This homemade tartar sauce is the perfect creamy, zingy, pickle-y dipping sauce for all of your seafood dishes! Made with avocado mayonnaise, diced dill pickles, capers, and fresh lemon juice, my healthy version of this classic condiment happens to be Whole30, keto, and paleo, too!
I don’t know about you, but one of my all-time favorite dishes is crunchy fish and chips dunked in tartar sauce, a zesty blend of mayonnaise and minced dill pickles. (Between you and me, I think I craved the sauce more than the fish!) And now, you can whip up a simple and better-for-you tartar sauce recipe in just a few minutes!
Ingredients
You can make this fab sauce with just 5 ingredients!
- Avocado Oil Mayonnaise: To keep this recipe squeaky-clean, use avocado oil mayonnaise with paleo and Whole30-compatible ingredients. Two brands I like are Primal Kitchen Foods and Chosen Foods. If you’re feeling like an overachiever, go ahead and whip up some homemade paleo mayonnaise.
- Dill pickles: I buy Bubbies brand kosher dill pickles to keep this sauce Whole30. I don’t use butter pickles or dill pickle relish because both normally include added sugar (GASP!).
- Capers: Make sure you rinse and drain the capers before you use them. I always mince my capers so the tangy zing is easily incorporated into the sauce.
- Fresh lemon juice: I love the acidity that fresh squeezed lemon juice adds. If you don’t have any, feel free to use distilled white vinegar or sherry vinegar.
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Fresh herbs (optional): I don’t always use ’em in this recipe—especially when I’m too lazy to head to the store—but if you have fresh dill or fresh parsley on hand, feel free to mince them up and add them to the sauce.
How to make tartar sauce
Place the mayo and the rest of the ingredients in a small bowl…
…and stir well until combined!
Taste for seasoning and add more lemon juice or pepper if needed.
Serve with your favorite fried fish or air-fried seafood. Might I suggest my Air Fryer Fish Sticks or Crab Cakes?
How to store homemade tartar sauce
Tartar sauce should be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for about a week. Obviously, if it starts to smell funky in the fridge or the flavor is off before the week is up, you should dump it. Similar to other mayonnaise-based condiments, tartar sauce does not freeze well because the emulsion can break.
More condiment recipes
Looking for more paleo and Whole30 condiments? I’ve got you covered!
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPhone and iPad app, and in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).
PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD
Homemade Tartar Sauce
Ingredients
- ½ cup paleo mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons diced dill pickles
- 2 teaspoons capers drained and minced
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients into a small bowl and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional lemon juice or pepper if needed.
- Serve with your favorite seafood recipe, like my Air Fryer Fish Sticks!
Video
Notes
- A serving size is about 2 tablespoons
- Leftover tartar sauce can be kept in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Are you using Spanish capers of pickled capers? Or another kind?