This Greek tzatziki sauce is made with grated cucumber, chopped dill, olive oil, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, and spices. This makes the best fresh sauce that goes with chicken, pita chips, gyros, veggies, grilled veggies, falafel, etc.
Jump to:
Why this recipe works
- This whole recipe comes together in 10 minutes from start to finish!
- A great recipe that is healthy, fresh, and filled with delicious Mediterranean flavors.
- Can be served as an appetizer at a barbecue, at parties, get together, and super easy to prep!
What is tzatziki sauce?
Tzatziki sauce is a Greek yogurt and cucumber dip that came to us from the Greek island of Paros. Greek tzatziki is usually served as a dip for veggies and pita chips or as a sauce for gyros, grilled chicken and meat, and much more.
Ingredients
Before you start to make this tzatziki dip recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Cucumber- we used Persian cucumbers, but an English cucumber can work great as well.
Dill- use fresh dill for this recipe, dill adds a lot of flavor. If you don’t like dill, you can skip it or add mint instead.
Greek yogurt- use refrigerated Greek yogurt. Any percent of fat will work.
Olive oil- use extra virgin olive oil for the best flavor.
Lemon juice- use fresh lemon juice for this recipe. Fresh lemon will give you the best result. We don't recommend using store-bought lemon juice. This will make the flavor pop!
Garlic- we suggest adding the garlic to taste. We used fresh garlic for this recipe for the best flavor.
Salt- for flavor. Adjust the salt to your personal taste.
Black pepper- for flavor. Adjust the black pepper to your personal liking.
Instructions
Start out by peeling and grating a cucumber. There are a few ways to prep the cucumbers, you can either chop the peeled cucumbers into small pieces or grate the cucumbers on the large holes of a box grater. We prefer grating the cucumber.
Drain the excess water from the cucumber by either squeezing out the cucumbers over a sink or by draining the excess water by placing the cucumbers over a bowl lined with a cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer.
In a medium mixing bowl, add the cucumbers, chopped dill, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Mix well with a spoon until the mixture is combined. Top with olive oil.
Expert Tips
- Drain the excess water from the cucumber. Cucumbers contain 96% water. To prevent this dip to turn watery, drain as much water as you can.
- If you have it available, use an English cucumber. It is less watery than regular cucumbers.
- Use fresh ingredients for the best flavors! We suggest not using store-bought predicted garlic or store-bought lemon juice. The best flavors come from fresh ingredients.
Faq's
Absolutely. Tzatziki is one of the healthiest dips or sauces out there. It's full of healthy ingredients like Greek yogurt, cucumber, olive oil, and lemon juice.
Yes! Because we are using fresh garlic, some people will like a less strong flavor. Add it by taste!
Tradotionaly, tzatziki does not have dill in it. You can skip it if you dont like it but we like the addition of flavor the dill gives to this dip.
Storing
Store tzatziki in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Variations
Mint- replace the dip and add chopped mint instead for a different flavor variation.
Spicy- add a pinch of cayenne pepper for spicy tzatziki.
Substitutions
Dairy-free- to make this recipe dairy-free, replace the yogurt with vegan plant-based yogurt like soy yogurt.
Sour cream- replace the yogurt with sour cream if you dont have greek yogurt available.
Dried dill- if you dont have fresh dill on hand, replace it with a teaspoon of dried dill.
Serving tips
There are so many ways to serve this dip. We love serving this dip with our homemade pita bread, greek pita bread, or with our 3 ingredient yogurt naan.
Some like to enjoy it with falafel, and some like to enjoy it in sandwiches with salads, eggs, kebabs, gyros, etc. Â
Serving ideas
- Roasted vegetables
- Falafel
- Pita chips
- Gyros
- Grilled chicken
- Grilled meat
- Greek salad
- Greek pasta salad
- Chicken wrap
- Fresh vegetables (as a dip)
- Kebab
More Mediterranean recipes to try:
Greek Pasta Salad- Greek pasta salad is the perfect side dish for any occasion, make with cooked pasta, fresh veggies, kalamata olives, feta cheese, and homemade Greek salad dressing.
Homemade Pita Bread- Pita bread is one of our favorite bread to bake, making your own homemade pita bread is easy, inexpensive, simple, and delicious.
Baked Feta Pasta- This baked feta pasta is incredibly delicious and easy to make. This pasta dish went viral in Finland, and because of this recipe, the grocery stores in Finland ran out of feta cheese.
If you tried this recipe, don’t forget to leave a rating and a comment below. We love hearing from you.
If you liked this recipe:
- Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.
- Share/pin this recipe to Pinterest.
- Leave a comment down below!
📖 Recipe
Best Tzatziki Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Cucumber grated
- 1 ½ cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon Black pepper
- 2 Garlic cloves
- â…“ cup Dill chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoon Lemon juice
Instructions
- Start out by peeling and grating a cucumber. There are a few ways to prep the cucumbers, you can either chop the peeled cucumbers into small pieces or grate the cucumbers on the large holes of a box grater. We prefer grating the cucumber.
- Drain the excess water from the cucumber by either squeezing out the cucumbers over a sink or by draining the excess water by placing the cucumbers over a bowl lined with a cheesecloth or a fine-mesh strainer.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the cucumbers, chopped dill, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, and black pepper. Mix well with a spoon until the mixture is combined.
Notes
- Drain the excess water from the cucumber. Cucumbers contain 96% water. To prevent this dip to turn watery, drain as much water as you can.
- If you have it available, use an English cucumber. It is less watery than regular cucumbers.
- Use fresh ingredients for the best flavors! We suggest not using store-bought predicted garlic or store-bought lemon juice. The best flavors come from fresh ingredients.
Paul
We make Tzatiki quite often, we now use a recipe from our favourite place for it in Agios Gordios, Corfu, the Black Rocks Restaurant. They make a special one that most tourists would find to "Garlicky" we love it. Some of our friends think the same, 2 cloves? We put 3 BULBS to a 500 kg pot of Yogurt and 2 cucumbers.