Why D&D Poultry Makes Homemade Tzatziki — And Why No Other Ontario Chicken Processor Does

There’s a question customers ask us at the Cash & Carry fairly often: why does a chicken processor make homemade Tzatziki and Tirokafteri? The answer is the same reason we do everything the way we do — because Kostas and Anastasia Dikeos came from Greece, and this is how their family has always eaten.

Where the Recipes Come From

Anastasia Dikeos brought these recipes with her from Greece. The Tzatziki recipe — yogurt, cucumber, garlic, dill, olive oil, lemon — has not been changed since she started making it. The Tirokafteri — a spicy Greek cheese dip made with feta, roasted red peppers, olive oil, and a careful balance of heat — is equally unchanged. These aren’t recipes developed by a food technologist to hit a price point. They’re the recipes a Greek family has been making and eating for generations.

When D&D Poultry’s Cash & Carry opened to the public, the Tzatziki and Tirokafteri came with it. Not as an afterthought — as a natural expression of who this family is. You don’t sell souvlaki without tzatziki. Not in a Greek household.

Why No Other Ontario Chicken Processor Does This

The honest answer is that it doesn’t fit the model of how a chicken processing facility is supposed to operate. A processor processes chicken. Full stop. Making dairy-based dips from scratch requires a separate set of ingredients, equipment, quality controls, and recipes. It’s extra work for a relatively small volume of product.

But D&D Poultry has never operated on the model of what a chicken processor is supposed to do. They’re a family that came from Greece, built a chicken business, and never stopped cooking the way they always had. The Tzatziki and Tirokafteri exist because Anastasia makes them the same way she always has, and because the family believes a product this good should be available to their customers.

What Makes Them Different from Store-Bought

If you’ve bought Tzatziki from a grocery store, you’ve likely noticed that most commercial versions are watery, mild, and heavily stabilized with thickeners and preservatives. Anastasia’s Tzatziki is thick, garlic-forward, and made from full-fat yogurt with properly drained cucumber. There are no stabilizers, no thickeners, and no ingredients that exist to extend shelf life at the expense of flavour.

The Tirokafteri is similarly uncompromising. Spicy in a way that builds gradually, with the saltiness of good feta and the sweetness of roasted pepper balancing the heat. It’s the kind of dip that people come back to specifically — not just something to have on the table.

Who Buys Them

Our Cash & Carry regulars — many of them from the GTA’s Greek community, but increasingly from every background — come specifically for the Tzatziki and Tirokafteri. They pair naturally with everything we sell: souvlaki, kafta, shawarma, stuffed chicken, grilled breasts. They also go out to food service clients — restaurants, catering companies, and institutions that want an authentic product rather than a commercial approximation.

Where to Get Them

The Tzatziki and Tirokafteri are available at our Cash & Carry at 300 Milliken Blvd, Toronto, ON M1V 4T4. Open Monday to Friday 9am–5pm, Saturday 9am–3pm. Call 416-609-9300 to confirm stock before your visit — they sell quickly and we want you to leave with what you came for.

Food service clients interested in adding our homemade Tzatziki and Tirokafteri to their program can contact Darko Janovski at darko@ddpoultry.com or 416-609-9300.

Three generations of the Dikeos family have been making these recipes. They’ll be making them for three more. Come try them.

Pick up homemade Tzatziki and Tirokafteri at our Cash & Carry — 300 Milliken Blvd, Toronto | Mon–Fri 9am–5pm, Sat 9am–3pm

416-609-9300