How to Make Tzatziki
Learn how to make tzatziki, a traditional Greek yogurt and cucumber sauce with fresh herbs. Tzatziki is a refreshing sauce or dip, and it's so easy to make!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 28, 2024
Tzatziki! Tsaht-ZEE-kee! Otherwise known as that yogurt and cucumber sauce you love at Greek restaurants but worry about mispronouncing (hear the correct pronunciation here).
Tzatziki is made simply with yogurt, drained cucumber, olive oil, fresh herbs (usually mint or dill), garlic, lemon juice and salt. It’s a refreshing chilled sauce, dip or spread.
I traveled to Greece last fall and ordered tzatziki at every restaurant. I’m serious. I enjoyed tzatziki with every single meal, even breakfast. This recipe tastes just like authentic tzatziki.
I tend to associate tzatziki with Greek food, but you’ll find it served across the Mediterranean and Middle East, sometimes under different names or in slightly different forms.
Tzatziki is often served with grilled meats and gyros, but I can’t think of a grilled or roasted vegetable it wouldn’t play nicely with. You can also serve up some tzatziki with your next appetizer spread. Let’s make some already!
Uses for Tzatziki
Grilled Vegetables
- Bell peppers
- Mushrooms
- Carrots
- Asparagus
- Green beans
- Corn on the cob
Appetizer Spreads
- Toasted pita wedges
- Crisp raw vegetables
- Olives
- Cheese and crackers
- Hummus
- Zhoug or Shatta (Middle-Eastern hot sauces)
Falafel, Sandwiches and Salads
- Falafel
- Pita sandwiches (you could use it instead of the avocado in that recipe)
- Tabbouleh
- Lentil salad
- Chickpea salad
My Tzatziki Technique
Fortunately, tzatziki is super easy to whip together. The only trick is to properly drain the cucumber before mixing it into the yogurt. Otherwise, cucumber waters down the sauce too much. Salting the grated cucumber and letting the excess moisture drip out takes a while.
The easiest and most efficient way to get rid of the excess moisture is to lightly squeeze the grated cucumber over the sink. The only wait required in my recipe is to let the tzatziki rest for five minutes after you mix it all together, to let the flavors meld. At that point, you can serve it right away or chill it for later.
Tzatziki Nutrition & Yogurt Notes
Nutritionally speaking, tzatziki is a creamy but light sauce. You can dollop it generously on your food without adding a lot of calories (unlike, say, mayonnaise or ranch dressing). It’s made mostly with Greek yogurt and cucumber, after all.
I haven’t found a noticeable difference in texture whether I use whole-milk yogurt, low-fat or non-fat, so any of those will work. Traditional Greek tzatziki is made with strained goat or sheep’s yogurt, but it’s hard to find those here. The Greek yogurt sold here in the U.S. is strained yogurt (that’s why it’s thicker and higher in protein than regular yogurt), so I use that.
As always, please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments! I’m excited to hear how it turns out for you and how you serve it.
Watch How to Make Tzatziki Sauce
Best Tzatziki
Learn how to make tzatziki, a traditional Greek yogurt and cucumber sauce with fresh herbs. Tzatziki is a refreshing sauce or dip, and it’s so easy to make! This basic recipe yields about 2 ½ cups; multiply if necessary.
Ingredients
- 2 cups grated cucumber (from about 1 medium 10-ounce cucumber, no need to peel or seed the cucumber first, grate on the large holes of your box grater)
- 1 ½ cups plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint and/or dill
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 medium clove garlic, pressed or minced
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Working with one big handful at a time, lightly squeeze the grated cucumber between your palms over the sink to remove excess moisture. Transfer the squeezed cucumber to a serving bowl, and repeat with the remaining cucumber.
- Add the yogurt, olive oil, herbs, lemon juice, garlic, and salt to the bowl, and stir to blend. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Taste and add additional chopped fresh herbs, lemon juice, and/or salt, if necessary (I thought this batch was just right as-is).
- Serve tzatziki immediately or chill for later. Leftover tzatziki keeps well, chilled, for about 4 days.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my cookbook, Love Real Food.
