Greek Tzatziki Sauce

Name: Greek Tzatziki Sauce
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 english cucumber (diced small (about 1 cup)); 1 Tablespoon salt (for leeching water from the cucumber); 1 1/2 cups greek yogurt; 2 cloves garlic (minced); 1 Tablespoon olive oil; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon Freshly ground pepper; Juice of 1/2 a lemon; 1 Tablespoon fresh dill (chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried dill))

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Greek Tzatziki Sauce is a bright, delicious combination of Greek yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and a few other traditional flavors that are incredible with meat, fish, veggies, or bread. It is so easy and takes all of 5 minutes to make your own batch that is vastly superior to anything you can pick up at the market!

If you love Greek food, some of our other popular Greek-inspired recipes are Baked Greek Feta Meatballs, Greek Marinade, Greek Baklava, and Greek Feta Fries.

Greek Tzatziki Saucein a bowl surrounded by bread and ingredients

One of my favorite things about traveling is the food. You can get Greek food - even really good Greek food - here in the States, but there is something about eating a gyro in Santorini that makes it take root in your soul.

Right after graduating law school and taking the bar exam, Paul and I got to take a 6-week backpacking adventure through parts of the Mediterranean, including parts of Greece like Thessaloniki, Athens, and the islands of Santorini and Rhodes. There was a little cafe in Santorini that we ate at more than once because of their amazing gyros that were dripping with cool, tangy Tzatziki sauce on top of seasoned meat, tomatoes, onions, and Greek fries.

This easy homemade tzatziki sauce reminds me of that trip every time I make it.

Why this Recipe Works

Salting the cucumber first removes excess water so your tzatziki isn't runny.
Using English or Persian cucumbers means you don't need to worry about peeling thick or bitter skin off the cucumbers or removing seeds first.
It's good for you! The ingredients are wholesome, healthy, and fresh.

Ingredient Notes

Cucumber: Any cucumber will work, although English or Persian cucumbers work best. You don't even need to de-seed or peel them since the skin isn't as tough or bitter as other varieties of cucumbers.
Greek yogurt: For this recipe you want full-fat plain Greek yogurt. Don't use a flavored variety. You could use a lower fat yogurt too, but the full-fat kind gives much better results.
Dill: We prefer using fresh dill in this tzatziki recipe, but dried dill can be substituted if that's all you have on hand.

How to Make This Recipe

Since watery tzatziki sauce is definitely not the goal, you are going to want to finely dice your cucumber first and place it in a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl, then sprinkle it generously with salt. The salt will draw out the water from the cucumber, so let it sit for about 30 minutes. As the water leeches out, the cucumber will sweat off most of the salt on its own.

Meanwhile, mix the Greek yogurt in a large bowl with garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Add the fresh dill and cucumber once it has released most of its water. Stir everything together, then chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes for the flavors to meld before serving.

Greek Tzatziki Sauce ingredients in a glass bowl next to half a lemon and a spoon

Recipe FAQ's

What is tzatziki?

Tzatziki is a yogurt based sauce from Greece made with cucumber, garlic, dill, olive oil, and lemon juice. A lot of recipes call for the cucumber to be grated, but my preference is to do a small dice instead because I love the little bites of cucumber in the tzatziki.

Can you freeze tzatziki sauce?

No, I do not recommend freezing tzatziki sauce. The texture of the cucumbers once it thaws isn't very good and the sauce will be runny.

Do I need to peel the cucumber first?

No, if you are using an English or Persian cucumber, there is no need to peel them before making the tzatziki sauce because their skins are thin and not bitter. However, if you are using another variety of garden-grown cucumber, you may want to peel and deseed them first before proceeding with the recipe.

Does the cucumber need to be rinsed after being salted?

I usually find that the water that comes off the cucumber once it has been salted is usually enough to wash off most of the salt so we don't need to rinse it. However, you can rinse the cucumber under cold water to remove excess salt and pat it dry with paper towels before using if needed.

Recipe Tips

Storage: Tzatziki sauce will keep in the fridge for about 4 days. If it gets watery on top, just give it a good stir before using.
Serve with: Tzatziki sauce is great on gyros made with Greek Meatballs (Keftedes), over grilled or fried fish, steak, or marinated chicken, with warm, soft pita bread for dipping, or on fries. Or, you know, just eat it straight out of the bowl with a spoon. It's that good.
Variation: If you aren't a fan of dill, then go ahead and just leave it out, but I love, love, love the flavor it gives so it's always in my version.

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