This is an easy tzatziki sauce recipe that’s ready in 10 minutes. It’s prepared pretty authentic (Greek style) with cucumber, yogurt, and dill. Make it for steaks, chicken dishes, burgers, roasted vegetables, and for dipping with pita bread. Let’s whip up this dip.
What is tzatziki sauce?
His homemade tzatziki is a creamy medditeranean sauce or dip. It’s traditionally made as a Greek yogurt sauce with freshly diced cucumbers and garlic gloves. The garlic is usually raw, but I don’t love raw garlic in tzatziki sauce, so this recipe will teach you how to make roasted garlic tzatziki sauce. The flavor is smoother!
Why this tzatziki sauce recipe is particularly amazing…
- It’s a fast tzatziki sauce recipe – it’s ready in 10 minutes.
- My version with roasted garlic gives this tzatziki a deep, rich flavor.
- Easy to make ahead of time.
- Great appetizer dip for a party.
- Serve it as a condiment on homemade burgers or roasted vegetables.
Ingredients
What you need to make homemade tzatziki sauce…
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Plain Greek yogurt
- Cucumber (English cucumber preferred – see recipe notes on how to prep cucumbers for authentic Greek tzatziki sauce)
- Lemon juice
- Fresh dill (I don’t recommend substituting dried dill)
- Salt and pepper
- Other fresh herbs for topping if desired (like fresh mint or parsley)
How to prep cucumbers for authentic Greek tzatziki sauce
You don’t have to drain the cucumbers if you don’t want to. There are plenty of times I just hollow out the seeds with a spoon (and discard them), then dice cucumbers and throw them directly in this yogurt sauce.
But if I have the time, I go the extra step and get out the food processor or box grater to make grated cucumbers. Then, I smoosh the cucumbers between paper towels, sprinkle on a little salt and let the cucumbers dry out the excess water for about 15 minutes.
How to make tzatziki sauce
Take the recipe step-by-step provided and make it a little more general and conversational. Leave a line between steps so a photo can be added in-between.
- Heat a small or medium pan on the stove to medium heat. Add olive oil and garlic and sauté for a couple minutes, stirring occasionally until garlic becomes translucent. Pull from heat before garlic browns and set aside to cool for a couple minutes.
- To a large bowl, add Greek yogurt and diced cucumber. Stir to combine.
- Add lemon juice, garlic olive oil, fresh dill, salt and pepper. Mix together.
- Taste and season with additional salt or pepper if desired and refrigerate until it’s time to serve it, for up to 3 days.
FAQs
Creamy but refreshing, tzatziki sauce is a blend of cucumbers and fresh herbs in Greek yogurt and tastes just as good as you’d imagine from the ingredient list. Savory, garlicky, and deliciously sour, this sauce is the perfect antidote to rich Mediterranean-style dishes but can also shine alone as a dipping sauce for pita.
Yes, though a “Greek tzatziki sauce” contains plain greek yogurt, you can substitute out the yogurt for the same amount of full fat sour cream or fat free sour cream if desired. It will taste quite a bit different, though!
I don’t personally think so! If you’re counting calories, you may choose to use low fat Greek yogurt rather than the full cream variety– but either way, this refreshing sauce, to me, is the epitome of healthy dips.
You can freeze tzatziki sauce for up to two months, but you should be aware that after thawing the texture will be different from the texture of fresh tzatziki sauce. A better option may be the refrigerator– in the fridge, tzatziki sauce keeps for about three days.
Although tzatziki sauce is traditionally served with Greek foods like gyros and spanakopita, I find it pairs well with many of my favorite sous vide steak meals like this sous vide filet mignon and sous vide lamb burgers. Whatever protein, vegetables, grilled bread or pita bread dishes you serve it with, I promise, it’ll be delicious!
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Meat thermometer recommendations
Every home chef needs a reliable meat thermometer to cook food perfectly.
On Sip Bite Go, you’ll often see me using:
- Meater thermometer – a fancy wireless thermometer that connects to a phone app – gifted to me from a Traeger partnership.
- ThermoPro digital thermometer – which has a wire that connects the thermometer to a display box outside the oven/grill.
It’s like being psychic! The great thing about either of the thermometers above is that I don’t have to take the food out of the oven to know the temperature.
How to use ‘em… What I do is stick the digital thermometer in steak, pork, chicken, whatever… Then put the food in the oven, on the smoker, or grill.
While the meat cooks, it reads the temperature so I know exactly what temp meat is as it’s cooking. Without having to take it out and check. It’s really difficult to overcook food when you know exactly what temp it is inside!
Are you a foodie, too?
Hey home chefs, I hope you love this tzatziki sauce as much as I do. For a while, Trader Joe’s tzatziki sauce was always on my Trader Joe’s shopping list, so I thought I’d make an at home version to enjoy it more often.
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Tzatziki Sauce Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tbsp garlic minced
- 32 oz Greek yogurt plain
- 1 medium cucumber (English cucumber preferred) seeds removed, diced into ½"
- ½ lemon juiced
- 1 tbsp dill, fresh, chopped
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp pepper
Instructions
- Heat a small or medium pan on the stove to medium heat. Add olive oil and garlic and sauté for a couple minutes, stirring occasionally until garlic becomes translucent. Pull from heat before garlic browns and set aside to cool for a couple minutes.
- To a large bowl, add Greek yogurt and diced cucumber. Stir to combine.
- Add lemon juice, garlic olive oil, fresh dill, salt and pepper. Mix together.
- Taste and season with additional salt or pepper if desired and refrigerate until it’s time to serve it, for up to 3 days.
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