Easy Tartar Sauce is so easy, and yet so delicious! You will want to have fish as often as possible because of the ease and taste of the tartar sauce. In fact, it works great with my Baja Fish Tacos! You can also use this as an alternative tartar sauce recipe for my Fish and Chips.
Tartar Sauce Ingredients and Substitutions
Just like the name of this tartar sauce says, it is EASY! Again, I am not exaggerating about that–it is only three ingredients!
- Dill Pickle Relish: We prefer Mt Olive Simply Relish Deli Dill Style. This dill pickle relish has thicker chunks, it’s easier to drain, and it holds up better than other versions. Some, like Vlassic, are mushy, hard to drain, and produce a more watery final tartar sauce. Yes, you can use Sweet Relish if you prefer. Some folks have even mentioned they prefer homemade or zucchini relishes!
- Miracle Whip: Miracle whip is what we have always used. Mayo is a substitute, and you can choose whichever brand you prefer. (Folks insist Dukes is the best!) You could even try my amazing Homemade Mayo!
- Red Onion: I like to make sure my onions are finely diced. If you only have white, sweet, or yellow onion on hand those will work in a pinch. Chives might even work!
Tartar Sauce Variations
When you start with an easy recipe like this, it is really easy to customize. Feel free to add these and see what is your favorite.
- Lemon Juice for a little acid
- Horseradish
- OldBay Seasoning
- Ranch Dressing
- Capers and/or their juice
- Red Wine Vinegar
- Salt & Pepper
How to Make Easy Tartar Sauce
Have I mentioned how easy this tartar sauce is? The recipe is equal parts relish, miracle whip, and onion.
How Many Does This Serve?
This will make enough for a family of 8 who really likes tartar sauce or 12 people who consume average portions.
I know my recipe states 1 cup of each ingredient, but you can just as easily use one 15-ounce container relish, a 15-ounce container miracle whip, and about 2 medium red onions, chopped. Any equation works as long as it is equal parts of each ingredient. So, it can be customized for 2 people or 100 people!
Is Tartar Sauce just for Fish?
Absolutely not! One of my favorite uses for tartar sauce is to dip my french fries into it. When you have your fish and chips, have extra tartar sauce on hand for the fries, for sure! You can also use it on most seafood, particularly fried seafood like shrimp, clams, and oysters. Get creative and add some ketchup to your Easy Tartar Sauce to spread on your burger. What does it taste like to you???
More Sandwiches
Easy Tartar Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup dill pickle relish, drained
- 1 cup miracle whip or mayonnaise
- 1 cup finely diced red onion
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a bowl and stir well to combine. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or until ready to serve.
- Store covered in a refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
Did you make this recipe?
Thank you for making my recipe! You took pictures, right? Well go ahead and post them on Instagram! Be sure to mention me @iambaker and use the hashtag #YouAreBaker.
After having fish & chips at J.B. Dawson’s Restaurant & Bar yesterday, I was amazed with their tartar sauce. The main difference in theirs is a good amount of dill. I will try your recipe with a tsp. or so dill in it to see if it is similar.
I make this in a 2 ingredient recipe
Been doing it for years.. it’s really good..
Does it have to be Miracle Whip?
This is how I was taught to make tartar sauce many years ago, people still rave about it. Sometimes I add a few dashes of hot sauce!
Yes!!! Aren’t mom’s smart? 🙂
I love your recipes.
I make my tartar sauce using Hellmans, unsweetened pickle relish, dill weed (dried), lemon juice, chopped scallions and a dash of garlic powder tasting as I make for the right balance.
Rather than sweet Miracle Whip, try Hellmann’s with a teaspoon of sweet relish along with the dill ; it provides a more subtle sweetness and the Hellmann’s allows for the taste of the fish to come through. Also, I find that finely chopped shallots are less aggressive than onion, but I only use about 2 or 3 T. per cup of mayo I loved Howard Johnson’s tartar sauce as a kid, 60 some years ago, and after trial(s) and error(s) … Mmmmmm!
I have made this for years. I use Blue Plate Mayonnaise dill relish and chopped onions.
We make this same recipe and it is just the best. We use hellmans because we like it better but it is a taste thing. We use whatever onions we have, red yellow, white…last night we were out of onions so just did relish and mayo and it was not bad, but the onions add a lot of flavor…always wonderful.
And if you want Thousand island just add ketchup
Lol