This fresh tzatziki recipe will liven up any summer meal! Rich, creamy & full of fresh herbs, it's delicious on pita, grilled veggies, sandwiches, and more!
Break out the pita, it’s tzatziki time! On Monday, I posted my favorite Greek salad, and now I’m following it up with another Greek essential: this cool, refreshing cucumber tzatziki sauce.
One of the best parts of summer is that dinner suddenly becomes easy. My favorite ingredients – fresh fruits and veggies – are at their peak. Tomatoes are sweeter and juicier, berries are plumper, peppers are snappier, and our backyard herbs are at their most potent.Â
Sometimes, when I want to put these peak-season veggies front and center, making dinner just means prepping a sauce to dress them up. This tzatziki sauce is a great recipe for showcasing summer produce – it’s rich & creamy, bright, and packed with fresh herbs. So mix it up, serve it with a big platter of pita and your favorite summer veggies, and call it dinner!
What is tzatziki?
Tzatziki is a salted yogurt and cucumber dip that’s made of strained yogurt, shredded cucumber, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and herbs. Authentic Greek tzatziki is most often made with sheep or goat yogurt, but my tzatziki recipe calls for regular full-fat Greek yogurt. It’s easier to find in the store, and it still has the creamy, thick consistency you want in tzatziki sauce. Along with the other traditional ingredients, I stir in fresh mint and dill for a bright, summery finish.
How to Make Tzatziki Sauce
I first started eating tzatziki sauce at Greek restaurants, but I’ve since learned that it’s incredibly easy to whip up at home. Now, along with pesto, it’s one of my must-make summer sauces. Here’s how you do it:
- Start by grating the cucumber. I use the largest holes on a box grater to give my final sauce texture and plenty of green flecks.Â
- Next, squeeze the water out of the grated cucumber. This step is essential for making a creamy tzatziki – if you skip it, the water from the cucumber will cause your sauce to separate. Squeeze the cucumber directly over the sink, or press it lightly between kitchen or paper towels.
- Then, stir everything together! Mix the squeezed cucumber with the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, salt, and herbs, and chill until you’re ready to use.
That’s it!
How to Use Tzatziki Sauce
Once you’ve mixed your tzatziki sauce together, there are endless ways to use it. Most simply, I enjoy it as a snack with fresh veggies and pita or crackers. Try it this way, or add it to your next crudité platter. Your guests will love it!
You could also slather it onto sandwiches like these pita wraps, serve it alongside a Mediterranean salad like tabbouleh or couscous salad, or top it onto falafel, falafel burgers, or a flatbread.Â
And last but not least, serve it with pita and lots of grilled veggies for a delicious, easy summer dinner.
If you love this tzatziki recipe…
Try my hummus, tahini sauce, chipotle sauce, cilantro lime dressing, pico de gallo, tomatillo salsa, or guacamole next!
For more appetizer ideas, check out this post with 50 easy appetizers.
Tzatziki Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup finely grated cucumber
- 1 cup thick whole milk Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- ½ tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint, optional
Instructions
- Place the cucumber on a towel and gently squeeze out a bit of the excess water.
- In a medium bowl, combine the cucumber, yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, dill, and mint, if using. Chill until ready to use.
Delicious recipe! I have made it several times now, and it is always a hit. It comes together in minutes. Highly recommend!
I’m so glad you’ve loved it!
This was perfect for my lamb burgers
Do you remove the seeds from the cucumber?
Hi Kathleen, if I’m using an English cucumber or Persian cucumbers it’s not necessary. If your cucumber has really large seeds, you could.
Love this Tzatziki recipe, have used it a few times now to pair with lamb kofta wraps, it’s a perfect match, thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad it’s become a staple!
Soooo good!!! And such a quick, easy recipe to make.
I can’t eat dairy so I subbed with oat yogurt. It’s a bit thinner and doesn’t have the same tang that full fat greek yogurt has, so I added a bit more salt and lemon juice to make up for it. It still turned out really good!!!
I can only imagine how delicious it would be with proper greek yogurt.
I’m gonna be making this all the time! Yum!!
I’m so glad you loved it! What brand of oat yogurt do you like?
This was delicious and such a wonderful topping for tabouleh and falafel pockets! Will make it again for sure!
I’m so glad you loved it!
great! thanks for posting! I love tzatziki sauce! I look forward to making some!
Can you make this with dry dill? If so, how much would you use? Or could you leave the dill out? Would it change the flavor much? Thank you!
Hi Georgia, I would use between 1/2 and 1 teaspoon of dried dill – I think it would be just fine, I wouldn’t skip the dill altogether.
I’ve been making this as both a soup and dip for years and did not like the taste with dried dill. In fact, a chef friend of mine noticed it right off the bat so now I always use fresh.
Can I make ahead of time? How long will it keep in the refrigerator. Thanks
Yep! It’ll keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
You say in the text you use the biggest holes on your grater for the cucumber, yet the recipe says finely grated. Which is it?
Hi Pat, the big holes on the box grater.
Do you use English cucumber or just regular one? Also do you peel it, before grating?
I use an English or Persian (mini) cucumbers – I don’t peel them since their skins are pretty tender but you could if you wanted.
Great recipe. I ended up tweaking it with a little honey to taste c
This is my go to tzatziki. I’m heavy on the dill, garlic and I add a dash of Tabasco.
Can you make this using non-fat Greek yogurt or does it have to be full fat?
Hi Jamie, full fat tastes best here!
I use non fat Greek. All the time it does taste better with good full fat yogurt. Sometimes I sun in a little sour cream to make up for the fat difference. But even non fat beats the heck out of store bought hands down
Great simple recipe. We mix the remaining cucumber water into sprite to have with our Greek inspired meals. Super refreshing.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Hello!
Thank you for this recipe. I use it ALL of the time for my meditteranean dishes. Myself and everyone I make it for just love it. Thanks again.
I’m so glad you loved it!
Omg!!!! Soooo GOOD!!! Will make for years to come. Thank You for sharing!
Make it! Just make it.
This was amazing!!! Super simple and easy to
Throw together. I made it for my meal prep this week to go on a chicken and feta pita. I’ll definitely be using this recipe again.
When you say add the cucumber do you mean the cumber juice I squeezed out? Let me know, thanks! Can’t wait to try it
Hi Katy, no, add the grated cucumber solids, leaving most of the juice behind.