Tzatziki sauce with pickles. Dzatziki sauce - a visiting card of the Greek cookbook

24.08.2021

To make tzatziki sauce at home, take fresh crispy cucumber with firm flesh... Rinse well under running water and pat dry with a paper towel. If the skin is tight, remove it with a vegetable peeler. Young cucumbers can be used with the skins. Grind on a medium grater. Season with a little salt and let sit for 8-10 minutes for the cucumber to release the juice.

Throw the grated cucumber in a colander and let the resulting liquid drain so that the finished sauce is not runny or squeeze the juice with your hands.

To squeezed cucumber add greek yogurt... You can buy it at any supermarket. It differs from Russian yogurt in its velvety structure and dense texture. In the process of preparation, it is filtered from whey, achieving the desired density. Greek yogurt is very healthy and is obtained by bacterial fermentation of natural goat or sheep milk. It contains a lot of vitamins, microelements, high protein and calcium content.

If you don't have Greek yogurt in your fridge, but you have unflavored classic yogurt, pour it into a colander with cheesecloth. Fold the cheesecloth in 3-4 layers and leave for a couple of hours so that all the serum is gone.

Stir yogurt with cucumber.

Thick Greek yogurt can be replaced with village fatty sour cream, Armenian yogurt, ayran, yogurt or kefir.

Garlic peel off the husk. Grate on a fine grater or pass through a garlic press. Adjust the amount of garlic to your taste. Add to yoghurt mass. Pour in lemon juice... Stir.

Rinse and dry the dill sprigs... Do not use dense stems. Chop finely and add to the rest of the ingredients.

Pour in the olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Stir well and taste. If necessary, correct at your discretion.

Dzatziki is ready. Place in a container with a lid and send it to the refrigerator for a couple of hours... Then, serve with cold cuts, grilled meats, fish, French fries, potato pancakes, fried courgettes, eggplant or a slice of bread. Greeks often eat a glass of cool ouzo, raki, tsipouro with sauce. The way of serving can be different - in bowls, gravy boat, or put on unrolled lettuce leaves, Chinese cabbage.

It is a pity, but the sauce is not prepared for a long time, it is not canned. In the refrigerator, the treat can be stored in a sealed container for no more than 2-3 days.

On a note

There are a lot of recipes for Greek tzatziki sauce made from yogurt, and they all have a right to exist. For example, instead of dill, some housewives put parsley, basil, mint, or both at the same time. Lemon juice is often replaced with wine vinegar, and in addition to cucumbers, olives, bell peppers, white cheese (feta cheese) made from goat or sheep milk are added.
There is a modification of tzatziki, where pickles are used instead of fresh ones.
Compared to mayonnaise, tzatziki are classified as low-calorie sauces.

23.04.2019

If you haven’t heard about tzatziki sauce or in another way, tzatziki, interesting information awaits you on the site. This is a very tasty and healthy Greek yoghurt-cucumber seasoning. It's time to find out what is in tzatziki so you can cook it at home!

Dzatziki (tzatziki, tzatziki, dzaziki) is a refreshing chilled sauce made with Greek yogurt, cucumber, olive oil, fresh herbs (usually mint or dill), garlic, lemon juice, and salt. It is versatile and goes well with many dishes: vegetable, meat, fish.

The word tzatziki literally means "herb salad with yogurt."

Traditionally in Mediterranean cuisine, tzatziki is served as a sauce for grilled meat, as well as for dipping pita bread. It can also be used as a salad dressing.

What does tzatziki sauce look like - photo

Composition

A basic tzatziki sauce recipe includes:

Plain Greek Yogurt- more creamy and thicker than normal, because all of the liquid serum has been removed from it. It is high in protein and low in sugar, making it an ideal dietary option.
Cucumber is high in fiber, healthy carbs, and helps maintain energy throughout the day.
Dill - Helpful for digestion, depression, and menstrual cramps.
Peppermint - increases the secretion of bile and stimulates its outflow, which helps to speed up and facilitate digestion.
Garlic - strengthens the immune system and also protects against common brain diseases.
Lemon juice - a lot of vitamin C, good for digestion and weight loss.
Salt - Contains minerals important to our body, including potassium, iron, zinc and calcium, which help maintain fluid balance and muscle function.
Pepper - Stimulates gastric acid production and helps with protein digestion.
Olive Oil - Contains antioxidants that support energy and performance.

