We are blessed to have a freezer full of venison this year. One of my favorite things to do with venison is to make gyros. I don’t do much with the meat. I season it with salt and pepper and cook it in the crockpot. After about 8 hours on low it is falling off the bone. I chop it up and serve it with pitas, lettuce, tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion, and tzatziki.

The secret to really good tzatziki is to squeeze all of the juice out of the cucumber.

Tzatziki

Tzatziki is great served with gyros (especially venison gyros) or as a dipping sauce for fresh vegetables.

Equipment

• colander
• bowl

Ingredients  

• 1 medium cucumber grated (peel and seed it or just use it all)
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 6 oz Greek yogurt
• 1 tsp fresh garlic minced
• 1 tsp fresh mint minced
• 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Instructions 

1. Grate the cucumber.
2. Sprinkle with the kosher salt and place in a colander to drain. Wait for 10 minutes.
3. After 10 minutes, squeeze the grated cucumber in your hands to remove as much liquid as possible. Place in the bowl.
4. Add the remaining ingredients and stir. Let sit for 10 minutes so flavors can blend.
5. Serve.