I tweaked this recipe based on a wonderful reccomendation from woman in Santorini, Greece. Directions & ingredients are the same, just adjusted the amounts. You MUST drain the yogurt for 5-6 hours or overnight. English cucumber is not necessary, as you can use a regular large cucumber, peel, cut into quarters & use spoon to remove seeds, then shread w/ cheese grater. Shred cuke over a lint free tea towel, grab the ends of the towel together, twist and squeeze out the water. 2 large cloves garlic is plenty & I am a garlic lover. Will be too over powering w/ 5 cloves, already tried it on the first batch. 1 TBSP distilled white vinegar. 5 TBSP extra virgin olive oil. 1/2 tsp sea salt or to taste. I even received rave reviews from my Greek Father-In-Law!
Do drain your yogurt and squeeze the excess water from your cuke! I drain yogurt by using a strainer with a paper coffee filter in it, let it sit for awhile, and the water strains out easily. Squeezed the excess water from the cuke by pushing it with my fist into a colander. Did use lemon juice rather than white vinegar (personal preference) and a bit less garlic. Served with fresh pita and chicken souvlaki with zucchini. Thank you, Teina.
Very good! I served this at a dinner party with warm pita bread. It was a hit! Food processor made this appetizer easy. If you buy a low-water content yogurt, you don't need to drain over cheesecloth.
Very good. I also seeded the cucumber and added a pinch of dill(some people use mint instead). First time I made this I bought fat free yogurt by mistake. DO NOT ever do this. I could not drain liquid out and it tasted WAY too sour.
Delish! I used 32 oz fat-free yogurt drained in colander on coffee filters overnight (you'd be surprised how much liquid drains off). 2 small cucumbers peeled quartered seeded then chopped fine (I salted then placed between paper towels weighted with plates for an hour). Grated 5 cloves of garlic (makes it VERY garlicky - might cut back if you're not a fan) 1 TBS lemon juice 1 TBS vinegar 3 TBS olive oil and a sprinkle of sugar and lemon zest. It came out excellent! I've made it without draining and the flavor is somewhat different and the consistency is more salad-dressing like. I much prefer it this way. Great as a veggie dip!
This is an absolute staple at our house. It's definitely better on day two. I don't drain my yogurt but I do shred the cucumber into a cheese cloth and squeeze out as much of the liquid as I can and it seems quite thick enough.
Every bit as good as we get from our local Greek restuarant. I used fat free yogurt for health reasons but it does make a difference in the texture. I also did not drain the yogurt as I didn't have time. I did pour of the liquid sitting on top though. I also used a seeded regular cucumber rather than English because it was what I had.
This is a little chunkier than I expected it would turn out to be but over all very good! I served it to a bunch at my party with raw vegetables and at least two asked for the recipe. Many liked it but couldn't identify what was in it which made it fun!
If you use a good Greek yogurt, no need to strain it. I added dill, substituted lemon juice for the vinegar. Seed and salt the cucumber and put in a colander over a bowl for about a half hour to remove excess water. Then process it in a food processor with the herbs, lemon juice, and olive oil before mixing with the yogurt. So good.
If I was looking for a recipe for a cucumber and garlic smoothie this would be it. way too runny.
