Fish-House Tartar Sauce (Hand-Whisked Mayo Base)

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

The tartar sauce that makes fried fish taste expensive: a thick, glossy egg-yolk emulsion whisked by hand, then loaded with squeezed-dry cornichons, capers, quick-pickled shallot, dill and enough lemon to cut through batter. Because you build the mayonnaise yourself, the sauce stays stiff enough to sit on a fork instead of sliding off — and it tastes brighter and far less sweet than anything from a jar.

Ingredients

• 1 small shallot, minced very fine (about 3 tablespoons)
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, plus more to finish
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup neutral oil such as grapeseed or canola
• 1 teaspoon cold water, if needed

• 1/3 cup cornichons or dill pickles, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons capers, drained and roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional, to balance)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper

Instructions

1. Stir the minced shallot together with the white wine vinegar and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Let it sit for at least 10 minutes while you work — the vinegar tames the raw onion bite and seasons the sauce from the inside.
2. Pile the chopped cornichons and capers into the center of a clean kitchen towel or a double layer of paper towels, gather it up, and squeeze firmly over the sink. You want them noticeably drier; excess brine is the single biggest cause of thin, weeping tartar sauce.
3. Set a medium bowl on a folded damp towel so it can't spin. Add the egg yolks, Dijon, 2 teaspoons lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and whisk hard for 30 seconds until the mixture is smooth, pale and slightly frothy.
4. Start the emulsion: add the oil a few drops at a time, whisking constantly, until you have added about 2 tablespoons and the mixture looks thick and glossy rather than loose. This first minute decides everything — go slower than feels necessary.
5. Once it has visibly thickened, begin adding the remaining oil in a thin, steady trickle, whisking without stopping. Total whisking time is about 5 to 7 minutes. If the mayonnaise gets so stiff the whisk drags, whisk in the teaspoon of cold water and continue.
6. Drain the pickled shallot, pressing lightly, and reserve the vinegar. Fold the shallot, squeezed cornichons, capers, dill, parsley, lemon zest, black pepper and cayenne into the mayonnaise with a flexible spatula. Keep the folding gentle so you don't knock the air and structure out of the emulsion.
7. Taste and adjust: add the reserved shallot vinegar 1/2 teaspoon at a time for sharpness, extra lemon juice for brightness, the optional 1/2 teaspoon sugar if your pickles are very sour, and more salt as needed. It should taste one notch too punchy on a spoon — fried food dulls it.
8. Scrape into a jar, cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes (up to 2 hours is better) so the herbs and pickles bloom and the sauce firms up. Stir once before serving with fried fish, crab cakes, fries or roasted potatoes.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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