My second novel, The Second Chance Hotel, features lots of yummy Greek food. I created five recipe cards to go along with the book. Here’s one of them – a delicious dipping sauce or marinade called tzatziki, which is good on pretty much anything you can think to put it on.
Greek food is typically simple, flavorful, and highly nutritious. It relies on staples like wheat, olive oil, and wine and many recipes feature vegetables prominently. Most Greek food falls under the overall Mediterranean food umbrella and variations on dishes are found throughout Turkey, Lebanon, and other Med-adjacent countries. But there are a few special dishes that are specific to Greek islands and I’ll share a few of those with you, too.
Tzatziki
Tzatziki is a common cucumber yogurt sauce and very easy to make. Avoid using lowfat yogurt in this dish–full milk is best. This dip can be high in garlic, so adjust the amount you put in if you don’t want to go around breathing dragon breath on everyone.
Ingredients
- Plain whole milk Greek yogurt
- 1 long English hothouse cucumber Extra virgin olive oil
- 2-4 cloves of garlic
- Juice from half a lemon
- Fresh dill
- Salt and pepper
Instructions
- Peel and slice the cucumber lengthwise. If it has seeds, scrape them out from the center with a spoon. Grate or finely chop the cucumber (grating is better). Layer several paper towels together, or use a dish towel, to squeeze the cucumber to remove as much of the water as possible. You may need to do this a few times. Drier is best.
- Finely chop 2-4 cloves of garlic (or less if you don’t want stink breath). Chop the dill.
- In a bowl, combine the cucumber, garlic, and dill. Add the yogurt, lemon, and 2 tablespoons olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and stir to combine.