What smells and what taste

Yogurt gives the tzatziki sauce a pleasant creamy aroma, while cucumber, lemon and fresh dill add a cool and refreshing flavor.

How to choose and where to buy

Buying tzatziki in supermarkets and grocery stores is no longer a problem, but finding natural ingredients isn't easy. When buying, read the label carefully. Most tzatziki sauces will have mayonnaise instead of yogurt.

The composition also contains many additional ingredients that are not found in this recipe: vegetable oils, gum, starch, flavor enhancers and preservatives.

More often than not, store-bought sauce looks more like lemon mayonnaise than tzatziki.

Classic Tzatziki Sauce Recipe

This yogurt and cucumber blend is fresh, savory and easy to prepare.

Cooking time: 15 minutes
Yield: 1 glass

Ingredients:

½ a medium sized cucumber;
0.5 cups plain plain yogurt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh mint and dill
1.5 teaspoon lemon juice
1 medium garlic clove, minced
¼ h. L. fine sea salt.

How to cook:

Peel the cucumber, cut it in half and remove the seeds with a spoon, then grate on a fine grater.
Place the grated mixture in a sieve suspended over a bowl, sprinkle with ½ tsp. salt and stir. Place a saucer on top and drain the liquid from the cucumber.
Transfer the squeezed cucumber to a bowl.
Add yogurt, olive oil, herbs, lemon juice, garlic and salt and stir.
Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving and sprinkle with dill or garnish with a sprig of mint.

If you don't have Greek yogurt, buy any other plain and strain it overnight through a couple of layers of cheesecloth.
You can take plain yogurt and mix it with 20% sour cream in a 1: 1 ratio.
Use the cucumbers without seeds and peel them before chopping.
It is very important to squeeze the moisture out of the grated cucumber well so that excess liquid does not affect the taste and texture.
Better to take fresh dill and mint, rather than dried.
Add paprika or sumac to the sauce to add a spice to tzatziki.
The garlic should be minced very well.
The flavors will blend better if the prepared sauce is left in the refrigerator in a sealed container overnight in a sealed container.

How and how much to store

Freshly made tzatziki sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

The store (with preservatives in the composition) has a much longer shelf life, check the dates on the package.

The nutritional value

For 1 tablespoon of classic dzatziki:

17 calories;
1 g protein;
1 g of carbohydrates;
1 g fat;
1 mg cholesterol;
182 mg sodium.

What is eaten with and what is dzatziki served with

Tzatziki sauce goes well with all types of meat - chicken, beef, pork and lamb. Especially good with grilled meats!
It also tastes great with fish.
Tzatziki sauce goes well with baked potatoes instead of sour cream.
Falafel (deep-fried balls of crushed chickpea) and tzatziki taste like they were made for each other.
The sauce will replace mayonnaise in sandwiches and hamburgers.
Unusual use of tzatziki: add it to crushed potatoes for a unique taste and aroma of mashed potatoes.
The sauce can be used as a delicious salad dressing.
It is often served with vegetables such as carrots, celery, broccoli, cauliflower and cucumbers.
The traditional way to use tzatziki sauce is to dip pita bread into it.
It is often served with chips, like salsa.

Dzatziki sauce is one of the most famous traditional dishes of Greek cuisine. It has several more names, among which there are tzatziki and tzatziki. The classic cold dressing is based on thick Greek yoghurt made from goat's or sheep's milk. There are many other varieties of tzatziki, which differ slightly from the original in terms of the composition of the ingredients, but are in no way inferior in taste.

The calorie content of the product is very low - 85 kcal per 100 g, so it can be consumed without fear for the figure. Let's consider several options on how to prepare tzatziki sauce step by step so that even avid gourmets will like it.

Unsweetened, curd "Activia" serves as an excellent substitute for sour cream;
You can freeze the cucumber juice. It is perfect for facial skin care.

The original recipe for dzatziki sauce

In addition to the main ingredients, the classic dzatziki sauce may contain greens, olives, black pepper. It has a very pleasant and fresh taste, perfect for spicy food. It is also served with fish, meat and even bread and vegetables.

