I’ve been meaning to introduce more fish into my cooking routine for a while now. Choosing fruits of the sea can be a bit intimidating, what with all the guidelines regarding sustainable species, mercury levels, and other health-related concerns. Although I order a variety of seafood when dining out, I typically stick with purchasing shrimp, wild Alaskan salmon, and canned albacore tuna at the grocery store. Needless to say, I wanted to break out of my routine fish-buying rut.
Enter tilapia from Trader Joe’s frozen foods section. Affordable, sustainable, healthful, and neutral-tasting, tilapia is the perfect blank canvas on which to add your favorite flavors. For this particular meal, I chose to feature a homemade lightened tartar sauce draped across grilled tilapia filets and tucked into a whole wheat sub roll. A mere tablespoon of canola oil mayonnaise mixed into plain Greek yogurt provided enough of a rich tang for my taste, but you could stir in an additional tablespoon if you’d like. The finely chopped dill pickle and red onion contributed not only a welcomed crunch to the otherwise smooth sauce, but also a nice “kick” when paired with freshly squeezed lemon juice and garlic powder.
As the warm weather draws near, I can envision many homemade seafood meals accompanied by this light & fresh tartar sauce: lump meat crab cakes, pan-sauteed wild Alaskan halibut or cod, skewered shrimp… there’s an ocean of possibilities!
Lightened Tarter Sauce
Ingredients:
- 1 Tbsp canola oil mayonnaise (I like the Spectrum brand)
- 1/2 cup plain 2% Greek yogurt
- 1 medium Kosher dill pickle, finely chopped
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped red onion
- 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
- Combine mayonnaise and Greek yogurt in a small bowl. Mix thoroughly to combine.
- Stir in remaining ingredients. Chill until ready to serve.
