A sauce can make or break even the simplest of meals. Just think of mashed potatoes without gravy, salad without a vinaigrette, a burger without ketchup, nachos without salsa—the list goes on and on. But for me, there’s one sauce that seems to precede its intended entrée, as in, “Let’s have tartar sauce for dinner!” Then I scramble for something appropriate on which to put it.
While I love tartar sauce with fried fish as it’s usually served in America, it can accompany anything from chicken cutlets to steak tartare, the dish for which the French originally invented it. In fact, it’s much simpler to serve this sauce with something more easily (and less messily) prepared at home than batter-fried fish, but it’s hard to deny the draw of this decadent pairing. A good plate of fish ‘n chips is what I most crave with my “sauce tartare”. The problem lies in the fact that this sauce is usually best made at home, since most restaurants seem to treat it as just a required afterthought; but the fish is usually better done in a kitchen equipped with a large deep fryer. If you can’t see the conundrum in this, then you’ve probably never had a really good tartar sauce. Try this one, and I bet you’ll be wondering if etiquette allows for bringing your own sauce to the restaurant, or you’ll be considering take-out. You may even find yourself a little sheepishly looking at deep-fryers for home use. At the very least, you’ll never be satisfied with those little packets of relish stirred into a cup of mayo again.
Tartar Sauce
1 hard-boiled egg
1 Tbsp. capers
¼ c. chopped dill pickle or cornichons
¼ c. chopped onion
1 handful fresh parsley leaves
1 knifepoint (a pinch) of cayenne pepper
½-1 c. mayonnaise, to taste
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
Either by hand or in a food processor, finely chop the egg, capers, pickle, onion and parsley together and mix until well combined. Add in the cayenne pepper. Stir in just enough mayonnaise to bind the ingredients together, then thin with the lemon juice to desired consistency. The sauce should be quite thick and very chunky. Taste for seasoning and, if necessary, add salt and freshly ground black pepper. The sauce can be made ahead and chilled for several hours. Leftover sauce will keep covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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Editor’s Note: Angela Denstad-Stigeler writes a food column each week for the Caledonia Argus. She, her husband and their two young children live in Caledonia.
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