cacık, tzatski, jajeek....

It's too hot these days, almost unbearable, sticky...I don't want to cook or eat anything at all but a glass of chilled milk. So I've decided to make "cacık" for my self today. Usually it is a side dish but personally I think it is a perfect lunch meal for these hottest days of summer. You can make a big bowl and put in the fridge and you'll see that it will be gone before you know!

So before giving the recipe let's make it clear all the fuzz about the cacık story. Who owns this dish? Turks or Greeks who both reclaim that it is a part of their culinary tradition? Well the answer is nobody! Because cacık is found in every part of the world where yogurt and cucumber exist! More or less the same dish is found under different names. "Cacık" in Turkey,"tzatsiki" in Greece, "jajeek" in Iraq, mast-o-khiar" -which literally means yogurt-and-cucomber- in Iran, "snezhanka" -snow white salad- in Bulgaria, "talattouri" in Cyprus or "ovdukh" in Caucasian mountains  are some of them.

The Greek version, tzatsiki, is thicker than the Turkish cacık which is made by adding a bit of cold water in it. In Greece, besides being a side dish, it is also eaten within the sandwiches made with pita bread. In Turkey cacık accompanies mostly rice and bulgour dishes with lamb meat.Plus, it is an inseparable "meze" of the national drink: Rakı

Altought the base ingredients are yogurt, cucomber and garlic many variations of cacık can be made. Some recipes uses grated cucomber and squeezed, while others just chopped roughly. Honestly it all depends on how dense do you like your cacık. I prefer a bit more juicy, freshening one. Because of this I will not give quantities in my recipe.And I also have to mention that I slightly modified the original recipe by adding fresh ginger in it. In stead of ginger the original recipe uses a few drops of lemon juice or vinegar.

 Ingredients

Plain yogurt

Cucumber

Garlic, mashed with salt

Dill, chopped finely

Fresh mint, chopped finely

Fresh Ginger, very small, grated

Olive oil 

Salt

Red chili, dried

Mix all in a big bowl. Stir well the yogurt so that it has a smooth consistency. Add  as much of cold water as you wish. Decorate with olive oil and red chilies.

 Bon Apetit!