Tzatziki (Greek: τζατζίκι [d͡zaˈd͡zici]), also known as cacık (Turkish: [dʒaˈdʒɯk]) or tarator, is a class of dip, soup, or sauce found in the cuisines of Southeastern Europe and West Asia. It is made of salted strained yogurt or diluted yogurt mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, olive oil, red wine vinegar, sometimes with lemon juice, and herbs such as dill, mint, parsley and thyme. It is served as a cold appetiser (meze), a side dish, and as a sauce for souvlaki and gyros sandwiches and other foods.
Etymology The word tzatziki appeared in English around the mid-20th century as a loanword from Modern Greek (τζατζίκι), which in turn comes from the Turkish word cacık. The root is likely related to several words in West Asian languages. Persian zhazh (ژاژ) refers to various herbs used for cooking, and Kurdish jaj or ژاژ refers to the caraway herb. That word is combined with the Turkish diminutive suffix -cık to yield cacık. The Armenian word cacıg is also related to this term and may itself derive from Turkish or Kurdish. Evliya Çelebi's 1665 travelogue, the Seyahatnâme, defined cacıχ (cacıg) as a kind of herb that is added to food. The modern term cacık (جاجیك) was mentioned in print for the first time in 1844 in Hoca Kâmil Pasha's Melceü't-Tabbâhîn (The Sanctuary of Cooks), the first Ottoman cookbook, in which the basic description is given as "yogurt with cucumber and garlic" (hıyar ve sarmısaklı yoğurt). The form tarator, found in languages from the Balkans to the Levant with derivative forms now found in a range of countries. According to Sevan Nişanyan, the name tarator (sauce) comes into Turkish directly from the Venetian word "trattor". In Venetian, this word means "cook". It has acquired the meaning of a type of sauce in Turkish. It has likely been borrowed from Turkish into other languages. The first use of this word in the sense of sauce was in Seyahatnâme.
History Greeks have used yoghurt-based condiments since antiquity. One such example is oxygala, a yoghurt-like condiment that would be combined with honey, or olive oil and herbs / seasonings to be consumed. Likewise Central Asian yogurt culture, which spread to Anatolia, the Balkans, and the Middle East through Turkic migrations may have been the ancestor of similar yoghurt-based condiments. Yogurt-based cold dishes such as tzatziki were integral to Ottoman cuisine, reflecting earlier Central Asian traditions. Abbasid author Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq provided 3 recipes for jājaq (Arabic: جاجق, pl. جواجيق), which were yogurt salads, in his 10th century Arabic-language cookbook, according to food historian Nawal Nasrallah, these are an ancestor of modern cucumber-salad jajik, she dates this as the earliest known recipe. Later mentions of it can be found in Egyptian cookbooks from the 14th and 15th centuries. During the Ottoman Empire, yogurt and garlic condiments became a part of the meze tradition. One notable example was tarator, prepared with yogurt, cucumber, garlic, or sometimes walnuts. Seyahatnâme describes dishes made with yogurt and garlic, demonstrating their established place in Ottoman cuisine. In the Balkans and the Levant, variations of tarator developed with different bases: in the Levant it is usually made with tahini, while in the Balkans it may include yogurt and walnuts. In Anatolia, however, the version made with yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and sometimes walnuts became known as cacık. Today, tzatziki is widely consumed in Greece and Turkey as a refreshing dish, especially in summer, while related versions continue to exist in Balkan and Levantine cuisines.
Variations
Arab world In Iraq, jajeek is often served as meze. It may accompany alcoholic drinks, especially arak, an ouzo-like drink made from anise. In some parts of the Arab world, it is known as سَلَطَة خِيار باللَّبَن, salaṭat ḵiyār bi-l-laban, made from yogurt and cucumbers.
Balkans
Tarator is found in many Balkan countries, often served as a soup or liquid salad, especially in summer. It is typically made with yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, oil, and salt, and commonly includes dill and walnuts; water may be added to thin it, and the dish is served chilled. In Bulgaria, tarator is a traditional cold soup and a popular summer dish. A thicker related preparation is Snezhanka, which is made with strained yogurt mixed with cucumber, garlic, dill, and oil, with walnuts sometimes added. In Albania, tarator is likewise eaten as a cold summer dish made from yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and herbs, often with olive oil; the consistency may range from soup-like to dip-like depending on the yogurt used and the amount of added water.
Cyprus In Cyprus, the dish is known as ταλαττούρι ("talattouri") and is similar to the Greek recipe with a more characteristic flavour of mint and added acidity in the form of lemon juice. It is made from strained yogurt, sliced cucumbers, minced garlic cloves, lemon juice and sprinkled with dried mint, oregano or olive oil.
Greece
Greek-style tzatziki sauce is commonly served as a meze, to be eaten with pita bread, olives, fried eggplant, zucchini, or other vegetables. It is also used for dishes like gyros, or souvlaki and most other greek dishes. Regular tzatziki is made of strained yogurt (usually from sheep or goat milk) mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, olive oil, vinegar, dill, mint, and parsley. A variation made with purslane (glistrida in Greek) may be called glistrida me yiaourti, meaning 'purslane and yogurt salad', rather than tzatziki. One simple recipe calls for purslane, olive oil, red wine vinegar and dill. There also is a version where walnut oil, crushed nuts (like walnuts, hazelnuts, or almonds) and red peppers are added to the standard yoghurt base.
Iran In Iran, it is known as mast o khiar.
Turkey
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