# How To Make Tartar Sauce **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 19, 2014, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469 "2014-04-19T03:09:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/1 "2014-04-19T03:09:38Z")
There are two good ways in which a Tartar sauce may be made. You can try whichever you please; but if you are in a hurry the second will suit your purpose better than the first. 1st:—Catch a _young Tartar_: for the old ones are very tough and devoid of juice. To catch a Tartar is generally a very unpleasant and at all times a difficult undertaking. A young Tartar will probably cost you at least $10,000—and perhaps your life—before you get through with him: but if you must have Tartar sauce you must be ready to take all risks. Having procured your Tartar you must kill him privately, taking care that the act shall escape the observation of police authorities, who would probably in such a case be strongly prejudiced in favor of the Tartar. Having killed, skinned and cleaned the Tartar, cut off the tenderest part of the hams and thights; boil three hours, and then hash up with Mexican pepper, aloes and spices. Add a quart of mulled wine and slowly boil to the consistency of honey. You will probably find the Tartar sauce very palatable; and if hermetically sealed in bottles with the addition of a little Santa Cruz rum, will serve for a long time. The rest of the Tartar will not keep, and must be disposed of judiciously. 2nd:–Take the yolk of a hardboiled egg, a teasponful of mustard, a tablespoonful of olive oil, a little vinegar, a little parsley and pickled cucumber, and hash up very fine. From _Item_, November 16, 1879 Reprinted in Lafcadio Hearn’s _Creole Cook Book_ Lafcadio Hearn is probably best known for the short story [_Mujina_](http://www.trussel.com/hearn/mujina.htm). Who knew he also wrote the first book on Creole cookery? I didn’t, until a few days ago when a friend pointed it out. The book comprises recipes Hearn collected in the late-1800s. Lots and lots of recipes. As for Tartar sauce, I just mix mayonnaise and sweet pickle relish. . ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/2 "2014-04-19T03:17:25Z")
Me? Mayo, capers, dill pickles, lemon, pepper, maybe a bit of garlic and mustard. But definitely capers for me. ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/3 "2014-04-19T03:24:18Z")
This reminds me of when I wanted to re-cover a chair in Naugahyde. I searched for days and never even caught a glimpse of a Nauga. It’s been years and I’ve still never seen one in the wild. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/4 "2014-04-19T03:36:58Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > This reminds me of when I wanted to re-cover a chair in Naugahyde. I searched for days and never even caught a glimpse of a Nauga. It’s been years and I’ve still never seen one in the wild. Probably because you were spelling it wrong. [Naga](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naga_%28Dungeons_%26_Dragons%29) ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/5 "2014-04-19T04:08:53Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Probably because you were spelling it wrong. [Naga](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naga_%28Dungeons_%26_Dragons%29) > **[Naugahyde](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naugahyde)** > > Naugahyde is an American brand of artificial leather. Naugahyde is a composite knit fabric backing and expanded polyvinyl chloride (PVC) coating. It was developed by Byron A. Hunter, a senior chemist at the United States Rubber Company, and is now manufactured and sold by the corporate spin-off Uniroyal Engineered Products LLC. > Its name, first used as a trademark in 1936,\[full citation needed\] comes from the name of Naugatuck, Connecticut, where it was first produced.\[citation needed\] It is now... ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/6 "2014-04-19T04:14:48Z")
Tar-tar Sauce (Say it in a Mr. Burns voice) 1/2 cup mayo 1/3 cup sweet pickle relish 2 tbsp. Miracle Whip (Don’t judge me!) 1 tbsp. sugar 1/2 tsp. parsley 1/2 tsp. onion powder 1/4 tsp. cayenne squeeze lemon juice ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/7 "2014-04-19T04:15:43Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > As for Tartar sauce, I just mix mayonnaise and sweet pickle relish. And lemon juice and some grated onion. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/8 "2014-04-19T04:36:49Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > [Naugahyde - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naugahyde) Whoosh on you. That’s pretty much the oldest AD&D joke in the history of history. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/9 "2014-04-19T04:40:04Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > And lemon juice and some grated onion. and a squirt of Crystal hot sauce (a small few drops of yellow mustard is optional but good). ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/10 "2014-04-19T04:41:25Z")
> [@randompattern](#): > > I searched for days and never even caught a glimpse of a Nauga. It’s been years and I’ve still never seen one in the wild. Well, you know what it is that Nauga do. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/11 "2014-04-19T07:04:57Z")
