Homemade Tartar Sauce
Tartar sauce is a functional emulsion of mayonnaise, acid, and brine. To make it, you fold finely chopped pickles, capers, and fresh herbs into a stable base of good quality mayonnaise, letting it rest for thirty minutes so the aromatics can hydrate and season the sauce.
Texture is everything.
The difference between a homemade sauce and a jarred one is the crunch; mince your pickles small enough that they provide texture without dominating the bite.
- small mixing bowl
- chef's knife
- silicone spatula
What goes in.
- 1 cupfull-fat mayonnaise
- 3 tbspdill pickles, finely minced
- 1 tbspcapers, drained and chopped
- 1 tspfresh lemon juice
- 1 tspfresh dill, minced
- 1/4 tspfreshly cracked black pepper
Let it rest
Do not serve this immediately. Giving it thirty minutes in the refrigerator allows the salt from the capers and the acidity from the pickle juice to permeate the mayonnaise, tying the raw ingredients together.
The method.
Prep the aromatics
Mince the pickles and capers into pieces no larger than a grain of rice. The goal is to distribute the flavor evenly throughout the emulsion.
Combine
In your bowl, add the mayonnaise, minced pickles, capers, lemon juice, dill, and black pepper. Fold with the spatula until the ingredients are uniformly dispersed.
Chill
Cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator for at least thirty minutes. Taste once more before serving; if it needs a brighter edge, add a few drops more lemon juice.
Other turns to take.
Spicy
Fold in a half-teaspoon of prepared horseradish or a dash of hot sauce to cut through the richness of fried fish.
Herb-Forward
Add one tablespoon of finely minced chives or flat-leaf parsley for a greener, sharper profile.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Use a high-quality, egg-based mayonnaise; avoid whipped dressings as they lack the necessary body.
If your pickles are particularly wet, pat them dry on a paper towel before mincing so the sauce doesn't break.
Store in a glass jar for up to three days; the flavor will intensify the longer it sits.
The ones that keep coming up.
Can I use sweet pickles?
You can, but it will significantly change the final profile of the sauce; stick to dill for the classic sharp, briny finish.
My sauce looks thin, what happened?
You likely added too much lemon juice or used a mayonnaise substitute with a high water content. Add a spoonful more mayonnaise to regain the desired thickness.
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