Tzatziki sauce is one of my favorite condiments and ingredients. It’s also one of those sauces that changes depending on where you get it. I grew up eating Greek food from a restaurant called Lefteris and didn’t realize there was a world of Greek and mediteranean food outside of Gyro plates and avgo-lemono soup until moving to Astoria Queens in my 20’s. 

It was in Astoria that I realized feta cheese didn’t always come shrink wrapped from the grocery store, a salad made with just tomatoes and cucumber can be a revelation, simple broiled fish done the right way can be almost religious…and it’s also where I discovered Tzatziki sauce that wasn’t bland and runny. 

This sauce is modeled after a couple of my favorites from Astoria with a more rustic home made feel to it. The chunks of cucumber give a weight to the sauce that holds up against fatty meats like lamb. The fresh Dill and lemon bring out a brightness from any dish. While the raw garlic punches through and leaves you with a lingering spice kick. I usually make a lot of this tzatziki sauce and it ends up being the driving force behind a couple of different meals throughout the week. 

Tzatziki Sauce

Garlicy, creamy, fresh, and easy. This Tzatziki Sauce gos great with falafel, schwarma, and makes a great chicken marinade.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time0 mins
Total Time10 mins
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keyword: cucumber, dill, greek, sauce, tzatziki
Servings: 8
Cost: $8

Equipment

  • Cutting Board
  • Knife
  • Small to medium size bowl

Ingredients

  • 1 bundle Fresh Dill About 1 overflowing cup not packed down
  • 1/2 tbsp Lemon Zest
  • 1-2 tbsp Lemon Juice The juice of half a lemon, not squeezed to death
  • 16 oz. Greek Yogurt
  • 3 cloves Garlic Smash the garlic into a paste
  • 1/3 Cucumber With the seeds scooped out
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1 tsp Fresh Black Pepper

Instructions

  • Empty the greek yogurt into a bowl that allows for some room for mixing in the rest of ingredients.
  • Zest the lemon and finely chop the zest into very small pieces. Put the zest into the bowl with the yogurt.
  • Finely chop the bundle of Dill and add it to the bowl. It will seem like a lot, but this is the main flavor enhancer and I've yet to add too much. Dill is great.
  • Take 1/3 of a cucumber and scoop out the seeds using a teaspoon into your sink or garbage. Be careful not to scoop out too much of the 'meat' of the cucumber.
  • Finely chop the cucumber by first cutting into long slices, then cutting across the slices to get think rectangles or squares. Add this to your bowl.
  • Take three cloves of garlic and smash them with the flat of your knife. This will make it easier to get the skin off and will make chopping them up easier! Once your garlic is very finely chopped sprinkle a tiny bit of salt on it, and with the flat of your knife run the knife across the garlic grinding the juices out and creating a garlic 'paste'. Add the garlic into the party developing in the bowl.
  • Squeeze the juice of half a lemon into the bowl, and add in the salt and pepper.
  • Mix it all up and enjoy! If you have time set this in the fridge and let the flavors get to know each other for an hour before serving. I prefer to leave this in the fridge overnight if possible.