Tzatziki Sauce Recipe a Keto Dressing You Can Make in the Blender

Tzatziki sauce is a refreshing cold sauce made from yogurt and cucumbers. This tzatziki sauce recipe lets you toss everything in the blender, for a creamy low carb dressing perfect for drizzling on grilled meat and salads, or dipping fresh veggies.

TZATZIKI PRONUNCIATION

Tzatziki is probably one of the most mispronounced food words in the US.

According to my favorite Greek restaurant, which is run by a family that is actually from Greece, the correct way to pronounce tzatziki is “tsah-tsee-key”.

There is a combination “ts” sound that is not found in English, which can make it difficult to say. If that’s a struggle, just say “saht-see-key”, people will know what you mean.

TZATZIKI SAUCE

Tzatziki is a Greek word, that means “herb salad with yogurt”. It’s a creamy refreshing dip that’s been around for hundreds of years. In Greece, or a Greek restaurant, it is typically served with grilled meat. But tzatziki can also be a part of the appetizers served with pita bread and sliced vegetables at the beginning of a meal.

There are many cultural variations of sauces similar to tzatziki sauce. In Turkey it is called cacik (pronounce jah-JEEK) and can be diluted with water and served it as a cold soup.

India has a condiment called raita that is very similar to tzatziki, and used to cool the palate while eating spicy foods.

In Poland, there is a cucumber dish called mizeria, made with grated or thinly slice cucumbers and sour cream.

Here, we stick to the traditional ingredients of a Greek tzatziki sauce, but keep it simple and family friendly for busy parents by using a blender to make our tzatziki recipe.

DO YOU HAVE TO PEEL CUCUMBER TO MAKE TZATZIKI?

While cucumbers are traditionally peeled for making tzatziki, the peel is full of fiber, and leaving it on simply adds a pale green hue to your tzatziki sauce. So no need to peel the cucumber.

HOW TO MAKE TZATZIKI SAUCE IN THE BLENDER

• Slice half an English cucumber in half lengthwise, then scoop out the seeds. They are very watery so you can discard them. Chop the cucumber and place in your blender.
• Add some finely minced garlic, fresh lemon juice, fresh dill, salt, and pepper.
• Add two cups of a really good fat free Greek yogurt (we love the Kirkland brand from Costco).
• Blend everything, starting on low speed and increasing to high speed, until the cucumber is completely blended into the yogurt.
• You can store the the sauce in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to two weeks.

This tzatziki sauce recipe makes a slightly thinner sauce, more like the consistency of Ranch dressing then say, a chip dip.

HOW TO THICKEN TZATZIKI

If you want your tzatziki sauce to be thicker, like a chip dip, there are a couple extra steps that can help you thicken it up.

• Instead of chopping, grate the cucumbers.
• Sprinkle the grated cucumber with a teaspoon of salt and let them sit in a colander for about 15 minutes.
• Put the salted cucumber into a paper towel or a thin dishcloth, wrap them up, and squeeze out as much liquid as you can.
• Then follow the steps in the recipe, but omit the salt since you’ve already salted your cucumber.

WHAT KIND OF YOGURT SHOULD I USE FOR TZATZIKI?

Make sure you are using a good, thick, Greek yogurt.

The Kirkland brand doesn’t have additives to thicken it, which I love. Read your labels and go for one that doesn’t have sugar in the ingredients.

If you only have regular yogurt, you do need to strain it to thicken it up. Using regular yogurt, you need a full fat yogurt, and you will have to strain it through some cheesecloth in the fridge for an hour or more until it is thick like Greek yogurt.

DO I HAVE TO USE THE BLENDER?

Of course not! That’s just how I make it easy to whip up a batch of tzatziki to drizzle on lamb koftas or some grilled chicken on a Greek salad.

You can also make tzatziki in the food processor, following the same steps.

If you don’t have a blender or food processor, just follow the instructions to grate the cucumber. Finely chop your dill and garlic, and mix everything together by hand.

WHAT TO EAT WITH TZATZIKI

As I mentioned earlier, tzatziki is typically served with grilled or roasted meats like these easy lamb chops. I’ll be posting the lamb koftas you see in the photos on Monday.

You can also serve it with beef kofta or pork souvlaki, drizzle it on a Greek salad pita pocket, Greek chicken skewers, or Greek gyros, or serve it alongside baba ganoush and some sliced veggies for a beautiful dipping appetizer. These Greek tuna wraps would be AMAZING filled with tzatziki.

My family loves dipping pretty much everything in tzatziki, from sugar snap peas and baby carrots, to chicken nuggets! And I use it regularly on a simple salad for lunch. It’s a great low carb keto salad dressing.

You can also add optional ingredients or toppings to you tzatziki sauce to make it your own. Maybe a drizzle of olive oil and some sliced kalamata olives, or some fresh cracked black pepper and sprinkling of lemon zest. Some people even like to add chopped mint, which is fantastic with lamb.

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KITCHEN EQUIPMENT

Here’s the blender and food processor I’ve used to make tzatziki. But you can also just use a really good knife. If you buy anything on Amazon from one of these links, we get a small commission without it costing you anything extra.

 

 

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