Products composition:

A clove of garlic;
140 g Greek yogurt
A small spoonful of olive oil;
One small cucumber;
A pinch of salt.

Cooking scheme at home:

Peel the cucumber, rub it on a medium grater;
Now you need to wring it out. To do this, use a sieve and a spoon, with which we press on the cucumber. Thus, the juice will be squeezed out;
Add green fruit, stir, remove for a minute. The salt will draw out any remaining liquid;
Mix the squeezed shabby cucumber with three large tablespoons of a yoghurt product, which should be slightly larger in proportion than a green vegetable, mix;
Add to this mass the garlic, passed through a press, and olive oil. Stir, taste, add salt to taste.

Transfer to a gravy boat and serve.

The second variation of the classic Greek dressing recipe

You will need:

2 garlic prongs;
0.5 kg of natural yogurt;
10 g of dried parsley and dill;
60 g sour cream;
15 ml lemon juice;
Large fresh cucumber;
Sea salt tastes good.

Cooking instructions:

The yoghurt product must be drained from unnecessary liquid to obtain a dense and less watery state. We take gauze folded in several layers, or a cotton cloth, line a sieve;
Next, we lower the sieve into a container of boiling water for half a minute;
We take out, put in it a fermented milk product, leave it at the temperature of the living room above the plate for 12 hours. It will turn out almost;
Let's prepare a green vegetable as well. If it has a tough peel, we get rid of it, cut the fruit in half, clean the middle with seeds. Rub the rest of the pulp with medium or large holes, add salt, stir, leave for three hours;
Squeeze the cucumber shavings from the juice, add to thick yogurt, put sour cream, garlic cloves squeezed through a press, dried herbs, add lemon juice;
Add some salt to the dressing at your discretion, stir well, let it brew for two hours.

Some variations of the sauce contain extra virgin olive oil and a lot of garlic. You can experiment with cooking yourself, add different ingredients, change the proportions.

Recipe for tzatziki with pickles and sour cream

List of components:

2 garlic cloves;
20 g of parsley and dill;
260 g sour cream (fat content - 15%);
200 g pickled or pickled cucumbers;
Freshly ground black pepper, sea salt - to the taste.

In the classic recipe, the yogurt should drain, and the fresh cucumbers should give the juice. Nowadays, few people have extra time, so the Greek tzatziki sauce at home can be made from sour cream, and fresh vegetables can be replaced with salted ones.

This method will be in great demand in the autumn-winter time, when fresh fruits do not grow and are expensive in retail outlets. The greens will add freshness to the dressing.

Manufacturing process:

Grate pickled cucumbers, squeeze excess moisture from them and add to sour cream;
Pass the garlic cloves through a press, finely chop the greens, add them to the sour cream mass, add salt, pepper, mix thoroughly;
We put the mixture in the refrigerator for several hours so that all the ingredients are saturated with each other.

Option for tzatziki without yogurt

The fragrant seasoning is prepared on the basis of sour cream and cottage cheese. Served with bread and vegetables as an independent dish, or as an appetizer for the first and second courses.

Required Ingredients:

2 fresh cucumbers;
Dill greens;
200 ml sour cream;
3 garlic cloves;
100 g of cottage cheese;
Salt, ground black pepper;
A teaspoon of lemon juice;
A tablespoon of olive oil.

Stages of work:

It is advisable to take homemade cottage cheese and sour cream, or store products with a high percentage of fat content. To avoid excess liquid in the dressing, we use cheesecloth folded in several layers, and with its help we thoroughly squeeze dairy products;
Next, mix them thoroughly until smooth, but do not beat;
Remove the seeds from the peeled vegetable, rub on a fine grater. Slightly strain the mass so that the tzatziki is not watery, but thick;
We rub the garlic on a grater with small holes, chop the washed greens, combine all the components in one bowl;
Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, olive oil, taste spices, mix.

We put it in the refrigerator for at least two hours.

Tzatziki with feta cheese and pepper

Components:

Cheese - 100 g;
Garlic - 3 wedges;
Sour cream or yogurt - 200 g;
Pepper paprika - 1/2 part;
Olive oil, salt;
Fresh cucumber.

