A healthier plant-based twist on classic tartar sauce, featuring non-dairy yogurt, dill relish, and capers. A fantastic accompaniment to your favorite vegan fare, including street tacos, fishless sticks, crabless cakes, onion rings, and French fries. Ready in less than 5 minutes!
Tartar sauce is one of those food condiments that you never really think about until you want it. That’s how it is for me anyway.
In fact, I hadn’t really thought about tartar sauce in over five years. Then, one day, when I wanted to make some crabless cakes, all of a sudden, I really needed to make some tartar sauce to go alongside my plant-based crab cakes.
The problem for me is that most tartar sauce recipes call for mayonnaise. And good vegan mayonnaise isn’t always easy to find. This was especially true during the onset of our recent pandemic. I couldn’t find my delicious Hellman’s vegan mayonnaise for over six months.
During this time, I experimented with a few things, including beans and yogurt. As it turns out, beans are a pretty good substitute for mayonnaise in my Vegan Potato Salad. And yogurt is a great substitute for mayonnaise in tartar sauce.
Yogurt is also a much more healthy option since it doesn’t contain any eggs or oil. Plus, yogurt naturally contains probiotics and good healthy bacteria strains. I really like using Kite Hill’s plain unsweetened non-dairy yogurt. But when I can’t find it at my local grocer, I make it myself. You can find the recipe for my Creamy Non-Dairy Yogurt here.
The traditional Tartar Sauce flavors come from dill pickle relish, capers, dijon mustard, and fresh lemon juice. Of course, there’s a little garlic powder, sweetener, and salt and pepper, too. Most yummy sauces seem to contain these last few.
The method couldn’t be more simple. Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl, then taste and adjust. That’s right. With most recipes, the key is to taste the tartar sauce and adjust it to your liking. If you want more pickle power, add in another spoonful of relish. If you prefer it slightly sweeter, add in a little more maple syrup. You like it a little salty, add in a few more capers or a little more salt. It’s up to you.
Now that you have your delicious Healthy Vegan Tartar Sauce ready to go, what will you adorn it with? As I’m sure you know, there are several commercially prepared options. I hope you’ll give my Vegan Crab Cakes a go. They pair quite well with this tasty tartar sauce.
I hope you enjoy these Healthy Vegan Tartar Sauce as much as I do.
I would love to see your results! Please leave a comment and rate it down below, tag a picture @pebblesandtoast and #pebblesandtoast on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook! Enjoy!!
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Ingredients
- 6 ounces unsweetened non-dairy yogurt*
- 2 Tbsp Dill Pickle Relish**
- 1 Tbsp capers, minced
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 3 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp maple syrup or agave
- salt and pepper to taste (optional)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together all of the ingredients and adjust seasonings to taste.
- Transfer to an air-tight jar or container and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 4 days.
- Cover and refrigerate the mixture for at least 20 minutes for best flavor.
Notes
* You can use any plain yogurt you choose. Kite Hill makes a fantastic almond-based yogurt. I use a non-dairy yogurt made with plant milk, typically using rolled oats and a mixture of raw nuts. If you prefer a more traditional flavor and mouth feel, use vegan mayonnaise instead of the yogurt. I recommend Hellman’s (Best Foods). You can also do a 50-50 blend of yogurt and mayo for a slightly healthier version with the traditional taste of mayo.
** I love using dill pickle relish, though you can also use sweet pickle relish. Simply add 1 Tbsp minced fresh dill to get the classic tartar sauce flavor.
Makes about 1 cup.
Healthy Vegan Tartar Sauce
Ingredients
- 6 ounces unsweetened dairy-free yogurt*
- 2 Tbsp Dill Pickle Relish**
- 1 Tbsp capers minced
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 3 tsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp maple syrup or agave
- salt and pepper to taste optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together all of the ingredients and adjust seasonings to taste.
- Transfer to an air-tight jar or container and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 4 days.
- Cover and refrigerate the mixture for at least 20 minutes.