Recipe for Tzatziki Sauce?

[Chrysalis]

I want to make falafel sandwiches tonight. Anybody have a good recipe for the tzatziki sauce that usually goes with them?

[Devil Doll]

Tzatziki is the sauce usually served with Gyro. Do you mean Tahini?

This is the recipe that I use for Tahini. You can find the sesame paste at Publix

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Tahini-Sauce-109039

[Pippa]

I just combine a tub of yoghurt, Lebanese cucumber, lemon rind, lemon juice( ussually about a table spoon) pepper and salt. Lots of people put in garlic - but I am not a raw garlic fan so I leave it out ... Good luck !!

 

 

Oh and Crys - do you make your own felafels ... I would love a good recipe ??

[Chrysalis]

Thanks, folks. I guess I don't know enough about Middle Eastern cooking or the proper words for things. What I like is a yogurt-based sauce with cucumbers like Pippa described. If that's not called "tzatziki" I don't know what it is called.  Anyway, I made a sauce like Pippa's (with the garlic) and I added a couple of tablespoons of ground sesame because I like the flavor and the texture. The result was exactly what I was looking for. So thanks for pointing me in the right direction!  :)

 

Pippa, a couple of years ago I got friendly with a lady from Israel. I remember her telling me that she was delighted to find Telma falafel mix in our local grocery store because that is the brand that she used in Israel. It's actually made in Israel. That's good enough for me so that's what I have been using ever since (and I do think the Telma is the best). 

 

 

PS-- You know that this is imported because on the nutrition label, the "energy" content is given in kilojoules instead of in calories. Took me a while to figure out that 378kJs = 90 Cal!

[scottinpa]

Tzatziki...

I peel the cucumbers, then slice in half scoop out the seads, then I grate them in the food processor, the trick now is to let them drain in a colander for a few hours in the fridge. You should also drain as much moisture from the yogurt as you can, or if you can find it, I use Cabot's plain greek yogurt because it is perfect for tzatziki right out of the container. I add a little bit of rice vinegar, dill,lemon juice, salt and pepper. No garlic in mine either.

I use it both as a sauce, and it is also really good just by itself!

[notsmokinjo]

On 2/11/2015 at 8:07 PM, Pippa said:

I just combine a tub of yoghurt, Lebanese cucumber, lemon rind, lemon juice( ussually about a table spoon) pepper and salt. Lots of people put in garlic - but I am not a raw garlic fan so I leave it out ... Good luck !!

 

 

Oh and Crys - do you make your own felafels ... I would love a good recipe ??

 

So I'm not a fan of the raw garlic either BUT I love the flavour it adds to taziki... so while I am letting the cucumbers strain I will put some sliced garlic cloves (2-3) in a cup with some of the yoghurt... then I will put it through the strainer, the flavour infuses the yoghurt but the chunks of raw garlic get left out... best of both words... I will usually do this overnight.