Greek Souvlaki with Tzatziki Sauce

If your family has never had greek food, this recipe is the perfect cultural experience.



Becky Low shares how to make Greek Souvlaki.

Greek Souvlaki
2 pounds boneless meat (pork, lamb, chicken)
½ small red onion
1 lemon
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon onion powder
3-4 cloves minced garlic
½ cup olive oil
Tzatziki Sauce (cucumber yogurt) or Mint Sauce (see recipes below)

Trim excess fat from (some fat is desirable for flavor, fattier cuts of meat will be more flavorful). Cut meat into 1-inch cubes. Cut onion into squares to match meat cubes. Place meat and onion in zip-lock bag or glass baking dish.



Roll lemon under palm and microwave a few seconds to help release juice. Zest or finely grate the peel from lemon; squeeze juice (should have approximately ⅓-cup juice). Whisk together lemon zest and juice with salt, oregano, onion powder, minced garlic and olive oil. Pour marinade over meat and onions; cover and/or seal bag. Marinate at least 30 minutes, preferable refrigerate 3-4 hours (up to 24 hours).



Soak wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes. Drain water.



Preheat oven to 450 degrees or heat grill. Drain marinade from meat and discard. Alternating place meat cubes and onion squares on skewers. Grill, broil, or roast about 8 minutes or until cooked through, turning to brown all sides. Serve in pita bread, on lemon rice and or with Greek salad.



Notes:

Greek street food comfort, a staple at annual festivals. Making Souvlaki at home is the next best thing to attending the festival. (Note: whisk together 6-tablespoons olive oil, 1-teaspoon oregano, juice from 1 lemon, salt to taste. Brush dressing over cooked kabobs as they come off the grill.) Serves 6.
Tzatziki Sauce
1-2 medium cucumbers
16 ounces plain yogurt (I prefer Greek yogurt)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
Salt to taste
Whole milk, optional

Peel cucumbers, slice lengthwise into quarters and remove seeds, grate or finely chop (food processor works great for this task). Stir together cucumbers, yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, and dill. Salt to taste. If desired, thin sauce to desired consistency stirring in 1-tablespoon milk at a time. Refrigerate at least 1-hour to blend flavors.



Sauce is excellent as a salad dressing, dipping fresh vegetables or pita, served over lemon rice, and drizzled over Souvlaki. Makes approximately 2 ½ cups.
Mint Yogurt Sauce
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons whole milk
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 cloves minced garlic
½ cup finely chopped mint leaves

Whisk together yogurt, milk, lemon juice, garlic and mint leaves. Salt to taste; may also add additional lemon if desired. Refrigerate to blend flavors (up to 2 days). Makes about 2-cups sauce.

Lemon Dressing
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 lemon, juiced
Salt, to taste

Whisk together all ingredients. Nice to drizzle over Greek salad, or brush over grilled kabobs.



Becky Low represents The Dairy Council of Utah/Nevada. For delicious dairy recipes and nutrition information go to
www.dairycouncilutnv.com or Facebook www.facebook.com/DairyUTNV.
For nutrition research go to www.nationaldairycouncil.org.