Homemade Tartar Sauce

Homemade tartar sauce is so easy to make with simple ingredients! This tangy and rich sauce tastes delicious with fish and other seafood.

This is a simple homemade tartar sauce that you can whip up in less than 5 minutes. It tastes delicious with seafood like fried fish, salmon, and crab cakes but also makes a great dip with crackers or rustic bread.

Using a combo of relish and chopped dill pickles gives you the crunch and freshness of the pickles and the convenience of the relish. No need to chop a whole cup of dill pickles to enjoy a delicious sauce with your dinner!

Ingredient notes

Here is an overview of the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe. Scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom for quantities.

• Mayonnaise – This is the creamy base for this easy recipe. You can use store-bought (I use olive oil mayonnaise) or homemade mayo.
• Dill Pickles – Finely chopped pickles add lots of crunch and freshness to the sauce. Use your favorite dill pickles and add more if you want.
• Mustard – I highly recommend using Dijon mustard, it adds so much flavor and a bit of spiciness. But regular mustard is a good alternative, or you can leave it out.
• Dill – Dill adds so much flavor! If you don’t have any fresh or frozen dill, you can also use finely chopped parsley. Dried tarragon works well too, it has a bittersweet flavor.
• Lemon Juice – I prefer to use freshly squeezed lemon juice in this recipe because it tastes fresh and adds brightness to the sauce. Use the other half for squeezing over your fish – delicious. If you don’t have fresh lemons, bottled lemon juice will work too.
• Relish – Pickle relish or sweet relish is an optional ingredient but makes the sauce more flavorful without having to chop a bunch of dill pickles.

How to make this recipe 

Detailed measurements and instructions can be found at the bottom of the page on the printable recipe card.

Start with chopping the dill pickles. You need about 1 small pickle to get 2 tablespoons of chopped pickles. Feel free to add more! It makes the sauce more chunky and many people love that.

After measuring everything combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Give it a taste and adjust seasoning if necessary by adding more relish or lemon juice. Now it’s ready to serve!

Expert tips for success

• This recipe can easily be doubled! Use the slider in the recipe card to change the number of servings.
• If you don’t have fresh dill, (freeze) dried or frozen dill work well too! Use 1/4 teaspoon of dried dill or 1 teaspoon of fresh or frozen dill.
• Feel free to add more chopped dill pickles for a chunkier sauce!
• If you prefer a smoother, less chunky sauce, chop the pickles finely or chop them up in a food processor.
• You can make tartar sauce with capers if you like them! Just add about 1 Tbsp or more of chopped capers to the sauce for an extra flavor punch. Finely chopped onions are also a great add-in!
• To make the sauce not as rich, use 1/2 Greek yogurt and 1/2 mayonnaise. I also like to use olive oil mayonnaise for a lighter taste.
• To make vegan tartar sauce, use vegan mayonnaise. Store-bought relish is usually vegan but make sure to check the ingredients for honey.

Recipe FAQs

Serve it with

Tartar sauce is my go-to condiment with any kind of seafood dish. We love it with Air Fryer Fish Sticks, Fish Fillets, Fish and Chips, and Salmon burgers.

• Air Fryer Salmon
• Horseradish Parmesan Crusted Salmon
• Air Fryer Fish
• Air Fryer French Fries
• Air Fryer Potato Wedges

Make-ahead, storage, and freezing

Make-ahead

You can make the sauce and eat it right away, but I like to make the sauce about 30 minutes before! It will taste even better after it had some time to rest.

Leftovers

This sauce stays fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for about 1 week. Give it a stir before serving it.

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