I’ve never tried making tartar sauce myself, but my absolute favorite off-the-shelf brand is Beaver, which advertises on the label that it contains dill and capers, so I’d have to consider those to be essential ingredients. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/12 "2014-04-19T08:37:11Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > As for Tartar sauce, I just mix mayonnaise and sweet pickle relish. This. But first I roll the relish in a paper towel; otherwise the sauce is too watery. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/13 "2014-04-19T12:33:52Z")
So…the coating on my teeth isn’t the active ingredient? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/14 "2014-04-19T13:40:03Z")
Let the fools have their tar-tar sauce. ---
**Author:** ![McDeath\_the\_Mad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a3d4f5/32.png) [@McDeath\_the\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McDeath_the_Mad)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/15 "2014-04-19T13:44:51Z")
I freestyle it using Miracle Whip, Bics Relish, Lemon juice and a dash or two of Whorchestshire sauce. MtM ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/16 "2014-04-19T13:58:03Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Reprinted in Lafcadio Hearn’s _Creole Cook Book_ > > Lafcadio Hearn is probably best known for the short story **Mujina** > > . Actually, I thought Hearn was best known for writing **Kwaidan** , which has been filmed: > **[Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwaidan:_Stories_and_Studies_of_Strange_Things)** > > Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things (怪談, Kaidan, also Kwaidan (archaic)), often shortened to Kwaidan ("ghost story"), is a 1904 book by Lafcadio Hearn that features several Japanese ghost stories and a brief non-fiction study on insects. It was later used as the basis for a 1964 film, Kwaidan, by Masaki Kobayashi. > Hearn declares in his introduction to the first edition of the book, which he wrote on January 20, 1904, shortly before his death, that most of these stories were translate... Kwaidan achievement! Gotta admit, I had no idea he’d written a Creole cookbook. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/17 "2014-04-19T14:45:01Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Actually, I thought Hearn was best known for writing **Kwaidan** , which has been filmed: > > [Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwaidan:_Stories_and_Studies_of_Strange_Things) > Kwaidan achievement! > Gotta admit, I had no idea he’d written a Creole cookbook. There was the movie too, and many people know him from it. Somehow I’ve managed to miss the film. I met someone last week who has a VHS copy, but she’s half a state away. My exposure to him was _Mujina_, which was published in [_Wolf’s Complete Book Of Terror_](http://www.amazon.com/Wolfs-Complete-Book-Terror-Leonard/dp/0517536358) almost 30 years ago. My real intention of starting this thread was not to discuss Tartar sauce recipes, though I knew they would be the predominant posts, but to use Hearn’s reprint of the _Item_ column to raise awareness of the book. As I said, ‘Who knew?’ It’s as if science fiction actor Peter Weller were to get a Master’s Degree in, say, Roman and Renaissance Art History and taught a university, and then pursued a PhD in Italian Renaissance Art. Oh, wait… Anyway, you know what I mean. I’ve thumbed through the book and have read several recipes. I think most of us are familiar with the modern format, where ingredients are listed and steps are clearly laid out. Hearn’s book is different. The ingredients are listed in the instructions, and his writing style sometimes made me think ‘Wait. What happened to [this]?’ Sort of like reading a cookbook written by Yoda. (Not _quite_, but you have to read ahead.) The book was written when people cooked on wood stoves or over open fires. Some ingredients would be uncommon nowadays. Many recipes call for lard. Of course lard is readily available, but few people actually use it because of its perceived unhealthiness. But mutton is hard to find; and if you want squirrel or pigeon you’ll need to shoot it yourself (or go to a specialty meat vendor). ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/18 "2014-04-19T16:54:25Z")
I don’t think I’ve ever done it the same way twice. Always mayonnaise, sweet pickles, sometimes dill pickles too, a bit of mustard, usually finely chopped onions, sometimes capers, sometimes herbs like parsley, tarragon or dill. FWIW, the above mix works pretty well for tuna or chicken salad, especially if you add chopped green olives. Sounds weird, but the olives give it a touch of bitterness and a good dose of umami. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/19 "2014-04-19T16:55:49Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > As for Tartar sauce, I just mix mayonnaise and sweet pickle relish. Agree. And if you take that and add ketchup until the mixture is dark pink, you have the basis for a decent 1000 Island salad dressing (I also add hot salsa for some zip). ---
**Author:** ![randompattern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7993a0/32.png) [@randompattern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/randompattern)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469/20 "2014-04-19T17:33:18Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Whoosh on you. That’s pretty much the oldest AD&D joke in the history of history. I can honestly say I’m proud of the fact I didn’t know that. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-make-tartar-sauce/686469.md?page=2)