Posts tagged Tzatziki at Slashfood

Posts with tag tzatziki

Forget tzatziki and taste some spicy raita

Posted May 28th 2008 5:34PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: South Asia, Condiments, Health & Medical, Vegetarian/Vegan

While grocery shopping the other day, I scoured the gourmet dip section. After grumbling about the mass amount of fat and calories in dips like artichoke and asiago or spinach, my eyes rested upon something new: low-fat raita. Unlike the other options, which would weigh you down with hundred of calories per 2 tbsp, this one has 20. Yes, just 20 calories per two tablespoons. I picked it up, all giddy and hoping that it would taste good, and be worthy of my beloved carrot sticks.

Oh, yes. Raita is basically a spicy tzatziki. (Slashfood last mentioned it in 2006.) It's yogurt mixed with vegetables, herbs, and spices -- usually, it's yogurt (curd) mixed with cucumber or onions, and seasoned with cilantro, cumin, mint, cayenne pepper, and more. The one I purchased (Fresh 2 Go) was cilantro raita -- made with the usual ingredients, plus sour cream.

The dip or sauce is often used to cut spicy Indian dishes, but it is excellent and spicy on its own. It's got the freshness of tzatziki with the bite of cilantro, which makes it a great and healthy addition to veggies, and offers much more flavor than its Greek counterpart. With summer just around the corner, this is an excellent and healthy addition to the chips and dip table. I'm still finishing off my container, so I haven't made any myself, but the recipes look simple enough (you can find some here and here). Anyone else out there love raita?

Grilled Lamb and Asparagus Pitas with Tzatziki

Posted Mar 25th 2008 4:30PM by Sarah J. Gim
Filed under: Vegetables, Dairy, Recipes, How To, Meat, Easter

There are several standard ways I use up leftovers: an omelet the next morning, fried rice, and of course, just re-heating whatever it was, and eating it as is.

Another thing to do is make a sandwich, and if you have leftover lamb and asparagus from Easter Sunday, throwing them together with a little bit of yogurt-turned-tzatziki makes a great pita-bread-based sandwich. Of course, in my house, we didn't actually have lamb (we didn't have a traditional ham either), and asparagus on the table gets eaten before the salad is served.

Without the leftovers to make the pitas, the only other thing to do is -- gasp! -- actually cook the meal! The California Asparagus Commission has put together a recipe (after the jump), along with a whole list of recipes for asparagus on their website.

Continue reading Grilled Lamb and Asparagus Pitas with Tzatziki

Recipe: Sarah's Simple Tzatziki

Posted Jul 24th 2007 11:21PM by Sarah J. Gim
Filed under: Hors D'oeuvres, Snacks, Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Vegetables, Dairy, Cheese, Recipes, Raves & Reviews, How To, Middle East, Condiments, America, Europe, Comfort Food, Spices

A few weeks ago, my friends and I got together after work to play board games (yes yes I know - how very, um, exciting), and a friend and I were charged with providing food. We were meeting rather late, so there was no need to go with full dinner fare. I decided on a few Mediterranean dips and a salad because really now, is there anything better than ripping a pita loaf into shreds when you're caught up in the excitement of Jenga?!?! Tzatziki is one of my favorites, and though I do believe it's used more as a sauce or condiment in Greek cuisine, I love scooping it up with pita bread. My Sarah-ized version is written out after the jump:

Continue reading Recipe: Sarah's Simple Tzatziki

Yogurt sauces: raita vs. tzatziki

Posted Apr 9th 2006 3:04PM by Sarah J. Gim
Filed under: Lunch, Dinner, Snacks, Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Vegetables, Dairy, South Asia, Recipes, How To, Condiments, America, Europe, Spices

Back when I roasted cauliflower with curry, I thought that Indian raita, a minty cucumber yogurt sauce, would have been a nice accompaniment.

Raita is made by wrapping 1 seeded, grated cucumber in cheesecloth and squeezing out all the moisture. In a bowl, whisk together 1c. whole milk yogurt, 1/2 tsp. cumin, a pinch of cayenne. Add the cucumber, as well as 2-3 Tbsp. finely grated carrots, and 1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro or mint.

Raita is very similar to Greek tzatziki which is yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, and a lot of minced garlic. I have to say that even though the raita sounds like it matches better with a roasted curried cauliflower, I'd rather have the garlicky tzatziki.

Ingredient Spotlight: Dill

Posted Jan 18th 2006 10:48PM by Nicole Weston
Filed under: The History of..., Did you know?, Brought to you by the letter D, Spices

fresh dill sprig Dill is a member of the parsley family and was originally found throughout the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia, though now it is grown all over the world, in places from California to Australia. The leaves and the seeds are edible and used as spices, flavoring everything from fish to pickles. Dill has a flavor that is a mixture between onion and caraway, but is quite unique. The flavor is most widely used in German, Russian and Scandinavian recipes, as well as being a favorite ingredient in pickling liquids.

Dill weed is the common term for the leaves of the dill plant. The plants themselves are tall with feathery leaves. The leaves can be chopped, kept whole or dried and added to any variety of dish or sauce. Fresh dill has a stronger flavor than dried, so much less is needed to flavor a dish. Dried dill has a distinct advantage for the home chef because it can be stored for several months.

Dill seeds look very much like caraway and have a strong flavor, much stronger than that of the dill leaves. They are most commonly used whole, not ground, and are often used as an accent, rather than as a main flavor, when they are included in cooking. The strong flavor makes them a preferred ingredient in pickling liquids, as it is the dill seeds that give dill pickles their name. And, as a bit of trivia, 1 tablespoon of dill seeds has as much calcium as a glass of milk, though most people are not sitting around and eating dill seeds specifically for their health.

If you have never used dill, start by adding some dried dill to equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise, with splashes of pepper and lemon juice for an easy dip. Or try one of these recipes featuring dill.

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Forget tzatziki and taste some spicy raita

Grilled Lamb and Asparagus Pitas with Tzatziki

Recipe: Sarah's Simple Tzatziki

Yogurt sauces: raita vs. tzatziki

Ingredient Spotlight: Dill

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