g
onion	50	g
feta cheese	80	g
olive oil	1.5	tbsp
red wine vinegar	1	tbsp

Instructions

Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.

6 steps

1

Prep

Cut the 220 g tomato into generous bite-size pieces so the juice stays mostly inside each piece.

Halve the cucumber, scrape out the watery seed section, and cut it to a similar size for cleaner texture.
2

Prep

Remove the seeds and pale ribs from the 100 g green bell pepper, then slice it thinly enough to mix evenly.

Cut the 50 g onion smaller so its sharpness does not dominate any single bite.
3

Prep

Place the tomato, cucumber, pepper, and onion in a large bowl.

Mix gently without pressing until the feta is added.
4

Step

Pour 1.5 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar around the edge of the bowl rather than dumping them in one spot.

Toss gently from bottom to top so the tomatoes do not crush.
5

Season

Check the bottom of the bowl after tossing.

There should be a small amount of tomato juice mixed with oil and vinegar; taste that liquid first, and add more salt only if it still seems flat.
6

Finish

Transfer the vegetables to a serving plate and finely grate the 80 g feta over the top in a thick layer.

Serve cold immediately, before the vegetables soften and before too much liquid collects underneath.

Practical Cooking Checks

The cues that matter most while cooking.

Key technique: Shopska Salad layers ripe tomatoes and cucumbers under a mound of finely grated feta cheese.
Finish cue: Transfer the vegetables to a serving plate and finely grate the 80 g feta over the top in a thick layer.
Avoid this: Toss gently from bottom to top so the tomatoes do not crush.