This is the dip for people who think they do not have time to make dip. Five minutes of stirring tonight, and by tomorrow you have a creamy, nutty, gently spiced bowl that tastes like far more effort than it was. The fridge does the actual cooking here: overnight, the native spices and mint infuse right through the yoghurt, so every spoonful tastes seasoned rather than sprinkled.
The flavour comes from our Australian Native Bush Dukkah, a coarse blend of Macadamias, Almonds and Pistachios with native spices through it. Stirred through yoghurt, it does two jobs at once: the ground spice seasons the base, while the crushed nuts leave a genuine crunch in every scoop. Cumin adds earthiness, fresh mint brings lift, and a splash of white wine vinegar gives it tang, landing the finished dip somewhere between a tzatziki and a Middle Eastern yoghurt sauce, with an unmistakably Australian accent. It is also one of the more flexible things you can keep in the fridge: a dip tonight, a sauce tomorrow, a dollop the day after, all from the same bowl.
At a glance: Makes about 1 cup | Prep 5 min | No cooking | Rest overnight
Dukkah Yoghurt Dip
Makes about 1 cup
Prep 5 minutes
Rest overnight
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon (15g) Australian Native Bush Dukkah
- 200ml (200g) plain natural yoghurt (or coconut yoghurt for dairy free)
- 1 tablespoon (20ml) olive oil
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) white wine vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon (1g) ground cumin
- ¼ cup (10g) finely chopped fresh mint leaves
Method
- Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix until well combined. Bush Dukkah is coarser than a ground spice blend, so stir thoroughly. Those small chopped pieces of nut are meant to keep their crunch, not dissolve into the mix, and that is what gives the finished dip its texture.
- Cover and refrigerate overnight. This resting time is the actual recipe: it gives the spices time to bloom in the yoghurt and the mint time to infuse right through the base, rather than sitting on top of it.
- Stir once more before serving, and finish with an extra scatter of Dukkah and a drizzle of olive oil over the top.
One dip, three dinners
The reason this dip earns a permanent spot in the fridge is that it does not stay a dip. The same bowl moves through the week in three different jobs, and each one asks something slightly different of the texture.
- Tonight, as a dip. Straight from the fridge, thick and cold, with flatbread or raw vegetables for dunking. This is where the crunch of the Dukkah matters most, so keep it thick and resist the urge to thin it down.
- Tomorrow, as a sauce for lamb. Loosen it with a spoonful of water or a little extra olive oil until it pools rather than holds its shape, then spoon it generously over grilled lamb cutlets or shredded roast lamb. The cumin and mint were doing this job all along. You are only changing the consistency to suit the plate.
- The day after, as a dollop for roast vegetables. Left thick, a spoonful on the side of roast pumpkin, carrots or cauliflower does the work a sauce usually does, without needing to make a second thing.
Do not judge the dip on day one and expect exactly the same thing on day three. It thickens slightly in the fridge as the yoghurt sets back down, so a stir with a small splash of water brings it back to the right consistency before serving, whichever of the three ways above you have in mind.
Making it your own
- Our Bush Dukkah contains Macadamias, Almonds and Pistachios. Skip or swap this recipe if you are cooking for nut allergies.
- Prefer a smooth dip? Blitz everything briefly in a small food processor instead of stirring. You lose the crunch but gain a silky sauce, which is arguably the better base for the lamb version above.
- The coconut yoghurt version is genuinely good, not just a fallback. Choose a thick, unsweetened one, or the dip will end up sweet rather than savoury.
- A final scatter of Bush Dukkah just before serving keeps the crunch obvious, even once the fridge has softened the rest.
Keeping it
Keep covered in the fridge for up to 3 days, and keep it refrigerated right up until serving, especially in the lamb sauce version where it will sit out at the table for a while. Stir before each use, whichever of the three ways above you are serving it.
If Dukkah is new to your fridge, Australian Native Bush Dukkah is the one jar to start with. It is coarse, nutty and native spiced, and it earns its place in far more than one recipe, this being proof. For another way to put it to work, try our Dukkah Marinated Spring Veggies.
