Is tzatziki vegan? Unfortunately, one of the main ingredients in the popular Greek sauce is yogurt. So no, it is not vegan. Fortunately, this Greek-inspired vegan tzatziki sauce recipe uses either vegan sour cream or vegan yogurt. It does a great job filling the void.
It’s super easy to make. You chop some cucumber and herbs, and then, mix them with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. It tastes awesome on grilled vegetables (like eggplant and zucchini), on toasted flatbread, or on top of a vegan souvlaki pita.
A few things…
- ・No food processor? Finely chop the cucumber by hand.
- ・Patting the cucumber dry with a paper towel removes excess liquid. If you skip this, your sauce may be less creamy.
- ・You can use vegan sour cream or vegan yogurt in this tzatziki recipe. If you use vegan sour cream, you’ll need to add 1 tsp lemon juice.
- ・There are a lot of fresh herbs–dill, mint and parsley. While it may not be super traditional to add them all at once, it’s very tasty.
This vegan tzatziki recipe makes ~1½ cups of sauce.
Vegan Tzatziki Sauce
1 cup large dice English cucumber (chop it enough to measure it, and get it in the blender)
1 cup vegan sour cream + 1 tsp lemon juice (OR 1 cup plain unsweetened vegan yogurt)
½-1 tsp garlic powder
¼ cup finely chopped fresh dill
¼ cup finely chopped fresh mint
2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
½ tsp salt
1. Add the English cucumber to a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Spoon into a large mixing bowl. Pat the cucumber dry with a paper towel.
2. Add the remaining tzatziki sauce ingredients to the mixing bowl, and stir until well combined. Taste, and adjust seasonings, if needed (salt? garlic powder?). Serve with grilled eggplant or zucchini, or on top of Tempeh Souvlaki Pitas.
