Sunday, April 11, 2010

Tzatziki


I love tzatziki sauce.  Tzatziki sauce served with some fresh, fluffy, warm pita is one of my very favorite things to eat at Greek restaurants.  Actually, it's one of my favorite things to eat anywhere.  I've also used it on various sandwiches and burgers, which I think is lovely.  This version of tzatziki sauce has become my new go-to.  I've tried several versions of tzatziki, including some with mint instead of dill, or with mint in addition to dill.  This version has a wonderful balance between the freshness of the cucumber, the creamy tang of the yogurt, the bright lemony flavor, and the dill.  None of the flavors overpowered the others, which was a huge plus.  And the thing I love most about this sauce is that you can basically throw everything into the food processor and let it do all of the work.  I got the idea to use the food processor from Kalyn's Kitchen and I will never go back.  Some recipes require that you grate the cucumber and then squeeze out all of the liquid, before making a paste of the garlic, but this is way better.

I served this tzatziki as an appetizer before a roast leg of lamb and Greek salad.  I figured while I was going Greek for dinner, I might as well pull out one of my favorite Greek menu items!  Seeing as it was a big hit I'm glad that I did.  It was totally delicious and well worth making.

Recipe after the jump!

Tzatziki
Adapted from Kalyn's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups whole milk Greek yogurt
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise and roughly chopped
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Put Greek yogurt in a medium mixing bowl.  Set aside.  

Place cucumbers in a colander and sprinkle with kosher salt.  Let cucumbers sit for 30 minutes to draw out water.  Drain well and pat dry with paper towel. 

In food processor outfitted with steel blade, add cucumbers, garlic, lemon juice, dill, and roughly 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper.  Process until mixture is well blended and smooth, using a spatula to push mixture down the walls of the food processor bowl as necessary.  Stir cucumber mixture into the yogurt.  Taste and season with additional salt and/or pepper if necessary.

Place sauce in the refrigerator for at least two hours before serving to allow flavors to marry.

No comments:

Post a Comment