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My easy homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe is the perfect pairing for any of your favorite seafood dishes! I use fresh and simple ingredients to create an extra creamy sauce you will love making at home. Plus, my recipe for tartar sauce is ready to enjoy in just under 10 minutes!
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Best Tartar Sauce Recipe
Whether you are frying a fresh catch or serving up fish sticks for your kids, my homemade tartar sauce is exactly what you need for the perfect meal! There are so many uses for homemade tartar sauce; from crab cakes to grilled shrimp, this is a versatile sauce you will love to have on hand.
The best part about this recipe is how easily it comes together: simply chop a few ingredients and mix them together in a bowl! This velvety tartar sauce perfectly coats whatever you decide to serve with it, and is so delicious.
My secret to a traditional tartar sauce recipe is the pickles! Pickles add just the right amount of zesty flavor, which cuts through the richness of the outside batter.
Don't forget, you can also use this sauce as a dressing, condiment, or vegetable dipping sauce!
Making Tartar Sauce FAQs
Tartar sauce is a creamy white sauce made from mayonnaise and herbs, with notes of dill, lemon juice, capers, and spices.
As tartar sauce is a mayonnaise-based sauce, it does not freeze well, as the sauce could separate in the process. Good news is, there usually isn't much of this sauce left over!
My recipe for homemade tartar sauce is a naturally gluten and grain-free sauce. As always, be sure to check each ingredient for specific food handling and allergy information.
Though both tartar and horseradish sauce are creamy, mayonnaise-based sauces, they are not the same. Horseradish sauce is very sharp and pungent with a slightly spicy flavor. Traditional tartar sauce uses fresh dill, which is mild in flavor.
What is in tartar sauce?
- Mayonnaise
- Dill pickles
- Fresh Dill
- Parsley
- Lemon Juice
- Sugar
- Black pepper
My tartar sauce recipe contains the perfect blend of ingredients for a balanced, flavorful sauce recipe you will love serving with fish of all kinds. Follow my steps for how to make tartar sauce for fish fillets, crab cakes, fish sticks, and more - I guarantee you will love this easy sauce recipe!
How to Make Tartar Sauce
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add mayonnaise, lemon juice, and sugar. Whisk until sugar has dissolved slightly.
- Add remaining ingredients and mix until incorporated.
- Serve immediately or place into a container and store in the refrigerator.
Recipe Tips
- If you like your tartar sauce more on the tart side, add more pickles and lemon juice.
- As a preference, you can add pickle juice to tartar sauce to thin it.
- For differently variations of tartar sauce, try adding ingredients like finely chopped onions, capers, thyme, cayenne pepper, or paprika.
- For a sweeter tartar sauce, try using bread and butter pickles!
How to Store Tartar Sauce
Store tartar sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator. After it's made, homemade tartar sauce is best when left in the fridge for up to one week.
I like to store my homemade tartar sauce in a covered mason jar, which fits perfectly on the shelves in the fridge!
What to Serve with Tartar Sauce
Of course, so many people love the classic combination of tartar sauce with fresh fish and chips, or fish sticks (my kids love homemade tartar sauce with fish sticks)!
But there are so many wonderful ways to serve this sauce - here are a few of my favorites:
- Pan Seared Crab or Salmon Cakes
- Grilled Shrimp Skewers
- With a Baked Potato
- Dipping Sauce for Vegetable Platters
- Sauce for a Fried Fish Sandwich
- As a Topping for any Fried, Grilled, or Roasted Fish Fillets
- Dipping Sauce for Pinwheels
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Easy Homemade Tartar Sauce
Equipment
- 1 Whisk
- 1 medium-sized mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup finely chopped dill pickles
- 1 tablespoon dill finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon parsley finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, add mayonnaise, lemon juice, and sugar. Whisk until sugar has dissolved slightly.
- Add remaining ingredients and mix until incorporated.
- Serve immediately or place into a container and store in the refrigerator.
Notes
- If you like your tartar sauce more on the tart side, add more pickles and lemon juice.
- As a preference, you can add pickle juice to tartar sauce to thin it.
- For differently variations of tartar sauce, try adding ingredients like finely chopped onions, capers, thyme, cayenne pepper, or paprika.
- For a sweeter tartar sauce, try using bread and butter pickles!
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