Homemade dzatziki sauce recipe:

Grate the peeled cucumber on a fine grater, squeeze. You can take yogurt and sour cream in equal proportions, add grated vegetable;
Cut the pepper into a small cube, chop the garlic teeth in a garlic press, grate cheese on a fine grater and add all this to the milk and vegetable mixture;
Finely chop the greens, put in the total mass, add salt, pepper, add a teaspoon of olive oil, stir thoroughly.

You can spread this delicious seasoning on rye bread, they will turn out appetizing and tender.

Sour milk recipe with vinegar

Required products:

Fresh cucumber;
Sour milk (10% fat) - 0.5l;
Salt, vinegar - to taste;
Young garlic - 7-8 cloves;
Olive oil - large spoon;
Black olives.

Cooking scheme with photo:

Grate the garlic teeth on a fine grater, mix with olive oil;
Combine this mass with sour milk, put it in the refrigerator for several hours to soak the milk;
Before serving, grate a green vegetable with small holes and squeeze;
Mix it with cold milk and with the rest of the ingredients;
Decorate the top with olives.

What do tzatziki eat with

No holiday in Greece is complete without tzatziki sauce, which is rightfully considered universal and is eaten with a wide variety of products.

It mainly serves as a dip sauce, in which pieces of fish (both sea and river), various vegetables, meat (especially grilled), seafood and just slices of baguette, homemade bread are dipped. When cooking and tzatziki is indispensable. Perfectly, this dressing will go well with fried or boiled potatoes, will bring its original notes to any dish that will acquire a completely different taste.

Video: Homemade dzatziki sauce recipe

Trips to Greece are remembered not only for the beautiful nature, entertainment programs and comfortable rest. A separate conversation about travel impressions is acquaintance with local cuisine. Many Greek dishes have become world hits, but you can only feel the sophistication of their taste in local taverns. For example, Tzatziki (tzatziki) sauce: at first glance, the simplest recipe, but try to prepare it in such a way as to get the real Greek taste. If you succeed, then only after reading our article. So, the topic of today's material is the Greek appetizer Tsatsiki (Dzadziki) and popular recipes for its preparation.

What is dzatziki: a little history

The Greek word τζατζίκι (pronounced tzatziki or tzatziki) refers to a cold sauce made from yogurt, cucumbers, garlic and herbs. It is usually served with meat and seafood, but it is also used as an independent snack.

The history of the appearance of this dish is confusing. According to legend, the Greek Mittiko served as a prototype for satsiki, which was served at ancient feasts. The recipe for the two dishes is almost identical, but the continuity has not been officially confirmed. Later, when the Byzantines came to the Greek lands, they changed the recipe for the classic Mittico. Olives, eggs, cheese and wine were added to the sauce, and the finished dish was named Tzakisto.

In turn, the Byzantine recipe came to the Turks, who also altered it in their own way. The appetizer turned into a sour milk soup with herbs, which was named Cacik. And, finally, the Turkish recipe was borrowed and altered by the Greeks who fell under the Ottoman dictate. Sour-milk Ayran was replaced by traditional Greek yoghurt, and the cold Jadzhik soup was transformed into a Greek sauce called Dzadziki.

Thus, in Ancient Hellas, a classic Greek sauce was first invented, and in Modern Greece, the seasoning was first sonorously named Dzadziki. Today this dish is served as a dip for meat, fish and vegetables, and is also used as an independent light snack with bread. Tzatziki even dress up various salads, and according to the assurances of gourmets, they turn out much tastier with Greek dressing than with mayonnaise or sour cream.

In addition, Dzatziki sauce also belongs to a healthy diet. After all, the dish is prepared from natural products that contain many useful substances. What is only one Greek yogurt: there is calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and a whole galaxy of various minerals and vitamins. Delicious, healthy and easy to prepare - what could be better for a nutritious lunch or dinner?

As you know, all ingenious is simple. So you don't have to reinvent the wheel to cook Dzadziki at home: the food is prepared quickly, simply and easily.

The only thing worth noting is the quality of the original products. If you want to get a real Greek sauce, then prepare Satsiki exclusively from natural products. It doesn't matter if you use the Sadzyki recipe of the ancient Hellenes, or want to try modern variations of the dish. Only from high-quality products, the chefs get the rich, spicy taste of the famous Greek Dzadziki.

