Tzatziki sauce is a delicious Greek sauce made from yogurt, cucumber, and fresh herbs. Join Eric from Simply Elegant Home Cooking as he walks you through all the steps to create a delicious Tzatziki sauce with the perfect thick and creamy texture. There are several very important steps in this recipe. Firstly, be sure to drain as much water from your cucumber as possible. Eric will show you a foolproof method for this. Also, be sure to buy full-fat Greek yogurt as it will have the best flavor and consistency. Tzatziki sauce goes extremely well with fresh veggies, gyros, and grilled meats.

Ingredients:
-1/2 cucumber (English or Persian)
-300g 5% Fat Greek Yogurt
-Zest of 1 lemon
-Juice of 1/2 lemon
-2 tablespoons Greek extra virgin olive oil
-3 cloves garlic
-3 tablespoon fresh dill (minced)
-1 1/2 tablespoon fresh mint (optional)
-Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:
-Peel the cucumber (if desired) and grate on the largest holes on a box grater. Use a large kitchen knife to further chop the grated cucumber to avoid long, stringy pieces.
-Generously salt the cucumber and set it in a bowl. Allow it to set out while you prepare the rest of the ingredients as the salt will help draw out the moisture over the course of 10+ minutes.
-Scoop the Greek yogurt into a large bowl.
-Zest the lemon (using a microplane) into the yogurt, then cut the lemon in half and juice half the lemon into the yogurt.
-Season the lemon and yogurt mixture generously with black pepper and mix thoroughly.
-Grate the garlic into a paste using the same microplane.
-Remove the dill from the stems and mince it very finely with a knife. If using fresh mint, mince that finely as well.
-Use a kitchen towel or cheesecloth to squeeze as much water as possible from the cucumber.
-Add the squeezed cucumber, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil to the yogurt mixture. Stir thoroughly to incorporate.
-Taste for salt. Most of the salt added to the cucumber will have been squeezed out in the water so you will probably want to add more, and be sure to thoroughly mix again.
-Add in the fresh dill and mint, and give a final, gentle stir.
-Cover and refrigerate for at least a few hours before serving.