tzatziki

Tzatziki, also known as cacık or tarator, is a class of dip, soup, or sauce found in the cuisines of Southern Europe and the Middle East. It is made of salted strained yogurt or diluted yogurt mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, olive oil, sometimes with vinegar or lemon juice, and herbs such as dill, mint, parsley and thyme. It is served as a cold appetizer (mezze), a side dish, and as a sauce for souvlaki and gyros sandwiches and other foods. History Tarator was the name of a dish made of ground walnuts and vinegar in the Ottoman Empire. Dishes of various preparations in the region, including dips, salads, and sauces, acquired the name. In the Levant, taratur is a sauce based on tahini, while in Turkey and the Balkans it came to mean a combination of yogurt and cucumbers, sometimes with walnuts. It has become a traditional part of meze. Etymology The word "tzatziki" appeared in English around the mid-20th century as a loanword from Modern Greek, which in turn comes from the Turkish word "". The root is likely related to several words in Western Asian languages. Persian refers to various herbs used for cooking. That word is combined with the Turkish diminutive suffix -cık to yield cacık. It may be related to an Armenian word, cacıg. According to Sevan Nişanyan the Armenian word may itself come from Turkish or Kurdish.