Tzatziki is also known as cacık in Turkey and North Cyprus. It is a creamy thick Greek yogurt sauce with cucumbers, fresh dill and garlic. Tzatziki is used to accompany lots of Mediterranean dishes. I like to use it simply as a dip with toasted dark bread and fresh or grilled vegetables.
To achieve the needed flavor and texture you need to extract the juice from cucumbers. If to skip the draining process, you will have a runnier result. For an authentic texture it’s better to use thick and strained yogurt.
This yield for the tzatziki recipe is for two, but it can be easily doubled or tripled.
Ingredients
300 g full-fat Greek yogurt (or yogurt cheese)
2 small cucumbers/or 1 large (1 cup of chopped cucumbers)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 small garlic cloves
1 small bunch of fresh/frozen dill or mint
a squeeze of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of salt
Method
Peel and slice the cucumbers in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Dice the remaining cucumber. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and leave to drain in a sieve for a couple of hours (I left overnight in the fridge).
Peel and crush garlic, combine with olive oil and allow to sit to mellow out the pungency.
When the cucumber has mostly drained, spread it over a tea towel and squeeze out the excess liquid. Combine with the garlic mixture and stir through the yogurt.
Chop the dill and add to the yogurt mixture along with a squeeze of lemon. Season with salt to taste. Place in the fridge for a couple of hours so that flavors can blend.
Garnish with s few springs of dill and drizzle with olive oil. Serve with veggies, toasted bread or salad.
Bon Appétit!
MAYA'S BEE HIVE 
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