Try this homemade tartar sauce, and you’ll never want store-bought again. This has amazing flavor and texture with every bite. It’s perfect as a dip for fish sticks, crab cakes, or a spread for seafood sandwiches.
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Homemade Tartar Sauce
I was frustrated with store-bought tartar sauce; one disappointing can after another. Solution: homemade tarter sauce. Making your own is really easy. It’s fresh and amazing for these salmon cakes fish sticks or breaded fish fillets.
My Aunt Anna taught me how to make this Tartar Sauce recipe – she learned it in culinary school, and this is the recipe they made in their restaurant. I’ve probably made this a hundred times, and my fishstick-loving teenage son makes it regularly. It’s our go-to because it’s so easy to make, has simple ingredients and keeps really well in the fridge.
See those fish sticks in the photo – yeah, those are from Costco. Maybe one day, I’ll make my own fish sticks, but for now, these are really good (the Trident brand). Sometimes, I find that I eat more tartar sauce than fish sticks (sounds gross, but this sauce is THAT GOOD!). This recipe stays fresh in the fridge for a few days.
Tartar Sauce Video
Watch my easy video tutorial, and you’ll have this recipe memorized in no time!
Ingredients for Tartar Sauce
- Real Mayonnaise – you can use your favorite storebought mayo or homemade mayonnaise
- Dill pickles – I prefer baby dills for extra crunch since they have more surface area.
- Dill (or) Parsley – you can use fresh or frozen – it adds freshness.
- 1 tsp lemon juice – freshly squeezed is best
- 1 tsp sugar – this balances the sauce, but you can add it to taste
- Pepper – freshly cracked smells and tastes the freshest
- Onion – it’s 2 Tbsp of chopped onion, and it’s optional (I usually skip it when I’m feeling lazy to chop an onion).
How to Make Tartar Sauce
This is really complicated, so pay attention. Are you ready?…
1. Combine everything in a mixing bowl and give it a good stir. Done!
Serve Tartar Sauce With
There are so many great uses for Tartar Sauce, from a dipping sauce to sandwiches. Outside of fish sticks, we love it with:
- Crab Cakes
- Shrimp Cakes
- Fish Tacos
- Salmon Patties
- Onion Rings
- Air Fryer French Fries
- Grilled Salmon Sandwich
Storing Tartar Sauce
Homemade Tartar Sauce keeps really well in the refrigerator. Transfer to an airtight container or jar and refrigerate. It is best enjoyed within 1 week but can last up to 2 weeks.
Tartar Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise*
- 1 cup dill pickles, finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp dill, fresh or frozen, OR 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
- 2 Tbsp onion, finely chopped, optional
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine.
- Add more lemon juice or pickles if desired.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi there’s actually 2 types of tarter sauce yours that is good had this before with a dilly taste. I make mine with sweet pickle relish a little lemon and mayo. Both are great
Loved this and everything I have made from your recipes.Im the cook for my wife and myself
And I like it simple and tasty. You ROCK! Thank you!
Thank you for that wonderful compliment, Jerry! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
This is so good! I use pickle relish that I canned instead of pickles.
You are adorable! Dill pickles are hard to chop. So I used drained Vlasic dill relish. AND…. who knew, my herb scissors did a great job chopping the little green onion tops. You are my ‘go to’ chef for interesting recipes. I always drain my yogurt in a coffee filter over night. Add blueberries and a bit of sugar or maple sugar for a super dessert. THANKS from an 81 year old granny. Never too old to learn new stuff.
Thank you so much for your trust. I’m happy to hear that you are enjoying the recipes that you tried!
Almost exactly mine. However, I will add the herbs and lemon juice next time I make it. Great recipe, thanks. You are my favorite chef!
Thank you for that wonderful compliment!
So perfect. I have many tartar recipes. This compliments many fish dishes, satisfying everyone’s taste buds.
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review!
I think 1 cup of chopped dill pickles is way too much. That makes it almost 50% pickles and 50% mayo. I used 1 cup mayo and 3 tblsp dill pickle and 2 tblsp minced onion and it was good.
Use dill pickle relish. No need to add the dill. Finely chopped sweet onions are a great addition.
I add a dash of horseradish and everyone says its the best they have EVER had… and they are all west coast fish eaters!
That’s great feedback! Thanks a lot for sharing.
I made your tarter sauce recipe for the second time today and the fish sticks you mentioned from Costco. I have been wanting a good recipe for tarter sauce and thanks to you I now have it!
I’m so glad you found it on my blog and love it! You will never go back to buying this in store again.
It is delish! And very easy to make! I used dehydrated dill (Litehouse brand) and it was still good – can only imagine what it’d be like with fresh dill! Next time!
Hello Heather, thank you for your great feedback. I’m so glad you loved it!
Perfect compliment to my salmon patties. I think I may have eaten more tarter sauce than salmon 😉
This recipe is has been added to my files…yummy!
Thank you, thank you, thank you! My mom used to make all her own tartar sauce and I could never get her recipe quite right, but did!
Natasha…. Love your recipes. You make everything fun and are hilarious. I’m kind of goofy too and love your recipies and style. Making things fun is key to learning as well as good simple information to follow. For sure one of your biggest fans ❤️
Thank you so much, Margie!
How long can this be stored in the refrigerator? Are there other alternatives if you don’t have an item? Can you use sweet relish?
Hi BB, This recipe stays fresh in the fridge for a few days. I haven’t tried this, but one of my readers mentioned they used sweet relish. She mentioned “Skip the sugar, onion and pickles. Use sweet relish instead.” I hope this helps.
Really great! Didn’t have any fresh dill, so I used dried. Came out great! Will definitely make this again.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Anna!
I didn’t have any dill but it still was good, I also used dried parsley flakes
Delicious! Best tartar sauce recipe! I refuse to purchase store bought, it does not compare…AT ALL.
Best tartar sauce recipe ever! (They said my comment was too short so here’s some more words)
made it, loved it, the tarter sauce makes it, I would make this again, the family loved it