I’m going to let you all in on a little secret… and that is the recipe for our favorite “secret sauce”! As an alternative to sour cream, this plain yogurt-based sauce is zero-guilt, far from plain, and 100% delicious. Like really, really good. Whenever we bring it to a party or potluck, everyone raves about it!
Furthermore, this creamy yogurt dipping sauce is awesomely versatile! Sort of like ranch dressing. We enjoy it in SO many ways. It will shine as the star dip in a veggie platter, or can be drizzled on top of homemade veggie burgers, zucchini fritters, sandwiches, wraps, potato dishes, or falafel. It is also a great creamy salad dressing. Hell, I even dip cold pizza in this stuff! We don’t eat meat around here, but this dill yogurt sauce would compliment salmon or battered fish nicely too – like tartar sauce.
Did I mention that it is also crazy-easy to make?
The final “secret” about this yogurt sauce is this: it gets better with time! No no, not weeks old of course. Gross. But if you can, plan in advance and make the yogurt dip a day before you want to enjoy it. If that isn’t possible, at least several hours beforehand. Over the first couple of days in the fridge it becomes a bit thicker, and all of the wonderful dill, garlic, and lemon flavors exponentially shine through!
INGREDIENTS
2 cups of plain yogurt. Whole-fat yogurt is best for a thicker sauce! We usually buy this organic plain yogurt from Stonyfield. For a vegan variation, plain coconut yogurt would be a great substitute!
1/3 packed cup of chopped dill, or about 1 standard clam shell herb package
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon of coarse black pepper (or to taste)
A sprinkle of lemon zest, to top. Snag Meyer lemons if possible! Their skin is phenomenally soft and sweet.
Optional: 1 teaspoon of onion powder. We use our homegrown sweet onion powder for this recipe. If you want to learn how to make your own onion powder, check out this article!
INSTRUCTIONS
In a mixing bowl, combine the called-for yogurt, finely chopped dill, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Mix well. Top the bowl with a sprinkle of lemon zest now, or before serving. When you’re zesting the lemon peels, make sure to do so shallowly and avoid the white pith. Feel free to scale the recipe up or down as needed! We typically make a double batch if we’re making this for a crowd – so we can stash a little away for ourselves too!
Refrigerate for several hours or overnight before serving, to allow the flavors to get happy in there! Serve cold with your meal of choice. The yogurt dill sauce/dressing will be good for one week in the refrigerator.
The provided recipe is intentionally simple, and plenty flavorful on its own. Let it be your base, but if you feel like changing it up a little, by all means… Go for it! We have played with many variations of this yogurt sauce over the years, especially if we have excess garden goodies to use.
Try adding a handful of chopped chives for nice savory pop of flavor. Or, especially during summer garden time, throw in half a cup of finely grated cucumber for a tzatziki-like spin! It is recommended to wring out the cucumber after grating, to avoid adding too much liquid to the sauce. Diced bell peppers, sweet onions, spinach, or even massaged and chopped kale would be divine too!
There you have it. The secret it out!
If you enjoy this recipe, you may also love our other favorite go-to sauce: “The Besto Pesto”! We spend the summer months making many batches of our popular lemon, walnut and parmesan pesto with garden basil – stocking the freezer for the entire year. It too goes well with more meals than you’d imagine!
I hope you love this dill yogurt sauce recipe as much as we do. If so, please let us know in the comments, and feel free to let your friends in on the secret too!
Enjoy this zero-guilt, flavor-packed healthy dipping yogurt sauce – made with plain yogurt, fresh dill, lemon juice, and garlic. It can also be used as a salad dressing!
Prep Time15 minutesmins
Course: Dressing, Side Dish
Keyword: Vegetarian, Yogurt Sauce
Ingredients
2cupsplain yogurtwhole-fat or greek yogurt, substitute plain coconut yogurt for a vegan twist
1/3cupfresh dillchopped
2clovesgarlicminced
2tbsplemon juicefresh-squeezed, if possible
1/2tspsea salt
1/4 tspcoarse black pepper (or to taste)
sprinklelemon zestto top
1tsponion powderoptional
Instructions
Combine yogurt, chopped dill, minced garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a bowl.
