Best Homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe

This easy homemade tartar sauce is better than anything you can buy at the store. It’s extra creamy and perfect for serving next to your favorite seafood dishes.

My homemade tartar sauce is quick to make and so flavorful. One of our readers said it’s “the best ever,” and “comes out exactly like a restaurant.” I bet you already have almost everything you need already sitting in your kitchen!

This tartar sauce tastes better than anything sold in the jars at the store, and I cannot wait for you to try it. I love it with so many of my favorite seafood recipes, like our homemade fish sticks, Maryland-style crab cakes, poached salmon, and this perfect shrimp cocktail.

Key Ingredients

• Mayonnaise provides our creamy base. You can use store-bought mayo or for the best tartar sauce, try making your own mayonnaise. While I prefer the richness of full-fat mayo, you can substitute the mayonnaise for light mayo or plain yogurt for a lower calorie sauce.
• Pickles add crunch and flavor to the sauce. We use dill pickles and particularly enjoy these homemade pickles or the refrigerated Claussen pickles for this. For a sweeter style, try bread and butter pickles instead.
• Fresh lemon juice is essential for the best tartar sauce. It thins out the sauce making it the perfect consistency for dipping, and adds a fresh zesty flavor.
• Capers add texture and so much flavor to our tartar sauce. I think this is one of those ingredients that really makes this sauce better than what you can find at the store.
• Fresh or dried dill is a must for us. If you don’t have dill, parsley is a good alternative.
• Worcestershire sauce is an unusual ingredient, but it brings the sauce together. We only add a dash. We add Worcestershire sauce to dressings and sauces quite a bit. We even use it to make this homemade ranch.
• Dijon mustard adds extra flavor and tang. I love it.

How to Make Tartar Sauce

If you can chop and stir a few ingredients together, you can make tartar sauce. I’ve always been disappointed with store-bought tartar sauce, so taking a few tips from our favorite seafood restaurants, we devised a recipe of our own. I’ve never looked back.

You’ll add everything to a bowl and stir them until well blended. Just a few seconds of stirring turns the sauce into a creamy and delicious sauce. Then, I place it into the fridge for at least 30 minutes since this does get better overtime.

For more homemade sauce recipes like this one, see our creamy honey mustard sauce, homemade ketchup, or this classic mignonette sauce, which is incredible with oysters!