Easy Tzatziki Sauce Recipe (Healthy + Authentic)

This Creamy Tzatziki Sauce combines cucumbers, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil, and fresh herbs. It’s the perfect addition to serve as a dip with pita bread and fresh vegetables, on a sandwich, and many more dishes! 

Why You’ll Love This Tzatziki Recipe

This homemade tzatziki sauce recipe combines super fresh ingredients to give you a creamy, tangy, flavorful spread that works perfectly as a dip or to complement a meal, such as these Greek Chicken Quinoa Bowls. 

It’s incredibly quick to whip up a big tub of tzatziki so it can come in clutch during those summer months when you’re looking for a nice dip option for all your fresh veggies! It’s also an efficient way to use some of those plentiful cucumbers that are in season in the summertime. 

Unlike some dips that are heavy in saturated fats, tzatziki is a sauce you can feel good about. With Greek yogurt as its main ingredient, you’re getting a boost of protein and healthy probiotics that can improve your gut health.

Ingredients You’ll Need

This tzatziki sauce is made from simple ingredients that you can find at your local grocery store throughout the year or at a local farm stand during peak season. Here’s what you’ll need. 

• Cucumber – you’re going to grate the cucumber with a cheese grater. It’s going to turn into a super watery mush since fresh cucumber has a high water content. If you prefer more of a chunkier texture for this authentic Greek tzatziki, you can leave a couple of small diced cucumber pieces to add in at the end. Some people remove the cucumber skin prior to grating the cucumber. I usually leave the skin on…mostly because I don’t mind the skin and I’m just too lazy to take it off. You can use an English cucumber or regular cucumbers. 

• Greek yogurt – you’ll want to choose a plain Greek yogurt for this dip. I find that a whole milk Greek yogurt or a full-fat yogurt is best – it gives you the more flavorful and creamy texture. Of course, feel free to use a low fat yogurt if you prefer. 

• Fresh garlic – you definitely need fresh garlic cloves for this recipe. It just adds so much more flavor. If the thought of mincing your own garlic intimidates you, I highly recommend getting yourself a garlic press – I won’t mince garlic any other way!

• Fresh dill – again, I think fresh herbs, including fresh dill, works best in this recipe. Many tzatziki recipes substitute fresh mint for the dill too if you prefer that!

• Fresh lemon juice – grab a lemon at the grocery store and give it a good squeeze to get all that tangy juice out. I use a lemon squeezer to juice citrus fruits and I think it’s a worthwhile gadget to have. 

• Extra virgin olive oil – a tzatziki sauce wouldn’t be complete without a good quality olive oil. This adds healthy fats to the tzatziki that help with vitamin absorption and minimizing inflammation.

• Salt – a pinch of salt to taste is needed for this recipe. 

How To Make This Tzatziki Recipe

Once you know how to make tzatziki once, you’ll realize how easy it really is to make!

First, you’re going to grate your cucumber using a cheese grater. Since cucumber has such a high water content, the cucumber is going to create a lot of excess water. It’s also going to seem almost like a chunky apple sauce consistency. 

Take the grated cucumber and wrap it in paper towels to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. If this is your first time making this greek yogurt sauce, do not skip this step! If you don’t squeeze out as much water as possible from the cucumbers, you’ll end up with a watery tzatziki sauce.

In a medium bowl, combine the shredded cucumber with the remaining ingredients: Greek yogurt, garlic, dill, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Taste the tzatziki and season with more salt if needed. 

Enjoy immediately or store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days.

This tzatziki sauce can be enjoyed in a variety of different ways. Use this delicious sauce as a gyro sauce, a spread on sandwiches, or in these Greek Chicken Quinoa Bowls. Additionally, it goes great with falafel, grain salads, or as a dip for raw veggies and pita chips. 

Other Recipes You’ll Love

Greek Chicken Quinoa Bowls

Firecracker Meatballs (Hello Fresh Copycat)

Baked Feta Chicken Pasta

5-Min Pesto Without Pine Nuts

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