Jajek / Khiyar bi Leban -Yogurt and Cucumber

This delicous cool and creamy dish can be eaten alone as a salad, a side dish, used as a dipping sauce, or added to pita sandwiches. It is very healthy and tasty. The recipe can be altered to your taste with different herbs either fresh or dry. I grew up eating this without any herbs. The dish can also be altered by using thicker or thinner yorgurt, or made with lebneh (yogurt strained in a cheese cloth) instead of yogurt.

 

Ingredients:
2 cups plain yogurt
2 Lebanese/Armenian cucumbers or 1/2 of an English cucumber finely chopped
1 garlic clove, mashed then minced
1/8 teaspoon salt
Optional: 1 teaspoon dried mint

Put yogurt in a bowl and cover  with at least 6  layers of paper towels to absorb excess water. Set aside for a 5 minutes. Discard the paper towel, and stir the yogurt. Add the cucumbers, garlic, and salt. Mix well.

Add more garlic and salt if desired, but beware, the garlic will become much stronger tasting after the dish sits.