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This thick ‘n creamy tartar sauce recipe is made with plenty of tart pickles and fresh dill with a twist of lemon and just a touch of sugar. Just 5 minutes and a handful of ingredients for the easiest homemade tartar sauce!
Why We Love This Recipe
- 5 Min Recipe: Simply add all ingredients into a bowl and stir. Add salt and lemon to taste. It’s that easy!
- Amazing Flavor: This dill pickle dip is packed with tart pickles and fresh dill in creamy mayo, balanced with bright lemon and a little sweetness. The flavor is incredible.
- Great for Dipping everything, from fish sticks and onion rings to potato wedges and buffalo wings.
Let’s face it, store-bought or restaurant tartar sauce is not great—with too-tiny pickles, overly sour and acerbic flavor… not tasty at all. This tartar sauce recipe has just a hint of sweetness to take the edge off the acidity of the pickles, but there’s fresh lemon to keep it zesty and to offset the creamy mayo. In two words, it’s well balanced and delicious!
Tartar Sauce Recipe Ingredients
- Mayonnaise – you can use any kind of mayo you’d like, from olive-oil based to vegan and more.
- Dill pickles – finely chop your pickles or even roughly chop them if you like extra chunky tartar sauce.
- Lemon juice – you can use more to taste, just make sure to use freshly-squeezed, not bottled for the best flavor.
- Dill or parsley – I highly recommend using fresh here.
- Sugar – with just a hint of granulated sugar, this tartar sauce isn’t too sour or too creamy.
- Salt and pepper – use freshly ground black pepper and salt for a vibrant taste, but ready-made is fine, too.
How to Make Tartar Sauce
It’s super easy to make tartar sauce, just like aioli and garlic butter sauce.
- Add everything into a bowl and stir well.
- If needed, add more salt, pepper, and lemon juice.
- Enjoy immediately, or store in the fridge for 30 minutes to allow the flavor to meld. That’s it!
Customizations
You can easily customize this tartar sauce recipe to your liking. Here are a few suggestions for what to add-in. Choose one, then, adjust as needed.
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1-2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
- ½ to 1 teaspoon sugar
Tools You Need
Thank you for stopping by! Leave a comment & rating if you try the recipe, it truly makes my day. 🙂 Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter ❤️
Homemade Sauce & Dip Recipes
Here are Beaming Baker, we love making sauces from scratch, from ranch dressing and garlic parmesan sauce to all the yummy recipes below:
Tartar Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- ¾ cup dill pickles, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, you can use more to taste
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill, or fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped (optional, I didn't use)
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper, or more to taste
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl, except the salt and pepper. Stir until well mixed.
- Add salt and pepper to taste. If desired, add in more lemon juice.
- Store in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. Then, serve or store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- ★ Last Step: If you made this recipe, leave a comment and review. It truly helps our small business keep running and it helps readers like you!
This homemade tartar sauce was so creamy and tasty! I served it with fish sticks and we all loved it.
Yay! There’s nothing like some fish stick and tartar sauce for a comforting treat, right?
This might be my favorite tartar sauce recipe I’ve tried, perfectly creamy and lots of flavor! I’ll definitely never make it a different way again 🙂
Woohoo! I’m so pleased that you enjoyed it, Nathan! 😊
Homemade tartar sauce is SO GOOD….this was so creamy and delicious!
You know it, Justine! 😄
Homemade tartar sauce is so easy and SO much better than store bought. Your version is really good – my new go-to! 🙂
That’s so awesome to hear! I’m thrilled to know how much you enjoy it. 😊
Oh wow, this is my kind of tartar sauce. Fresh ingredients and fresh dill. Looking forward to having this with my next fish dinner.
Absolutely! The fresh dill really sets it apart and adds that signature flavor that pairs so well with fish. Hope you enjoy!