EASY TZATZIKI SAUCE

I love Greek food.  Something about Meditteranean food just lights a fire in me.  My friend Sophie is Greek and I have really been wanting to meet her grandparents and learn how to make some of the authentic ways of cooking Greek food.  

A few weeks ago I cooked a boneless leg of lamb roast and for some reason, my taste buds were yelling at me to make a gyro with thin slices of garlic rosemary lamb.  Which means I needed to make tzatziki sauce.  Now by no means can I say this recipe is authentic.  I will say that it turned out rather tasty.  Scott loved it.  

With the spirit of wanting this to be as authentic as I could make it, I decided to make homemade Greek yogurt.  

Chop some garlic cloves

Chop the cucumber

Combine Greek yogurt, cucumbers, olive oil, salt, garlic, dill, and white wine vinegar and some white pepper.  I chose to use fresh dill.  I am sure you can use dried dill weed.  If you use dried remember you need to use much less.  

TZATZIKI SAUCE

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 to 2 cups Greek yogurt
• 1 cucumber, seeded and chopped
• 1/8 cup fresh chopped dill (if using dried 1/2 teaspoon)
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Directions

• Seed and chop cucumber.
• Mince garlic.
• Chop dill.
• Combine all ingredients in a bowl.  Chill at least 4 hours but better to chill overnight.  

Variations: 

• Sometimes Greek yogurt can be overpowering.  To keep the strong flavor down you can use half sour cream and half Greek yogurt.
• Add a small amount of fresh lemon juice.
• Substitute white wine vinegar with white vinegar. 
• Ground white pepper is optional.
• You can use an English cucumber that is seedless but then you need to drain the cucumber.

While I used mine in a gyro this sauce can be used as a dip with vegetables.  You can also make homemade pita chips and dip them in your tzatziki sauce.  

I hope you will try out this recipe and let me know how you liked it.  

In the meantime, ENJOY!!