Tzatziki

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 West Asian languages. Persian '' () refers to various herbs used for cooking, and Kurdish jaj or refers to the caraway herb. That word is combined with the Turkish diminutive suffix -cık to yield cacık. The Armenian word cacıg'' is also related to this term and may itself derive from Turkish or Kurdish. Evliya Çelebi's 1665 travelogue, the Seyahatnâme, defined cacıχ (cacıg) as a kind of herb that is added to food. According to Sevan Nişanyan, the name tarator (sauce) comes into Turkish directly from the Venetian word "trattor". In Venetian, this word means "cook". It has acquired the meaning of a type of sauce in Turkish. It has likely been borrowed from Turkish into other languages. The first use of this word in the sense of sauce was in Seyahatnâme. ==History==

Tzatziki and similar yogurt-based dishes trace their origins to the Central Asian yogurt culture, which spread to Anatolia, the Balkans, and the Middle East through Turkic migrations. Medieval Turks introduced yogurt-based cold soups and sauces to Anatolia. Abbasid author Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq provided 3 recipes for (, ), which were yogurt salads, in his 10th century Arabic-language cookbook, according to food historian Nawal Nasrallah, these are an ancestor of modern cucumber-salad jajik, she dates this as the earliest known recipe. Later mentions of it can be found in Egyptian cookbooks from the 14th and 15th centuries. During the Ottoman Empire, yogurt and garlic condiments became a part of the meze tradition. One notable example was tarator, prepared with yogurt, cucumber, garlic, or sometimes walnuts. Seyahatnâme describes dishes made with yogurt and garlic, demonstrating their established place in Ottoman cuisine. In the Balkans and the Levant, variations of tarator developed with different bases: in the Levant it is usually made with tahini, while in the Balkans it may include yogurt and walnuts. In Anatolia, however, the version made with yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and sometimes walnuts became known as cacık. Today, cacık is widely consumed in Turkey as a refreshing dish, especially in summer, while related versions continue to exist in Balkan and Levantine cuisines. ==Variations==

Turkey Turkish cacık is made by combining water and yogurt together with garlic and different combinations of vegetables and herbs. Labne may be substituted for some of the yogurt. Turkish cacık also has many variations; different recipes use wheat berries, carrots, scallions, mint, radish, red pepper, parsley, dill, basil, chondrilla juncea, vinegar, walnuts, hazelnuts and unripe almonds. For cacıklı arap köftesi, kofta made from a mix of bulgur and ground meat is served over cacık. In this case the cacık is made with chard rather than the usual cucumber (spinach or parsley may be substituted for the chard. Some recipes use purslane). Bulgurlu madımak cacığı is made with cracked wheat, cucumber and a type of knotweed called madımak. Balkans Tarator is found in many Balkan countries, often served as a soup or liquid salad, especially in summer. It is typically made with yogurt, cucumbers, garlic, oil, and salt, and commonly includes dill and walnuts; water may be added to thin it, and the dish is served chilled. In Bulgaria, tarator is a traditional cold soup and a popular summer dish. In Albania, tarator is likewise eaten as a cold summer dish made from yogurt, cucumber, garlic, and herbs, often with olive oil; the consistency may range from soup-like to dip-like depending on the yogurt used and the amount of added water. Greece Greek-style tzatziki sauce is commonly served as a meze, to be eaten with pita bread, olives, fried eggplant, zucchini, or other vegetables. It is also used for dishes like gyros, or souvlaki and most other greek dishes. Regular tzatziki is made of strained yogurt (usually from sheep or goat milk) mixed with cucumbers, garlic, salt, olive oil, vinegar, dill, mint, and parsley. There also is a version where walnut oil, crushed nuts (like walnuts, hazelnuts, or almonds) and red peppers are added to the standard yoghurt base. Cyprus In Cyprus, the dish is known as ("talattouri") and is similar to the Greek recipe with a more characteristic flavour of mint and added acidity in the form of lemon juice. It is made from strained yogurt, sliced cucumbers, minced garlic cloves, lemon juice and sprinkled with dried mint, oregano or olive oil. It may accompany alcoholic drinks, especially arak, an ouzo-like drink made from anise. In Iran, it is known as mast o khiar. ==Similar dishes==

A similar dish in the Caucasus mountains, called ovdukh, uses kefir instead of the yogurt. This can be poured over a mixture of vegetables, eggs and ham to create a variation of okroshka, sometimes referred to as a "Caucasus okroshka". Mizeria is a Polish dish of sliced cucumbers mixed with sour cream or another fermented milk product, often herbs (such as dill or chives) and seasonings, which is commonly served as a savoury or sweet side salad with typical dinner dishes. In South Asia, a similar dish is made with yogurt, cucumber, salt and ground cumin (sometimes also including onions) called "raita". In Iran, ash-e doogh is another type of yogurt soup; instead of cucumbers it contains a variety of herbs such as basil, leek, mint, black pepper and raisins. In this style, sometimes dried bread chips, chopped nuts or raisins are put in the dish just before serving. ==Notes==