Make it dairy free/vegan: Substitute an equal amount of cashew sour cream for the yogurt, and thin the tzatziki with a small splash of water if necessary.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Holy cow, the timing…! Thanks for this, Kate. I have been teaching myself “Falafel” :-) for the last 3 weeks, trying various cook’s recipes to find my favorite. My neighbors are falafelled-out…lol. But I am not overly thrilled with all the lemon-tahini sauces suggested. I like them, but I was just thinking yesterday that something lighter and cooler like tzatziki might be the ticket. And then your email arrives!! Thanks again!
How perfect! Hope you’re enjoying the tzatziki on your falafel.
Change of plans…I had an impromptu “spring roll picnic” for a few neighbors the other night, I made your mango-jalapeno-red bell rolls w/avo-cilantro sauce, a tofu-veg roll with Alexandra Stafford’s Thai peanut sauce, and I made one up which I called “greek”..feta, mint, sliver of tomato, sliver of cuke, a little romaine…and Kate’s TZATZIKI! People asked to take the tzatziki home :-).
Curious as to the winner on your favorite falafel? I love Kate’s version
I have a Greek yogurt sitting in my fridge for just this purpose, waiting until my zucchini plants produce a zucchini straight enough for oven-baked zucchini sticks.
I always make more sauce than I need, so tzatziki on a beany salad, that’s such a great idea. Thanks, Kate!
I love a good tzatziki sauce. I make spicy lamb meatballs and spicy lemon chicken tacos {because I’m Californian, and we make everything into tacos} that it goes great with. Going to try this version out as it seems closer to the authentic version than my quick and easy and very not Greek version {whip together yogurt, dill, sour cream, and salt and pepper}.
Phenominal as always! I love your recipes!! They are so delicious and healthy. My favorite so far has to be the Vegan Beet Salad.
This recipe was a life saver because I ran out of tomato sauce and was making hand made pizza. Since it was a Greek pizza to begin with, this worked perfectly! Now I think I like it even better than using tomato sauce. Thanks Kate! ❤️
Awesome Tzatziki, it looks delicious thanks for sharing
Tzatziki is so awesome. And I agree, it might be good on a corn on the cob. In fact, I wonder if corn might be a good addition to the dip with a few other modifications…. South West tzatziki sauce? lol. Thanks for sharing.
Ooh, I like that idea! Please let me know if you try it!
I love Tzatziki and I am so excited to try this! I just bought your cookbook and I am obsessed with it. I made one of the salsas out of it last night and it was amazing. Never using store bought salsa again.
Thank you, Lauren! Delighted to hear it. :) I’m obsessed with that salsa, too.
Thank you thank you thank you! I have loved this sauce since I was a little girl. I can’t wait to try this.
This looks so good! I will have to try it out tonight <3
Am I the only one who REALLY wants to see that falafel-stuffed bell pepper recipe? You can’t just dangle it out there and then leave us hanging. :-(
Hey Heather, that recipe was unreliable and truly not worth your time. This sauce would be awesome on my other stuffed bell pepper recipe, though. Enjoy! :)
YES!!! Tzatziki is the BEST!
Made this sauce with dinner tonight. We ate it with carrot sticks and sugar snap peas…and boxed mac n cheese. Haha – real life, right? We had fresh basil so I added that to the mint. Also, I had a thought while I squeezed the cucumber over the sink: CUCUMBER WATER! I wonder if there’s a way to capture that liquid as save/freeze it for smoothies or cucumber mint lemonade? I mean, we already have the mint, right?
Thank you, Jamie! Love your accompaniments. :) Squeeze the cucumber over a bowl next time and you’ll get green cucumber juice, yes! Cucumber mint lemonade sounds epic.
Hi, first of all yes the tzatziki was amazing ! We had Brined and then smoked leg of lamb! Yes cucumber water! squeeze the cucumber into a colander or a sieve, a colander can stand on its own of course over a plate when the plate starts to fill up carefully pour the cucumber water into a wide measuring cup and refrigerate . Best thing you ever had !
YUM! I love the idea of adding fresh mint to this! I have so much growing in my garden. Such a perfect dip for any occasion!
OH my! I’ve got to try this. I love tzatzki! I think I’m part Greek. ;-)
I could eat this right out of the bowl with a spoon!
