Low-Fat Tangy Tartar Sauce
Louder flavor, quieter calories.
Dock-Side Lore
Built for the Blackened Mahi, but honestly good enough to steal for anything fried, baked, or air-fried that swims.
Portion Matrix
Low-Fat Tangy Tartar Sauce
Tap a portion size. Watch the numbers move. That’s the whole book.
Macros: USDA FoodData Central + label data (light mayo) • as written.
The Numbers Up Front
Yield: ~7 oz / 200 g
Default Portion: 2 tbsp / 1 oz
✂️ Trim Trim Trim
Nothing to trim in a sauce — Greek yogurt standing in for most of the mayo is the lever, same as everywhere else in this book's sauce chapter.
Ingredients
Use-what-you’ve-got friendly.
Sorted by dish, with the spices you probably already own kept separate.
- ◆½ cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- ◆2 tbsp light mayo
- ◆2 tbsp dill pickles, finely minced
- ◆1–2 tsp pickle brine (the tang bomb)
- ◆1 tbsp lemon juice
- ◆1 tsp Dijon mustard
- ◆1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
- ◆¼ tsp garlic powder • salt + pepper to taste
- ◆Optional: capers, dash of hot sauce, or smoked paprika for a Cajun edge
Instructions
- 1
Combine everything in a bowl, whisk until smooth.
- 2
Chill at least 30 min before serving — it improves as it sits.
🧠 Why This Works
Greek yogurt supplies the creaminess and protein that a mayo-heavy tartar sauce usually needs a full cup to achieve. Pickle brine (not just the pickles themselves) is the real flavor bomb — that briny tang is what makes tartar sauce taste like tartar sauce.
🌶️ Flavor Boosters
Smoked paprika for a Cajun edge • capers • extra pickle brine for more tang • a dash of hot sauce
🔄 Use What You’ve Got
- —No fresh dill? Dried, half the amount
- —No Dijon? Yellow mustard works fine
- —No capers? Skip them — the pickles carry the dish
📦 Meal Prep Notes
Keeps 5 days refrigerated in a sealed container
📊 Before & After(per 2 tbsp)
| Calories | Protein | Fat | Carbs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bottled Tartar Sauce | 140 | 0g | 15g | 1g |
| ⭐ Low-Fat Tangy Tartar Sauce | 21 | 2g | 1g | 1g |
| You Saved / Gained | −119 cal | +2g protein | −14g fat | even |
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