Once thoroughly combined, add lemon zest to top of sauce for garnish.
Refrigerate at least a few hours to overnight before serving to let the flavors meld.
Enjoy! Use within one week.
Share on PinterestShare on FacebookShare on X (Twitter)Share on EmailShare on Reddit
To a small mixing bowl add yogurt, minced garlic, fresh dill, salt, cayenne, lemon juice, and olive oil and stir to combine. Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more lemon for acidity, garlic for zing, dill for herbal flavor, salt to taste, pepper for heat, or olive oil for richness.
You can thicken the recipe by adding cornstarch (or flour) before adding yogurt. You can mix cornstarch with yogurt before adding it to the recipe. Dissolve 10 ml (2 tsp.) of cornstarch in 75 ml (1/3 cup) of water and bring it to a boil in the microwave or while stirring on the stovetop.
35 Cal. This super smooth and refreshing dressing brightens up everything it's served with. Made with Greek yogurt, lots of fresh and vibrant dill, cucumbers, and a hit of lemon juice. Drizzle over light salads and grilled meats.
Dill is rich in a variety of plant compounds that may have numerous benefits for health, including protection against heart disease and certain forms of cancer. Additionally, dill may help lower blood sugar levels, but more human studies are needed.
Besides helping you develop a more refined palate, dill offers substantial health benefits. Studies have shown that dill can be used to help manage diabetes. Not only do these studies show that dill helps manage existing type 2 diabetes, but it also shows that dill may help prevent type 2 diabetes from developing.
Our creamy, tangy Greek Yogurt is a great substitution for sour cream or other high-fat cream in soups, sauces and stews. But heat can cause yogurt to separate, so whisk it in off the heat at the end, gently re-warming the dish over low heat if necessary, but not letting it simmer or boil.
Applesauce. Whether homemade or from a jar, no-sugar-added applesauce is a perfect sweetener for yogurt. It stirs in easily and is already is most people's pantry or fridge.
This yogurt dill sauce, also called tzatziki, is made with low-fat Greek yogurt, dill, lemon, cucumber, and garlic. It's creamy, tangy, and packed with flavor. This sauce is the perfect healthy condiment for sandwiches and gyros, dipping sauce for vegetables and pita, and dressing for salads.
The only difference is that a Tzatziki Sauce has a tablespoon of lemon juice and a couple of cloves of minced garlic added to these same ingredients I used below. The ingredients need for this Cucumber Dill Sauce for so simple. It's just cucumber, Greek yogurt, milk and chopped fresh dill.
Store sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for 3-4 months. Defrost frozen sauce overnight in the fridge before using. The texture can get a little bit grainy after freezing: we recommend blending sauce in a blender or food processor once defrosted to smooth it out again.
This yogurt dill sauce, also called tzatziki, is made with low-fat Greek yogurt, dill, lemon, cucumber, and garlic. It's creamy, tangy, and packed with flavor. This sauce is the perfect healthy condiment for sandwiches and gyros, dipping sauce for vegetables and pita, and dressing for salads.
From the pea family, fenugreek is one of the few rare plants that produces both an herb and a seed (which is considered a spice). The other two plants are the Coriandrum sativum which gives us both cilantro and coriander seeds and the dill which produces dill weed and dill seed.
Fresh dill sprigs are intrinsically blessed with an array of nutrients including Vitamin A, C, D, riboflavin, manganese, folate, iron, copper, potassium, magnesium, zinc and dietary fibres.
Greek yogurt, cucumber, garlic, lemon juice, and dill are combined to make an incredibly versatile sauce. Serve with toasted pita wedges as an appetizer, or pair with grilled lamb, chicken, fish, or vegetables.
Address: 569 Waelchi Ports, South Blainebury, LA 11589
Phone: +9958996486049
Job: Sales Manager
Hobby: Web surfing, Scuba diving, Mountaineering, Writing, Sailing, Dance, Blacksmithing
Introduction: My name is Prof. Nancy Dach, I am a lively, joyous, courageous, lovely, tender, charming, open person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.