Yum! I cannot wait to try this recipe out, thanks for the share. Love checking out your blog, keep up the posts!
I love love tzatziki. I am such a sucker for middle eastern/mediterranean dishes in general. I feel like I need this on hand at all times. Love your cucumber grating technique! Very smart:)
YUMMMMM I’m all about the sauces when I eat Mediterranean food including tzatziki, hummus, garlic sauce and whatever else!
Delicious recipe, and it totally upgraded my Mediterranean chickpea salad lunch this week! I spread the tzatziki on a thin pita and put the salad on top to make a pizza (or “pitza” if you will). Thanks for another great recipe!
Thank you, Olivia! Your “pitza” sounds totally awesome. I’ll have to give that a try!!
Is it 1 cup shredded cucumber before of after squeezing? I measured 1 cup before and it filled up because of the moist/wet cucumber. I squeezed it, and measured it again, and it was almost 1/2 cup after being compacted.
One cup shredded cucumber before squeezing. I hope this helps! It will shrink some with getting rid of the moisture.
Loved it! This was delicious and easy – thanks. I used fage 0% which is a thicker greek yogurt, so I ended up adding back in some of the cucumber juice that I squeezed out, as a way of thinning out the sauce. I also made your falafel and I can’t wait to have them together tonight :)
Thanks for sharing, Sarah! I’m happy you loved it.
I love tzatziki and could never find a recipe that captured the restaurant quality taste. This is amazing! So delicious over some fresh tomatoes and a little taboule. Only thing I did differently was a little more garlic and I salted the cucumber before straining.
I’m glad this is up to your standards, Zena! Thanks for your review.
I made this over the weekend for a dinner party. I made two versions, one with greek yogurt, which was delicious, and one vegan one with coconut yogurt. Unfortunately, I didn’t read your note about using cashew sour cream. I’m sure that would have been a better consistency. Thanks for publishing it here on your blog, because while I have your book, I didn’t see the tzatziki in the index.
Thanks for another great recipe!
I’m glad it worked well, Sera. Yes, cashew cream works well. I appreciate your review!
I made this yesterday – and now have just made it again because my children demanded it. So easy and so fresh tasting. Thank you! Andrew
Smart kids! I love that it’s a family hit. Thanks for your review, Andrew!
Yum! Having it tonight with homemade yiros. Can’t wait!
What did you think, Donna?!
I had never made tzatziki before, but I had over a dozen cucumbers in my Hungry Harvest delivery this week. Desperate, I searched for tzatziki recipe that wasn’t too difficult, and I came across yours. I just made your recipe and it was fabulous! I loved it, and so did all of my guests! Thank you so much!! A+
Hugs,
Sue
I’m glad you found it and that you loved it! Thanks for sharing, Sue.
This was delicious! What’s weird is that I don’t know what made it taste so good. I’ve been using a variety of tzatziki recipes for a long time and never really felt satisfied by any of them. This one worked perfectly with falafel. I’m thinking part of the success of this recipe is not peeling the cucumbers.
I’m glad you loved it, Kim!
I’m wondering the difference between the mint and dill or are you supposed to add both?
You can choose to add one or both! It depends on taste. I hope this helps!
Kate,
For your tzatziki recipe, do you recommend regular cucumber or the plastic-wrapped, thin-skinned, English variety?
John.
For your tzatziki recipe, do toy recommend regular cucumber or the plastic-wrapped, soft-skinned English variety?
Hi John! From a standard cucumber. I hope this helps! English cucumber may work fine too.
I can’t wait to try this. Can I leave out the Olive oil, or at least reduce it to a teaspoon? What do you suggest?
I love all of your recipes!!! You are a great source for the home cook.
Thank you and take care.
Hi Kate, you sure can. I find that the olive oil adds extra richness and depth of flavor, but it’s not essential.
I made this it turned out lovely!!! Save your cucumber juice!! Squeeze out the juice over a bowl or measuring cup. Then pour some of it in to a cold glass of water and some lemon juice and you have a health refreshing drink!!
Thank you for the tip, Gretchen!
Delish! Yes, mine was perfect according to your recipe. Thanks!
