What is tartar sauce?
Tartar sauce is basically a cold sauce based on sour cream or mayonnaise, which is made from finely chopped pickled or pickled cucumbers with a few additional ingredients, usually mustard, lemon juice, capers, fresh parsley.
This is a popular cold sauce in French cooking. Its creamy and slightly spicy flavor pairs well with fish fingers, breaded fish fillets and other seafood dishes.
Unlike the uniformly smooth mayonnaise, tartar sauce is somewhat lumpy and textured due to the finely diced ingredients it contains.
What does tartar sauce look like - photo
Its color is a pleasant straw yellow, very light, almost white, with numerous green, white and yellow fragments of chopped vegetables.
What's included
There are many recipes for tartar sauce, but the main ingredients are usually:
- Mayonnaise is the main ingredient in Tatar sauce. You can use any store-bought brand or make it from eggs, mustard and vegetable oil at home using a blender. However, it is often replaced with sour cream or soft cheese.
- Gherkins or capers. These two components can be used together, or you can choose one, it depends on personal preference. Pickled or lightly salted cucumbers are suitable for tartare, but not cucumbers (they have an overly sharp, sour taste that will dominate the finished dish).
- Spices and seasonings. To create the required level of acidity, add a little vinegar or lemon juice, but only if pickled cucumbers and capers on their own do not provide the desired taste. Sometimes half a finely chopped garlic clove is added.
- Fresh herbs. Parsley or dill are the most popular choices. Some recipes include tarragon, as its aniseed flavor goes well with fish. But it is still a little sweet for this sauce. Finely chopped shallots or leeks are also popular. There are recipes that contain paprika, which gives the tartare a pink tint.
Pickled or lightly salted gherkins are suitable for tartare.
Store-bought tartar sauce is often filled with questionable ingredients, such as:
- vegetable oil (usually soybean or sunflower);
- sugar or high fructose corn syrup;
- modified food starch;
- xanthan and guar gum;
- artificial flavors and preservatives;
- and other nutritional supplements.
There is only one original recipe for making the sauce, but some variations have been improved. For example, there is tartare without eggs and 100% vegetables, with the addition of yogurt, with hard-boiled eggs, etc.
Tartar sauce - recipe with mayonnaise
- Cooking time: 30 minutes.
- Number of servings: 10 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 630 kcal.
- Purpose: lunch, dinner.
- Cuisine: French.
- Difficulty of preparation: medium.
Want to know a simplified version of the famous dish? Then choose a recipe for tartar sauce with mayonnaise and get down to business. You won’t be able to buy one in a store, but if you make it yourself, it can be an example of how even ordinary cutlets, fish, mushrooms or steamed vegetables can easily turn into an appetizing treat. Nutritious and healthy - these are a couple more reasons to complement the menu and get rave reviews.
- mayonnaise – 200 g;
- pickled gherkins – 4-5 pcs.;
- mustard – 25 g;
- garlic – 4 cloves;
- dill - 3 sprigs.
- Chop the pickled gherkins (cucumbers) and cut into small cubes. Chop the dill sprigs and grind with the garlic squeezed through a press.
- To get the main component - the filling - you need to take a bowl, pour in the mayonnaise, gradually add mustard and chopped products, mixing the mass thoroughly.
- Before serving, place the finished sauce in the refrigerator to cool for a short time.
How to make tartar sauce - popular recipes
You'll be surprised at how easy it is to make tartar sauce at home using fresh dill, pickled cucumber slices, and other natural, flavorful ingredients!
Classic recipe for fried fish
This is a classic combination of seafood tartar sauce ingredients. Gherkins can be replaced with pickles. For this recipe you will need the smallest capers. Read more about them in this publication pripravkino.ru.
Yield: about 2/3 cup (5 servings)
Calories 153, fat 17 g, carbohydrates 1 g
Ingredients:
- ½ cup mayonnaise;
- 1.5 tablespoons of finely chopped pickled gherkins;
- 1 tbsp. l. lemon juice;
- 1 teaspoon capers (chopped);
- 2 tsp. mustard (grainy);
- 1 pinch of salt;
- black pepper (freshly ground) to taste.
How to cook:
- Combine all ingredients and mix well.
- Transfer to a container, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. As it cools, the sauce will thicken slightly and its flavors will develop more fully.
Vegetarian option in 10 minutes
This simple vegan tartar sauce is made with silken (soft) tofu, lemon juice, mustard and pickled gherkins.
Yield: 4-6 servings
Calories 54 cal, fat 2 g, carbohydrates 5 g, protein 4 g
Ingredients:
- 220 g soft (silken) tofu;
- ¼ tbsp. sunflower oil;
- 2 tbsp. l. lemon juice;
- ½ tsp. salt;
- 2 tsp ready mustard;
- ¼ tbsp. grated pickled gherkins.
How to cook:
- Place all ingredients except cucumbers in a food processor or blender and puree until smooth.
- Place the mixture in a bowl and mix with the grated gherkins by hand. The finished tartar sauce can be eaten immediately, but it is better to let it cool for 20 minutes in the refrigerator.
Recipe with mayonnaise and onions
This is a quick and easy tartar sauce made from mayonnaise and other ingredients. This homemade tartar sauce goes great with grilled fish or seafood.
Yield: 1 cup (6 to 8 servings)
Calories 192, fat 21 g, carbohydrates 1 g
Ingredients:
- 1 tbsp. mayonnaise;
- 1 tsp. grated onions;
- 1 tbsp. l. chopped capers;
- 1.5 tbsp. l. chopped pickled cucumbers;
- 1 tbsp. l. chopped green olives;
- ground cayenne pepper (optional)
Cooking method:
- Add the ingredients together and mix thoroughly.
- Chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before serving.
Low calorie yogurt sauce
Classic tartar sauce contains 400 calories and 44 grams of fat per ¼ serving. Make it a dietary version. In this recipe, mayonnaise and sour cream are replaced with healthier ingredients. The low-fat alternative has just 35 calories per same serving and zero grams of fat.
- ½ tbsp. low-fat plain yogurt;
- ½ tbsp. low-fat cottage cheese;
- 1 tbsp. l. lemon juice;
- 1 tbsp. l. chopped red onion;
- 1 tbsp. l. pickled gherkins;
- 1 tbsp. l. chopped fresh parsley.
Mix all ingredients in a blender until smooth and place in the refrigerator to cool.
Japanese version of tartar sauce
To prepare Japanese tartar sauce, be sure to use Japanese mayonnaise. Unlike the usual one, it does not contain whole eggs, but egg yolks, and also contains rice vinegar. Thanks to this, Japanese mayonnaise has a smoother and less dense consistency and a special taste.
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. l. shallots or red onion (finely chopped);
- ¾ cup Japanese mayonnaise;
- 2 hard-boiled eggs (peeled and finely chopped);
- ¼ tsp. sea salt;
- 170 g gherkins (chopped);
- 1 tbsp. l. parsley (finely chopped);
- ½ tbsp. l. lemon juice;
- ½ tsp. spicy mustard.
Preparation Instructions: Simply add all the ingredients and a bowl and mix well.
Tartar sauce - recipe with pickles
- Cooking time: 20 minutes.
- Number of servings: 6 persons.
- Calorie content of the dish: 330 kcal.
- Purpose: lunch, dinner.
- Cuisine: French.
- Difficulty of preparation: medium.
How to prepare tartare so that it turns out delicious and doesn’t require a lot of fiddling around in the kitchen? A win-win option, especially if your daily or holiday menu includes a fish dish, is a recipe for tartar sauce with pickles. Pickled cucumbers will also work, preferably not too watery so that the gravy retains its consistency. This recipe has the highest percentage of similarities with the classic version, but the sauce will be sharper and thicker in taste.
- sour cream (20% fat) – 200 ml;
- mayonnaise – 20 g;
- salted or pickled cucumbers – 2 pcs.;
- garlic – 3 cloves;
- pepper, salt - to taste.
- Take medium-sized cucumbers, remove the peel if possible, chop finely and squeeze out the juice.
- Next, you need to thoroughly beat the sour cream, mayonnaise, pepper, and salt.
- It is better to chop the garlic into small pieces, pour into whipped sour cream, add the remaining ingredients, mix well.
- Before serving, let the sauce sit for about half an hour, but this is not a necessary condition.
How and with what they eat
The average serving of tartar sauce is about 10 g. If it completely replaces other seasonings, it can reach 20-30 g. Serve chilled in a gravy boat, or spread on the finished dish immediately before serving.
Here are a few foods that tartar sauce is eaten with:
- Fried fish;
- scallops;
- shrimps;
- squid;
- oysters;
- salmon;
- boiled lobster;
- fish fingers;
- chicken fillet fried in breadcrumbs;
- French fries;
- onion rings;
- burgers and sandwiches;
- tuna salad;
- ham salad;
- baked potato;
- potato chips.
Chemical composition and nutritional value
Tartar is considered a rather fatty seasoning, as it is made on the basis of mayonnaise. It contains large amounts of oil and egg yolks, which give it a very high concentration:
- fat (hence calories);
- vitamin E;
- essential fatty acids;
- cholesterol;
- carotenoids;
- B vitamins;
- gland.
The vegetables contained in tartar sauce increase the proportion of simple sugars and fiber, but they have little effect on its nutritional value.
The chemical composition of tartar can vary greatly depending on the type of oil used in the mayonnaise, for example:
- corn – omega-6;
- olive – omega-9;
- soy - omega-3.
Composition of nutrients, BJU
Tartar sauce
For quantity: 100 grams | ||
Calories — 211 | Calories in fat - 150 | |
BJU | ||
Total fat content | 16.7g | |
Saturated | 3.33g | |
Polyunsaturated | 9.04 | |
Monounsaturated | 3.6g | |
Cholesterol | 7mg | |
Total carbohydrate content | 13.3g | |
Dietary fiber | 0.5g | |
Sugar | 4.25g | |
Squirrels | 1g |
Vitamins and microelements | ||
A - 11mcg | C - 2.3 mg | |
B-6 – 0.04 mg | B-12 - 0.02mcg | |
D - 0mcg | E - 1.68 mg | |
Calcium 26mkg | Iron 0.25 mg | |
Magnesium 6mg | Zinc 0.12mg | |
Potassium 68 mg | Sodium 667 mg | |
Distribution of calories for BJU:Carbohydrates (28%) Fats (71%) Proteins (1%) |
Useful properties and contraindications
Based on the composition of tartar sauce, it is obvious that it is NOT a food that can be consumed by everyone without restrictions. High calorie content is difficult to fit into a proper diet, especially a diet aimed at losing weight.
Despite excellent concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids and antioxidants (vitamin A, E), tartar sauce is high in cholesterol, so it should be excluded from the diet for those who suffer from hypercholesterolemia.
Homemade tartar sauce will always taste a million times better than store-bought tartar sauce. Its recipe is one of the simplest, and the ingredients are easy to find in any grocery store.