Tzatziki Recipe

Since attending a lunch that celebrated Greek wines, I can't stop thinking about Greek cuisine. My favorite Greek condiment is tzatziki, a cooling sauce that's served with grilled meat, souvlaki, and gyros. It's made with Greek yogurt that's been strained, so it has a super thick texture. I use Ina Garten's recipe, but I add a bunch of chopped mint to it. The most important ingredients are the yogurt and cucumbers, otherwise, you can add whatever herbs you have on hand, parsley works well as does dill and basil. Check out the method after the break.

From Ina Garten

Tzatziki

Ingredients

1 pound (1 pint) plain yogurt (whole milk or low fat)
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled and seeded
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (1 lemon)
1 tablespoon good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh dill
Pinch freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place the yogurt in a cheesecloth or paper towel-lined sieve and set it over a bowl. Grate the cucumber and toss it with 1 tablespoon of kosher salt; place it in another sieve, and set it over another bowl. Place both bowls in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 hours so the yogurt and cucumber can drain.
Transfer the thickened yogurt to a large bowl. Squeeze as much liquid from the cucumber as you can and add the cucumber to the yogurt.
Mix in the sour cream, vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, dill, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper.
You can serve it immediately, but I prefer to allow the tzatziki to sit in the refrigerator for a few hours for the flavors to blend. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Makes 2 1/2 cups.

4 Comments

zeze 2 years

The middle eastern version is made with plain middle eastern yogurt (Lebne) instead of the yogurt/sour cream mix and mint instead of the dill - AMMMMaaazing. I use it to dip whole wheat crostini instead of chips and onion dip.