Great to hear!
Delicious! I didn’t have dill / mint so replaced it with dried taragon, let is stand for 30mins instead of 15.
Served with Mediterranean pork steaks. Yum! Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Great recipe – thanks! Tastes great even without garlic! :)
Thanks for your review, Sophia!
Absolutely fantastic. Let it sit overnight and it sang. Great balance and depth
Thanks for your review, Mark!
YUM! I love the idea of adding fresh mint to this! I have so much growing in my garden. Such a perfect dip for any occasion!
This tzatziki recipe is so easy! And, so delicious! I made it and served it with falafel. Everyone enjoyed! Thank you.
Thanks for your review, Rita!
Very delicious and easy, thankyou
You’re welcome, Katarina!
I made it this morning to accompany my spanakopita – yummy! ❤️
Easy to make – I didn’t have any dill or mint but it still tasted good. Mine maybe a tad too much garlic so needed more lemon.
Thanks for your feedback, Heather! I’m sorry it wasn’t a five-star for you. However, I’m glad you were still able to enjoy it.
Just tried your recipe…hasn’t sit long enough for the flavors to meld yet, but it already tastes great. Looking forward to having it on my gyro for lunch tomorrow.
Fantastic, Dianne! Enjoy with your lunch.
Late, I am Syrian-American and your
Tzatiki recipe is scrumptious. I have tried many versions and like yours the most. Thanks for a delicious addition to my recipe book. Please give Cookie a hug and kiss from me. So adorable!
Thanks for your feedback, Grace. Cookie will appreciate the extra attention!
This is a great recipe for kids too! I worked at a very large preschool(150 kids) and the kids made it themselves using a hand pull food chopper/salsa maker. What they make they eat! Love it! Thanks Katie!
That is such a fun idea! I would love to see pictures :) What a fun activity for the kiddos!
Schools out for summer….sadly no photos to send.
I’ve made the tzatziki in your cookbook several times with unsweetened coconut yogurt. It’s one of my very favourite condiments. This post just reminded me to make it again soon!
Thank you for sharing, Hayley!
Take the same two basic ingredients, and change the spices a little bit – and you get the Cucumber Raita, and Indian food counterpart of Tzatziki!!
Thanks for sharing, Jayshree!
I always order extra tzatziki in Greek restaurant since it is so good and refreshing. When I make it, like Sarah, I use Fage Greek yogourt for the same reason she does. I also use my salad spinner to get the moisture out of the shredded cucumber after salting it a little bit. It works really well every time. I use the sauce over fish and it is MUCH better and heathier than tartar sauce. Thank you for all your very nice recipes.
Thanks for sharing, Annick!
Some days ago I made this exactly as written and it turned out absolutely delicious! Used on meatballs. All my family loved it. A few days after, I added a little more garlic and dill. Different flavor profile but still very tasty. Thank you, Kate, for sharing this with us! I will never buy it again.
Thank you for sharing, Annette!
I have tried making tzatziki from taste and I was close but I never thought to add olive oil! Having your exact measurements will help too I am sure. I also liked your list of things to try it on. Pinning to try soon.
Let me know what you think when you try it, Scarlet!
Delicious! I made the recipe as written, and it is SO good! Will make this again and again.
Great to hear!
Thank you so much for creating this tzatziki recipe; it is perfect! I used spearmint in my tzatziki and it was lovely with your recipe for falafels!
You’re welcome, Mary!
My Greek family’s recipe is very close to this. We add finely chopt red onion and, because my kids like more of a kick, I also add a good amount of ground white pepper to the tzatziki–but no olive oil. The oil would certainly be a delightful garnish, tho, especially if it’s a good Greek EVOO!
In my experience, it’s best to use whole fat yogurt due to the gelatin that is often added as a thickener to low-fat yogurts. It reduces the likelihood of the sauce becoming watery, if kept longer than a day, but that’s just a personal preference. Your recipe is wonderful as is!
Thanks for sharing, Anna! I love hearing about family traditional recipes.
Thank you it was so much help with your recipes ! I got so many compliments on the Tzatziki so keep it up ! Thanks Rose
Great to hear you liked it!