Saluting Aphrodite:Tzatziki ; First steps into Greek cuisine

The Greek mythology has always fascinated me. The world of Gods, just like our own mythology has much to offer for knowledge and fascination. It is my dream to visit the Islands of Greece one day to satisfy my hunger for history, art,mythology and food! In fact, in ever country I set my foot on, I try to learn about the traditional food and taste as much as the vegetarian plate has to offer. There have been some quite huge bills because of this and I don't regret any one of them, with just Venice being an exception. I will write a separate blog on this issue soon!

Tyatziki is a simple introduction to the Greek cuisine. It is a dip that can be had with variety of items, the non vegetarian list being bigger than the vegetarian one. My suggestions for this dip would be just about anything starting from Samosas, pakodas, masala vadai, bajji, baturas, naan, grilled vegetables, spicy rice variates and cutlets.  Or just dip your finger in and keep eating it! To simply define it in terms of known items, Tzatziki is the Greek alternative for Raita!

The main ingredient required is thick thick curd. Suspend curd in muslin cloth overnight and use the condensed yogurt. Peel cucumber, remove the seeds and grate them. Squeeze them dry. Add this to the curd(200gms). Finely mince 2 big pods of garlic (use a garlic press for best results) and add. Next goes in finely chopped Dill (5 leaves), salt, white pepper powder( a table spoon), 2 table spoons of extra virgin olive oil and 2 table spoons of lemon juice. Mix well and the dip is ready! It is a very healthy dip too and stays up to to one week in the fridge!