Authentic Greek Tzatziki + 12 Great Ways to Enjoy It

Tzatziki. Even if you don’t recognize the name, if you’ve ever had a gyro, you’ve had tzatziki because it’s the lovely, creamy, garlicky, amazing sauce that is spread on gyros everywhere. Now you can enjoy this rich, creamy Mediterranean sauce at home! With a little patience and a couple fairly standard kitchen tools, amazingly authentic, super creamy Greek tzatziki is quite easy to make.

My son and I went to Costco the other day. My youngest had requested Naan and, while I was reluctant to spend over $5 on Naan that I could easily make at home for less than a dollar (yes, I am crazy frugal, but I’m also a huge softie and a sucker for my kids), I caved while we were there and said to my boy, “let’s go look at the Naan”. Costco moved the Naan to the middle of their “specialty foods” aisle, you know, the place where all the pre-made, pre-packaged meals reside. Usually the Naan is next to the hummus or on an endcap, but that day they’d moved it. As we stood there looking at the Naan, pondering whether I really wanted to spend the extra money, I looked up and there was a pack of gyro meat from Daphne’s, a restaurant I used to frequent when my youngling was little. They always put too much of the meat on my gyro, so I would save and bring home the rest of my meat for my little one. She LOVED it. I couldn’t help but say something to my son … and then, in the end, of course we not only brought home the Naan, we got the gyro meat to go with it. LOL so much for my frugality!

Why Tzatziki?

The only thing missing for the meal was tzatziki. You can’t very well have gyros without tzatziki! So I was compelled to make our favorite Greek sauce, but in a way my kids would eat. Years ago, I published another recipe for tzatziki, but I know my kids (especially my son) are super picky about texture, so I wanted a sauce that was super rich and creamy with all the authentic flavor of real Greek tzatziki. So I went looking and found this recipe from the Wanderlust Kitchen. It looked super creamy. The only part I wasn’t sure about was the vinegar … my kids are not fans of vinegar. So I stirred in a Tablespoon of mayo in place of the vinegar. If you don’t have super picky vinegar haters at your house, then by all means, go for the vinegar.

Also, in case you didn’t know: tzatziki is made with Greek yogurt, which means that tzatziki is full of not only protein but also calcium and probiotics, which benefit your bones, your digestive system and your immune system. So this recipe has some definite health benefits and a mouthfeel that is super satisfying. This is totally going to be my #1 go-to for tzatziki going forward. I’m SO in love with the results … and my kids ate it, plus my parents loved it too!

Why is THIS recipe for Tzatziki special?

Besides being authentic, garlicky and luxuriously creamy, the other thing I love about this particular recipe is it doesn’t get all watery in the fridge overnight. I made this tzatziki sauce last Thursday and here it is Tuesday evening and it’s still thick and rich and beautiful. A yogurt sauce SHOULD last more than a couple days because the fermentation process that creates the probiotics also act as a natural preservative. Unfortunately, what happens with many tzatziki sauces is there’s so much water in the cucumber that it makes the sauce all watery if not served immediately. I took these pictures yesterday and the sauce is still as rich and thick and wonderful as you see here.

How to use Tzatziki?

There are SO many amazing ways to revel in tzatziki. My first and foremost thought is always on a gyro or with souvlaki (Greek kabobs), but most of us aren’t making authentic gyro meat on a spit at home. Oh sure, you can do something sort of similar, but it’s really not the same unless you’ve mixed the meats together with the spices, roasted on a spit and then sliced off vertically, like the Greeks do it.

But tzatziki isn’t just for gyros! It’s fantastic in SO many ways:

1. as a sauce on gyros … and it doesn’t have to be beef/lamb gyros. You can also use it on chicken or vegetarian versions (like my grilled eggplant gyros)
2. for slathering on burgers (especially feta-stuffed gyro burgers!)
3. as a dip for fresh or roasted veggies, pita bread, crackers or fries (steak fries with tzatziki are the BEST)
4. on your wraps or sandwiches (especially Mediterranean sandwiches like beef shawarma, or the chicken or cauliflower versions)
5. served over/with kebabs or other grilled fish, pork, chicken, or veggies
6. with meatballs of any variety
7. on a baked potato … tzatziki has a nice tang and so much more flavor than sour cream
8. as a flavor enhancer for mashed potatoes or colcannon
9. combined with tuna for a lovely Greek flavored tuna salad
10. as the “schmear” for your bagels, especially if you’re having bagels and lox! Tzatziki + smoked salmon = YUM.
11. on a salad. Tzatziki makes a marvelous, thick, creamy dressing
12. as a dipping sauce for felafel or other fritters (baked, fried or air fried)

Recipe adapted slightly from the Wanderlust Kitchen

Print