Ingredients for the sauce

For classic Tzatziki, just four ingredients are enough. This number includes:

fresh cucumber(1 PC);
Greek yogurt (300-500 gr);
olive oil (50-100 ml);
garlic (3-4 cloves).

Particular attention should be paid to the selection of yoghurt. Of course, it is better to purchase a real Greek product made from sheep and goat milk. It has a denser consistency and a special cooking recipe, thanks to which the finished product is rich in nutrients and minerals. But if you can't find the original Greek yoghurt, you can replace it with regular natural yoghurt, such as Activia. Of course, in the end it will turn out not like in Greece, but also very tasty.

Each nation has its own traditional dish and sauce. It is the national dishes that take pride of place in the culinary books of various cuisines of the world. In Greece, “Tsatziki” sauce is considered a traditional dish, including a snack bar, the recipes of which we will consider in today's article.

Tzatziki sauce: classic recipe

According to historical data, "Tsatziki" sauce appeared in Hellas. To date, it has undergone many modifications, this also affected its taste.

On a note! In some sources, the described sauce is called "Dzadziki". In our country, Greek sauce can be compared to okroshka cooked on a kefir basis.

As you already understood, today we will learn how to make a real Greek sauce "Tsatziki". What do they eat it with? Often, the described food is served as an independent snack along with pita. Quite often the sauce "Tsatziki" is accompanied by fish, meat and vegetable dishes.

The classic sauce is prepared on the basis of natural yoghurt without any additives or dyes. Fresh cucumbers, garlic cloves, refined olive oil and allspice are added to the appetizer. But at the present time there are many other options for the preparation of the Greek "Tsatziki".

Composition:

0.25 l of Greek yogurt;
salt and allspice to taste;
1 fresh cucumber;
3 drops of balsamic vinegar;
1 tbsp. l. refined olive oil;
1 garlic clove.

Preparation:

Recipe originally from Crete

You have learned how to prepare the classic Greek Tzatziki sauce. The recipe we'll look at now is popular in Crete. Some housewives replace fresh cucumbers with pickled ones. In this case, the sauce acquires a completely new and unusual taste.

On a note! Before serving, culinary experts recommend insisting the sauce for one hour in the refrigerator.

Composition:

0.5 l of Greek yogurt;
3 pcs. garlic cloves;
salt to taste;
1 fresh cucumber;
a bunch of dill;
2 tbsp. l. refined olive oil;
1 lemon.

Preparation:

On a note! A little pickled cucumbers, dried herbs and spices can be added to the Tsatziki sauce. It is important to feel their balance so as not to spoil the taste of the prepared food.

We acquire new skills

As you can see, you will not need any outlandish products to make a true Tzatziki sauce. Here is just one task - where to find natural Greek yogurt, because it is unlikely to be sold in a supermarket or in the grocery market?

Yoghurt without additives, dyes and flavoring agents, which we take as a basis for preparing various sauces, will not work for "Tsatziki". And if you want to make a great sauce, learn how to make Greek yogurt at home.

Composition:

1 liter of pasteurized cow's milk;
2 tbsp. l. sour cream with an average percentage of fat.

Preparation:

Pour pasteurized cow's milk into a thick-walled saucepan.
We put on a moderate heat and bring to a boil. At the same time, the milk must be constantly stirred so that it does not run away and does not burn.
As soon as the milk boils, set it aside from the heat.
Cool to a temperature of 43 °.
To determine the desired temperature, you cannot do without a thermometer.
Add sour cream with an average percentage of fat to the boiled milk.
Mix well and leave in a warm secluded place for 8 hours. During this time, the fermentation process will take place.
After the specified time, we move the milk mixture for several hours in the refrigerator.
Now take a deep dish and cover it with a gauze cut folded in two or three layers.
We spread the mass, tie the gauze.
We hang the prepared mass vertically above the sink.
Leave it on for a few hours to get rid of excess moisture.
The yogurt is ready, it should acquire a thick consistency.
Greek yogurt can be used to make Tzatziki sauce.

This sauce is prepared in a matter of minutes. You can make it for a variety of everyday menus. Serve Tzatziki sauce with fish fillets or meat platter. To taste, it is in perfect harmony with baked or fresh vegetables. You can also make unleavened cakes. Bon Appetit!