Two things conspired to put this simple but oh-so-good Tzatziki Sauce in today’s Friday Feast post.
First, a good friend from SLC emailed a couple of days ago for the recipe; he’s a fishing compadre from years back. We had a memorable first meeting on the Green below Flaming Gorge; we rounded a corner to see him sink an aluminum drifter due to the most problematic combination of high water, an anchor malfunction, and as he put it, “one too many fat asses in my damned boat”.
We floated he and one of his party out that evening and helped him rescue his drifter the next morning; we’ve been river brothers ever since. (RK, enjoy your lamb this weekend.)
Secondly, She Who Must Be Obeyed and I had a “planning date” yesterday at one of our favorite little Greek dives here in town; they have the biggest, most tasty gyro for $6.45 you’ll find anywhere, and their tzatziki is so good SWMBO has me scrambling to make some every time we stop there.
I’m not exactly sure where we sourced this years ago, though I’m guessing it was from my Greek residency mate I’ve written about before. You can have this one stirred together in 5 or 6 minutes and it’s the perfect finishing touch for that leg of lamb or the kebobs you’re itching to grill this weekend.
We even like it on this Greek fried cheese. Opa!
7 ounces plain Greek yogurt
6-inch piece of cucumber, peeled, thickly grated; reserve 1 generous tbsp
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp EVOO
3/4 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp+ 1 tsp fresh mint, finely chopped
Sea salt to taste
Drain the yogurt if needed, then pour into a small bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients (except for the reserved cucumber and the 1 tsp of chopped fresh mint); mix well.
Taste and correct the salt (if needed) to your palate.
Top with the reserved grated cucumber and mint; cover tightly and keep cold if not serving immediately.
Enjoy.
