Perfectly paired with your favorite seafood dish, this creamy Dill Sauce recipe is light, cool and full of fresh ingredients!
I don’t know about you, but I’m a sucker for a good condiment. Whether it’s a good dipping sauce, something to slather on a sandwich or to spoon on a hot dog, I love them all.
Of course, you can always go buy simple condiments at the the grocery store; but there is something to say for a sauce that you make from scratch.
This dill sauce happens to be one of my favorites. The light and bright flavors pair so well with fresh seafood, but can also be used with so many other things.
It’s super quick and easy to whip up, and I love keeping a container of it in the fridge for when I need it.
Ingredients
You will easily be able to find all of these dill sauce ingredients at your local grocery store if you don’t already have them on hand.
- Plain Greek yogurt – While most sauce recipes use either mayonnaise or sour cream, I like to use Greek yogurt. It provides an extra bit of tang and acidity.
- Fresh dill – This is a dill sauce after all, so we use lots of fresh dill in this sauce. Fresh herbs pack a bigger flavor punch. You can, however, also use dill weed (dried dill).
- Onion – I like to grate my onions when adding to sauces like this. Not only does it ensure smaller pieces rather than large chunks, but it also enhances the flavor making it stronger.
- Garlic clove – Same thing goes with the garlic; grating it releases a little more sulfur, making the flavor much stronger. I would strongly advise against the pre-minced jarred variety.
- Lemon juice – In case you aren’t catching on to the theme here, I always use fresh ingredients whenever possible. Fresh lemon juice doesn’t have the added preservatives that the bottled kind has.
- Lemon zest or preserved lemons – We aren’t just using the juice for this dill sauce; we’re also throwing in some zest for really bright flavors. Adding both juice and zest provides different flavor profiles. You can also use preserved lemons. These are lemons that are, well, preserved in a brine and have a savory and salty flavor.
- Prepared horseradish – Horseradish takes this delicious sauce to a whole new level. It adds a little bit of spice and a lot of flavor.
- Salt and pepper – I like to use coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. You can always add these to the sauce to taste.
Dill Sauce Variations
I love this dill sauce exactly as is, but of course you can tweak it to exactly your liking.
- Mayonnaise – You can substitute the greek yogurt for a cup mayonnaise if that’s what you have on hand.
- Extra tang – You can add a tablespoon of dijon mustard to really pack a big flavor punch.
- Lime – Instead of lemon, you can add some lime juice into this sauce for a slightly different flavor profile.
- Garnish – If you’re serving this sauce at a party, it would look nice in a small bowl garnished with dill leaves and lemon slices.
Ways to Use Easy Dill Sauce
Of course this lemon dill sauce recipe tastes great on fresh salmon, but the uses for this perfect sauce are endless. Here are a few of my favorite ways to use it:
- As a dip for french fries
- As a dipping sauce for crab cakes
- Slathered on fresh a salmon fillet or salmon cakes
- Served as a dip with fresh vegetables
- As a salad dressing for a simple side salad
- A dip for fish sticks
- On hearts of palm cakes
- On Baked Halibut
- Use it on other things than salmon- it tastes great on shrimp, scallops or even smoked spatchcock chicken
How to Make Dill Sauce
Making this homemade sauce couldn’t be easier- it’s done in a cinch!
- Combine ingredients. Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl (yogurt, dill, onion, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, horseradish, salt and pepper).
- Allow to chill. Cover and chill for thirty minutes before serving. Make sure to restir before serving.
Storage and Freezing
How to Store Dill Sauce
This dill sauce recipe will hold up well in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about one to two weeks. When you’re ready to use it again, just give it a quick stir before using. Due to the Greek yogurt, don’t let it sit at room temperature for too long.
Can I Freeze Dill Sauce?
This creamy sauce does not freeze well, so I do not recommend it.
More Dipping Sauces
If you know me, you know how much I love a good sauce. Here are some of my favorites that I know you’ll love too.
Dill Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1-2 tablespoon fresh dill* coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon onion grated or minced
- 1 fresh garlic clove grated or minced
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 teaspoon lemon zest or preserved lemons
- 2 teaspoon prepared horseradish
- 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl (yogurt, dill, onion, garlic, lemon juice, lemon zest, horseradish, salt and pepper).
- Cover and chill for 30 minutes before serving. Restir before serving.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was in the comments or star ratings!
Notes
Nutrition
I loved this! The horseradish definitely gave it a nice kick, excellent idea.
Dill is one of my favourite herbs. I’m going to make a batch of this and drizzle it on my wraps for lunch this week.
I absolutely LOVE this dill sauce recipe! So easy and sooooo flavorful!
This sauce is seriously ahh-mazing!! Even my kids enjoyed it! Thanks!
This is really a perfect pair!! I loved it!
Great recipe thanks, super quick and easy. Went light on horseradish to suit our preference, but got full marks from my wife!