Tzatziki Cucumber Dipping Sauce

"Greek sauce/dip/salad dressing. Serve with vegies,Pitas,or with spicy dishes."
 
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photo by Lalaloula photo by Lalaloula
photo by Lalaloula
photo by Satyne photo by Satyne
photo by IngridH photo by IngridH
photo by PaulaG photo by PaulaG
photo by Peter J photo by Peter J
Ready In:
15mins
Ingredients:
8
Yields:
6 cups
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ingredients

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directions

  • Line a sieve with a double thickness of dampened cheesecloth.
  • Spoon in yogurt and set the sieve over a bowl.
  • Refrigerate for two to three hours or until yogurt is about half its volume, nicely thick and creamy.
  • Shred or cut cucumber into julienne strips.
  • Place in a colander in sink or over a bowl, sprinkle generously with salt, mix well and let drain for at least 30 minutes to an hour.
  • Rinse and gently pat dry.
  • In a mortor and pestal muddle the garlic into a bit salt.
  • Add to the thickened yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, olive oil, and if desired, the pepper and mint.
  • Mix well.
  • Serve or refrigerate for a day or two so flavors mingle.
  • Stir again before serving and sprinkle with additional minced mint leaves if desired.

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Reviews

  1. I really liked this recipe. Never thought about putting mint into tzatziki and will admit I was skeptical but now I will ALWAYS use mint. I also didn't use Greek yogurt just a thick balkan and I also didn't bother draining it through the cheese cloth. With regard to the cucumber I just grated it and squeezed it dry as best i could with my hands. Maybe it was runnier than authentic tzatziki but nobody seemed to mind and definitely a lot less work. So yummy!
     
  2. Soo good, i could just eat it alone with a spoon! I down sized it because i knew we wouldn't need that whole amount. I used 1 cup nonfat greek yogurt and threw in a heaping large spoonful of lowfat sour cream in also. i prob only used about 1/2 of a large seedless cuke, diced really finely. i still kept to the garlic amount with about 2 tsp. a few squeezes of lemon, some salt and pepper. Awesomeness. I regretted the small amount later. We eat it originally with greek kabobs but the next night we were fighting over the leftovers with some grilled pork. I made a chimichurri to go with the pork and my husband mixed that and the tzatziki and was drooling thru the meal. thanks..
     
  3. This was excellent...or rather will be. I'm making it to put on french fries for supper tomorrow. A 'recipe' a co-worker told me about. Hopefully I will still have some left! I also used greek yogurt. So much easier!! And omitted the mint. I may add a little pepper to the top of the completed dish but right now I'm eating this with a spoon!
     
  4. This was delicious on gyros. I completely skipped the step about salting but I did make extra effort to squeeze the yogurt and cucumber dry in cheesecloth. The consistency was thick and even a little chunky.
     
  5. I scaled this recipe down to yield 2 cups because I only had one large cucumber. Came out fantastic! I was a bit hesitant about adding the mint (fresh from my garden), but after it sat about an hour in the fridge, it melded so nicely you would hardly know it was there, yet it imparted that certain delicious something. It was so good, I ate it as-is with a spoon. This will be my go-to recipe for tzatziki from now on. Thanks.
     
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Tweaks

  1. If you're looking for a great-tasting, easy tzatziki sauce, look no further! I have tried making tzatziki before using other recipes and I was always a bit disappointed. I wondered if it was possible to get an authentic tasting sauce at home. Then I tried this recipe and I knew I found the one! I used Greek yogurt instead of just regular plain yogurt, so I didn't feel the need to strain it. It was plenty thick. I also didn't add the mint--personal preference. We have used this on gyros, Greek burgers, Greek meatloaf, and other various things. We all love it. Thanks for the recipe, Rita!
     
  2. I really enjoyed this recipe. I made it according to the directions, but used dill in place of the mint because I did not have any mint. Next time, I'll remember to buy mint! Served it with grilled chicken kebobs and grilled pitas. So good! Will be making again. Thanks so much for posting.
     
  3. This turned out fanTASTic! I added a bit more lemon juice, diced the cucumbers, and replaced the mint with dill, which I much prefer. I served it with fresh made pita, and it was so delicious!
     
  4. This has become a regular at our house. I use dill instead of the mint. If you can get greek yogurt you can skip the draining in cheesecloth step, which makes it ever so quick & easy to throw together. It makes a lot, for just two of us, so I usually make 1/3 of a batch at any one time.
     

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