Meyer Lemon & Roasted Garlic Tartar Sauce

Bright, creamy and bursting with fresh citrus flavor, this homemade Meyer Lemon Tartar Sauce with Roasted Garlic takes classic tartar sauce to another level. Made with mayonnaise, sour cream, sweet pickle relish, fresh Meyer lemon juice and zest, and mellow roasted garlic, it’s the perfect dipping sauce for crispy panko shrimp, fried fish, crab cakes, seafood sandwiches and more. Easy to make ahead and even better after chilling, this simple homemade seafood sauce is a delicious staple from The Nomad Kitchen at tretaylor.com.

Bright, creamy, tangy—and made for crispy seafood

This is not your everyday bottled tartar sauce.

I made this creamy Meyer Lemon & Roasted Garlic Tartar Sauce to serve alongside my Golden Panko Fried Shrimp, and it turned out to be one of those sauces you keep going back to for just one more dip.

Meyer lemon gives it a softer, slightly floral citrus flavor, while a little roasted garlic adds richness without overpowering the sauce. Sweet pickle relish brings that familiar tartar-sauce tang and a touch of sweetness, while sour cream lightens up the mayonnaise and makes everything wonderfully creamy.

Best of all? It takes about five minutes to make—and it gets even better after a few hours in the refrigerator.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Chill Time: 1 hour or overnight
Makes: About 1½–2 cups

Ingredients

• ½ cup mayonnaise

• ½ cup sour cream

• ½ cup sweet pickle relish, preferably reduced-sugar or no-sugar-added

• Juice of 1 Meyer lemon

• Zest of 1 Meyer lemon

• 1–2 cloves roasted garlic, mashed into a smooth paste

• Salt, to taste

• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

How to Make It

Add the mayonnaise, sour cream, sweet pickle relish, Meyer lemon juice, lemon zest and roasted garlic to a bowl.

Stir everything together until creamy and thoroughly combined.

For an especially smooth, beautifully blended sauce, add everything to a small food processor and pulse briefly. Don't over-process it—you still want a little texture from that pickle relish.

Taste and adjust with additional lemon, salt or pepper as desired.

Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving. If you have the time, make it the night before. The flavors become even better as the roasted garlic, lemon and relish mingle together.

The Nomad Kitchen Secret

Don't skip the zest.

The juice gives the sauce acidity, but the zest is where that beautiful Meyer lemon fragrance lives. It turns an otherwise familiar tartar sauce into something much brighter and more interesting.

And roasted garlic behaves very differently from raw garlic here. It's mellow, slightly sweet and almost buttery—exactly what you want against crispy fried seafood.

What to Serve It With

Of course, I made this specifically for my Golden Panko Fried Shrimp, and that combination is glorious.

But don't stop there. Try it with fried fish, crab cakes, salmon cakes, fish sandwiches, fried oysters, grilled shrimp, fish tacos, roasted potatoes or even as a creamy spread for a seafood sandwich.

Make Ahead & Storage

This is actually a sauce that benefits from being made ahead. Refrigerate it in a covered container for several hours or overnight before serving.

Keep refrigerated and use within about 3–4 days.

From The Nomad Kitchen

Sometimes the sauce isn't merely something on the side.

Sometimes it's the reason you fry another shrimp. 🍤🍋

The Nomad Kitchen at tretaylor.com — simple food, beautiful ingredients and delicious little adventures from wherever the kitchen happens to be.