Tartar sauce

For the powder, see cream of tartar. For the similarly-named cat, see Tardar Sauce.

Tartar sauce (French: sauce tartare; often spelled tartare sauce in the UK, Ireland, and Commonwealth countries) is a condiment made of mayonnaise, chopped pickles or relish, capers, and herbs such as tarragon and dill. Tartar sauce can also be enhanced with other herbs, lemon juice, and olives. It is most often served with seafood dishes such as fish and chips, fish sandwiches, fish fingers, fried oysters, and calamari.^[1]

Tartar sauce

Tartar sauce is often served with fried seafood dishes.
Alternative names	Tartare sauce, tartare
Type	Sauce
Place of origin	France
Main ingredients	Mayonnaise, gherkins (or other varieties of pickles), lemon juice and sometimes tarragon
Cookbook: Tartar sauce   Media: Tartar sauce

Composition

Tartar sauce is based on either mayonnaise or aioli, with certain other ingredients added. In the UK, recipes typically add to the base capers, gherkins, lemon juice, and dill. US recipes may include chopped dill pickles, onions (or chives), and fresh parsley; many around the world combine elements of both.^[1] Chopped hard-boiled eggs or olives are sometimes added, as may be Dijon mustard and cocktail onions.^[2] Hungarian variants may include sour cream (or plain cream), powdered sugar, white pepper and white wine, besides the other core ingredients.

History

Tartar sauce is named for steak tartare (and thus ultimately named for the Tatars), with which it was commonly served in 19th century France.^[3] Recipes for tartar sauce have been found in English-language cookbooks dating to the mid-19th century,^[4] including a recipe in Modern Cookery for Private Families in 1860.^[5] It was also popular in Hungary in the late 19th century.^[6]

See also

• Food portal

• List of dips
• Remoulade
• Sauce gribiche
• Steak tartare
• Tarator sauce

References

1. Isabella Graham Duffield Stewart; Mary B. Duffield (1878). The Home messenger book of tested receipts. Detroit: E. B. Smith & Co. p. 31. Retrieved 2 June 2012. sauce tartare.
2. Louisette Bertholle; Julia Child; Simone Beck (2001). Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Vol. 1. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0-307-95817-4. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
3. Stevens, Patricia Bunning (1998). Rare Bits: Unusual Origins of Popular Recipes. Ohio University Press. p. 156. ISBN 978-0-8214-1233-6.
4. "The Food Timeline history notes--sauce". www.foodtimeline.org. Retrieved 2023-05-27.
5. Acton, Eliza; University of Leeds. Library (1860). Modern cookery, for private families : reduced to a system of easy practice, in a series of carefully tested receipts, in which the principles of Baron Liebig and other eminent writers have been as much as possible applied and explained. University of Leeds Library. London : Longman, Brown, Green, Longmans, and Roberts. pp. 143–144.
6. Zilahy, Ágnes (1892). Valódi magyar szakácskönyv [Real Hungarian Cookbook] (in Hungarian) (2nd, extended ed.). Budapest. p. 20.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

External links

• An explanation of the name's origin, from The Straight Dope
• A definition at Allrecipes.com