Thick strained yoghurt with grated cucumber, garlic, olive oil and dill or mint — cold, sharp and made for grilled meat.
What makes it tzatziki
Strained yoghurt, thick enough to hold a spoon upright.
Cucumber grated and squeezed dry.
Raw garlic, olive oil and a little vinegar.
Where it comes from
The name is thought to come from the Turkish cacık, a looser yoghurt-and-cucumber dish, and relatives are made from the Balkans to India. The Greek version is thick, made with strained yoghurt and a fair amount of raw garlic, and it's on the table wherever there's souvlaki.