Best Homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe

This is the Best Homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe with briny pickles and capers, tangy buttermilk, and creamy mayonnaise. It’s a must-have condiment when making fish and chips.  

Market Street Grill is my family’s favorite local seafood restaurant. One of their best menu items is their fish and chips. Sure the fish is light and crisp and the fries are perfectly crunchy. But what really sets their fish and chips apart and keeps me coming back, is their tartar sauce. 

The Market Street Grill Tartar Sauce is bright, tangy, and creamy, with plenty of briny flavor from caper and pickles. When we developed our halibut fish and chips recipe, I knew I had to pair it with the perfect tartar sauce recipe. And I’m thrilled to share this creamy delicious tartar sauce with you!

How To Make Tartar Sauce

Homemade tartar sauce is easier to make than you think. It’s one of those condiments that you might be more likely to buy, but once you try homemade tartar sauce, you’ll never go back to the jarred stuff. 

The ingredients are all easy to find staples that you may already have in the fridge, too. All you need for this tartar sauce recipe is a base of creamy mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice, and caper juice. Blend these together to make a silky smooth consistency. 

Next, fold in minced pickles, onion, parsley, capers, and a bit of salt and pepper.

And there you have it: beautifully balanced, slightly acidic, and ultra-creamy homemade tartar sauce. All that’s left to do is dip your fish and chips in!

Storing

This sauce will stay fresh for up to four days in an airtight container in the fridge.

If you’re planning ahead, you can easily make a big batch for a cookout or clambake and serve it the next day with your favorite seafood. 

What to Serve with Homemade Tartar Sauce

This sauce is so tasty, you can serve it on so many things! Here are some of my favorite pairings with tangy tartar sauce:

• Halibut Fish and Chips is a classic, of course, with panko-crusted whitefish halibut and crisp fries.
• Air Fryer French Fries are just as delicious with a dunk in homemade tartar sauce, no fish necessary
• Dress up Instant Pot Baked Potatoes from Pressure Cooking Today with tartar sauce for an upgrade to your favorite steak side dish. 
• Zucchini Fries from Two Peas and Their Pod is another unique vehicle to serve with your bright tartar sauce. 

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Yield: 1 cup

Tartar Sauce

Prep Time 5 minutes

Additional Time 30 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

This tangy and delicious homemade tartar sauce recipe is slightly adapted from our favorite Market Street Grill recipe with capers, relish and fresh herbs.

Ingredients

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons caper juice
• 2 tablespoons minced dill pickle or dill relish
• 2 tablespoons finely minced onion
• 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped capers
• 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Whisk together mayonnaise, buttermilk, lemon juice, and caper juice until blended. 
2. Stir in pickle, onion, parsley, capers, white pepper, and salt. 
3. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 209Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 376mgCarbohydrates: 5gFiber: 0gSugar: 4gProtein: 1g

Nutrition information is calculated by Nutritionix and may not always be accurate.