The Seasoning Your Tartar Sauce Might Be Missing For More Flavorful Seafood

In the culinary world, there are some food pairings that are almost inextricably linked. Tomatoes and basil are meant to go together, as are chocolate and peanut butter. The same is true, of course, of tartar sauce and fried fish. Even the best sauces, though, can use a little tinkering. For tartar sauce, that missing touch of flair might just be found in a sprinkle of Cajun seasoning.

A simple tartar sauce recipe requires nothing more than mayonnaise, some pickle relish, and a splash of citrus juice or vinegar to add acidity. Creative cooks, however, typically put their own spin on the sauce with additional ingredients like fresh or dried herbs, other pickled items like capers, and powdered or finely chopped alliums. For a one-ingredient upgrade that really rounds out any tartar sauce recipe, though, a good spice blend from the bayou can't be beat.

Cajun seasoning blends vary somewhat from one jar — or kitchen — to the next, but the backbone is typically found in a combination of different peppers, alliums, and chiles, herbs, and sometimes salt. These mixes can be complicated, with ingredients like white pepper, black pepper, cayenne pepper, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, and oregano coming together in varying ratios that perfectly suit the palate of the person crafting the mix.

It's easy to see how that blend of aromatic herbs and spices would immediately lend a depth of flavor to tartar sauce, but the connection becomes even clearer when it's compared to the classic New Orleans remoulade. In France, remoulade is quite similar to tartar sauce, being made with mayonnaise, pickles, vinegar, and fresh herbs, along with a few other items. When that sauce traveled to Cajun kitchens in the New World, however, it took on a new life. Cajun remoulade sauce keeps the mayo base but is spiked with all kinds of extras, like Cajun spices, horseradish, and hot pepper sauce. Taking a traditional tartar sauce and simply mixing in a sprinkle of Cajun seasoning is like taking a half-step toward remoulade, creating a perfect middle-ground sauce for all kinds of dishes.

Given that the flavor enhancer in this sauce is Cajun in origin, it probably makes sense to pair it with bayou-inspired menu items, like Cajun catfish sandwiches or a classic shrimp po boy. Those aromatic spices are a perfect fit with the fried fish and shellfish common to Cajun cuisine, but this extra-flavorful sauce really works anywhere that you might use a classic tartar sauce — and perhaps even a few places you wouldn't. You can use as a dip for fish and chips for an interesting spin on the British pub classic or take the creativity even further by slathering it onto a burger as a Cajun-inspired burger sauce. However you choose to use it, there's no denying the aromatic upgrade that a spoonful of Cajun seasoning brings to plain old tartar sauce.