Tzatziki dip is a creamy cucumber dip that's made with greek yogurt, garlic, lemon juice and dill. It's cool, tangy and delicious. Tzatziki dip is perfect paired with pita bread, pita chips and vegetables or used as a sauce for grilled meats, gyros and salads.
Is it a dip or a sauce? The best thing about creamy cucumber tzatziki is that it can be either! Chill it and use it as an appetizer dip paired with toasted pita triangles, pita chips or cut veggies. Or use it right away as a sauce for grilled meats and gyro sandwiches or try something new like a gyro salad.
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Ingredients
- English cucumber
- Greek yogurt
- Dill
- Garlic
- Lemon juice
- Olive oil
- Salt
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for straining the cucumber
Cucumbers are mostly water. So we grate and drain the cucumber juice so that the tzatziki dip isn't too watery.
Step 1: Grate the cucumber with a large hole grater. Place the grated cucumber in a bowl or stainer lined with cheesecloth or a thin tea towel. (You can also use sturdy paper towels.)
Step 2: Cinch up the tea towel around the cucumber and squeeze until all the juice has drained. Then, start to twist the cinched top of the tea towel so that it puts pressure on the cucumber and drains out even more juice. Keep twisting all the juice drains out.
Substitutions
- Gluten free - Tzatziki dip is naturally gluten free. Serve it with gluten free pita chips, gluten free pita bread or sliced vegetables.
- Vegan - for a vegan version, use your favorite thick vegan yogurt. If you use a thin vegan yogurt, the dip will also be thinner.
- Cucumbers - English cucumbers are the best to use as they have less water than the typical American cucumber. If you can't find an English cucumber or they're too expensive, look for Persian cucumbers. Otherwise, regular American cucumbers are fine. They will just need more squeezing. Not a big deal.
- Dill - If you don't like dill, you can substitute mint instead.
Storage
Store any leftover tzatziki dip in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days.
Next Level Tips
- I highly recommend using full fat, whole milk Greek yogurt as it will be the thickest, but you can use other types of Greek or even non-Greek yogurt.
- If you're using tzatziki as a sauce, you can use it right away. To use it as a dip, it's best to let it chill, even overnight, in the refrigerator. That also gives it time for the flavors to meld and it will taste even better!
- You can also save the strained cucumber juice. Just mix it with water for cucumber water, use it as a cocktail mixer or even drink it straight!
- Tzatziki is a great dip, but it can also be used as a sauce for gyro sandwiches and gyro salads.
FAQ
English cucumbers are the best to use as they have less water than the typical American cucumber and are usually readily available. If you can't find English cucumber or they're too expensive though, look for Persian cucumbers. Otherwise, regular American cucumbers are fine. They will just need more squeezing. Not a big deal.
No, but you certainly can if you want to. Otherwise, there is no need to take those extra steps and waste those parts of the cucumber.
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with tzatziki dip:
Easy Tzatziki Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups cucumber (about one medium to large) grated
- 1 cup full fat Greek yogurt
- 2 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil plus 1 teaspoon for optional drizzling
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon dill minced and packed
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Grate the cucumbers (no need to peel or de-seed) with a large hole grater and drain the juice. To drain the juice, line a bowl or strainer with a cheese cloth or tea towel. (Sturdy paper towels can also be used). Add the grated cucumber and cinch up the tea towel. Squeeze out all juice. Then twist the top of the cinched tea towel to put pressure on the grated cucumber. Continue to twist until all the liquid has drained.
- Add all the ingredients to a small bowl and stir well.
- For a sauce, use right away. For a thicker dip, chill a minimum of 30 minutes up to overnight.
- For tzatziki dip, drizzle an extra 1 teaspoon of olive oil on top before serving. Serve with pita bread, pita chips or cut veggies. Enjoy!
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