Homemade Tzatziki

There is something about cold, creamy savory yoghurt against hot smoky meat that just works. A piece of charred chicken souvlaki, a spoonful of tzatziki, warm bread and a squeeze of lemon is one of those combinations where I immediately start wondering why I bothered putting anything else on the table.

And when the pork belly souvlaki comes out? Even better. That rich, smoky pork belly absolutely loves something cold and fresh beside it.

And here’s the other reason I make this at home: tzatziki is ridiculously easy to make.

This is the same argument I make with my homemade hummus. If something takes about ten minutes, uses a handful of normal ingredients and tastes better homemade, I struggle to see the point of buying the tub.

Greek yoghurt. Cucumber. Lemon zest. Olive oil. Cumin.

That’s basically it.

No complicated technique. No blender. No cooking.

And because I’m making it myself, I know exactly what has gone into the bowl. No unnecessary preservatives, stabilisers or mystery ingredients if I don’t want them.

We’re already buying enough packaged food in everyday life. If I can make something this good for our family in ten minutes, this is one of the easy wins.

Honestly, the hardest part is grating a cucumber and resisting the urge to eat half the tzatziki with a spoon before dinner starts.

Why you’ll love this tzatziki

• It’s ridiculously easy. Grate, squeeze, stir. That’s basically the entire recipe.
• It takes about 10 minutes. This isn’t one of those “easy homemade” recipes that somehow leaves your kitchen looking like a restaurant service just finished.
• It’s cool and creamy against hot grilled meat. Exactly what you want with smoky chicken and rich pork belly.

This is so easy, why buy it?

I’m not anti-convenience.

There are plenty of nights where I’m buying the bread, opening the bagged salad and doing whatever gets dinner onto the table before somebody starts eating crackers instead.

But tzatziki is one of those things where homemade barely qualifies as extra work.

You grate one cucumber. Squeeze it. Stir it into yoghurt with lemon zest, cumin and olive oil.

Done.

That’s why I put it in the same category as my homemade hummus.

Once you realise how little effort is involved, the supermarket tub becomes much less tempting.

And homemade tastes fresher.

You get proper thick yoghurt, fresh cucumber and real lemon zest instead of a sauce designed primarily to survive being transported, stacked on a supermarket shelf and forgotten about in the back of someone’s fridge.

If I’m putting food in the middle of the table for our family and friends, I’ll take the ten-minute version every time.

Especially when the ten-minute version tastes better.

Ingredients

• 500g thick Greek yoghurt
• 1 medium cucumber
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 close garlic, grated
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• Salt, to taste
• Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

That’s it.

Five main ingredients.

Very little drama.

A few things before you start

Use thick Greek yoghurt

This makes the biggest difference. If the yoghurt is already loose and watery, you’re fighting a losing battle before the cucumber even enters the room. Look for a thick Greek-style yoghurt.

Full-fat is my preference because it tastes richer and gives you that proper creamy texture.

Grate the cucumber

I prefer grated cucumber rather than finely diced cucumber. It spreads through the yoghurt more evenly and gives you cucumber in every bite rather than random chunks.

You can peel it if you want. I usually don’t bother.

The skin gives you a few green flecks and saves me from doing another job. Both excellent reasons.

Squeeze. The. Cucumber.

I’m saying it again because this is the one step I don’t want you skipping.

Grated cucumber holds a shocking amount of liquid. Squeeze it hard before adding it to the yoghurt.

You can do this with your hands, a clean tea towel or some cheesecloth.

I normally just grab a handful and squeeze it over the sink. Very sophisticated. Very effective.

How to make homemade tzatziki

1. Grate the cucumber & garlic

Grate the cucumber using the large holes of a box grater.

Then gather the grated cucumber in your hands or wrap it in a clean tea towel. Squeeze out as much liquid as possible. And I mean really squeeze it.

The cucumber should feel noticeably drier and more compact afterwards.

Then grate your garlic. Chopped garlic is still to big for this dip, you don’t want to bite into a piece of raw garlic…

2. Add everything to a bowl

Add the Greek yoghurt to a mixing bowl. Stir in the squeezed cucumber, lemon zest, cumin and extra virgin olive oil.

Add a good pinch of salt and some freshly cracked black pepper.

Then mix everything together.

That’s essentially it.

3. Taste it

I always taste before serving (yeah I’m selfless like that).

Does it need more salt? Add some.

Want a little more lemon? Add some extra zest.

Want the cumin slightly stronger? Add another tiny pinch.

Just remember that cumin becomes more noticeable as the tzatziki sits, so don’t get too enthusiastic.

4. Let it rest

You can eat it immediately. But if you’ve got the time, cover the bowl and put it in the fridge for 30 minutes to a few hours.

This gives everything time to settle together. The cucumber flavours the yoghurt. The lemon zest spreads through the bowl. The cumin softens into the background.

It just gets better.

5. Finish with olive oil

Just before serving, spoon the tzatziki into a bowl and drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the top. You don’t need to flood it. A small glossy drizzle is enough.

If I’m serving it to friends, I’ll sometimes add a little extra lemon zest over the top too. Mostly because it looks good. We’re allowed to care about these things.

What else can I eat tzatziki with?

Obviously, souvlaki.

But don’t stop there.

This stuff is fantastic with:

• Grilled lamb
• Roast chicken
• Grilled vegetables
• Lamb kofta
• Falafel
• Roast potatoes
• Warm flatbread
• Leftover chicken wraps
• Basically anything coming off a BBQ

Enjoy 🙂 – Damo