Tarator – Bulgarian cold yogurt soup

“Tarator”, taken by Ikonact is licensed under CC by 3.0

Tarator is beloved yogurt soup popular in some Balkan countries. Except in Bulgaria, tarator has its variations in Macedonia, Serbia, Greece and Turkey but it is most delicious with Bulgarian yogurt (duuh). The soup is perfect for summer days as it is very refreshing and light.

Basically tarator is made with yogurt, water, cucumber, wallnuts, oil,  some garlic and dill. It takes only around 10 minutes to prepare the soup which is served cold, after staying in the fridge for a while. 

A salad version of tarator is known as “Snowwhite salad” (Снежанка), also called Dry Tarator. It is made of thick (strained) yogurt, without water. It can be served as an appetizer or as a side to the main meal. It is also a common refresher during the summer.

Tarator, Photo by Bin im Garten, licensed under CC by 3.0

Ingridients for Tarator:

1 long cucumber, chopped or grated (preferably peeled)

4 cups yoghurt

1 cup water

1 garlic clove, minced or smashed

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon chopped dill

4 big walnuts, well crushed

3 teaspoons olive oil

Preparation

Put all those together and mix well. When ready garnish with olive oil (or other favorite oil). Best when served cold. It’s as simple as that!

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