Three Easy Yogurt Mezes
Story of Yogurt
Here is a delicious Yogurt Sauce recipe so you can easily create your colourful veggie snacks, dips, and mezes.
Yogurt is the oldest ingredient of Turkish Cuisine. We eat yogurt every day and at every meal in various forms.
Yogurt is in our dessert recipes, breads, soups, and pastries. Yogurt is in our mezes, salads, and marination mixtures, as well as, on our breakfast tables, in our appetizers and various beverages.
Use this natural probiotic to improve your gut health and observe its wonderful effects on the body.
Enjoy the tasty and nutritious food choice!
THREE EASY YOGURT MEZES: Delicious homemade dips & tapas
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Ingredients
The Yogurt Sauce:
750 g plain yogurt or 400 g condensed yogurt
2 lemons
½ cup mayonnaise
2 tbsp olive oil
2-3 garlic cloves
½ tbsp salt
½ tsp ground black pepper
Carrot:
4 medium-sized (~450 g) carrots
¼ cup olive oil
Squash:
4 medium-sized (~800 g) squashes
¼ cup olive oil
1 cup (~100 g) walnuts cups water
Beet root:
3 large (~650 g) beet roots
¼ cup olive oil
2 tbsp honey
Notes from the Kitchen
Please use plain Balkan Yogurt or Turkish condensed yogurt. Greek Yogurt or flavored yogurts do not achieve the same taste and consistency.
By using the Yogurt Sauce as a base, you can vary the vegetables and spices based on your taste.
By adding a tbsp of dried mint in the Yogurt Sauce, you can prepare a probiotic cips sauce.
Directions
THE YOGURT SAUCE
To prepare condense yogurt, line a mesh strainer with a couple layers of cheesecloth. Pour 750 g of yogurt into the strainer and let sit in the fridge for 2-3 hours. Use a deep bowl to catch the strained juice. You can also use 400 g of strained yogurt for convenience.
Peel, wash, and mince 3 garlic cloves. Transfer the strained yogurt into a large bowl.
Add ½ tbsp of salt, ½ tsp of ground black pepper, ½ cup of mayonnaise, the juice of 2 lemons, minced garlic, and 2 tbsp of olive oil.
Whisk the ingredients until you achieve a smooth Yogurt Sauce. Cover the bowl and store in the fridge until serving.
VEGETABLES
CARROT
Wash and peel the carrots.
Grate them using a large grater.
Stir grated carrots with ¼ cup of olive oil on medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes until they soften. Set aside to cool down to room temperature .
Then, combine the carrots with 1/3 of the Yogurt Sauce and mix thoroughly.
Place the Carrot Meze onto a serving plate and decorate for serving.
SQUASH
Wash the squashes. Discard the stems and grate them using a large grater.
Stir the grated squashes with ¼ cup of olive oil on medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes.
Drain its excess juice for a better consistency. You can use this colourful juice in your soups.
Roughly chop 1 cup of walnuts and mix with the squashes.
When the mixture has cooled down to room temperature combine with another 1/3 of the Yogurt Sauce and mix until you have a smooth Squash Meze.
Place the Squash Meze onto a serving plate and decorate for serving.
BEET ROOT
Wash and peel the beet roots. Grate them using a large grater.
Stir the grated beet roots with ¼ cup of olive oil on medium-high heat for 12-15 minutes until they soften.
Enhance their slightly sweet taste by adding 2 tbsp of honey and set aside to cool down to room temperature.
Then, combine well with the remaining 1/3 of the Yogurt Sauce.
Place the Beet Root Meze onto a serving plate and decorate for serving. Keep the Vegetable Mezes in the fridge until serving.
SERVING
Sautéed vegetables with Yogurt Sauce are among the favourite side dishes at family dinner table and favourite Meze at Chilingir Sofrasi / Turkish Raki Table.
You can choose your favourite vegetables and create your own unique snacks or side dishes. You must try these easy and colourful little dishes to appreciate the simplicity of such tasteful and nutritious meals.
Enjoy!
