Fish sauces: 12 easy ideas that always work

First, two quick tips:

• Acid + fatty = successLemon, lime or white wine "wake up" the fish; butter, olive oil or yogurt add roundness.
• Don't cover it up, accompany itLight sauces that respect the flavor are best. Start with a small amount and add more to taste.
  

1) Meunière (butter & lemon)

Taste: citrus and hazelnut butter.
Ingredients (4 servings):

• 60 g butter
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon (≈30 ml) + ½ tsp zest (optional)
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• Salt and pepper

Steps (5–7 min):

1. Cook the fish (grill or oven). Remove and keep warm.
2. In the same pan, put Extra virgin olive oil + butter over medium heat until the butter melts hazel (1–2 min).
3. Put out the fire. Add lemon juice y parsleySeason with salt and pepper.
4. Napa (pours the fish on top)

Do not boil the sauce after adding the lemon (it will become bitter). If you want a thicker sauce, add 1 tsp of cold water and swirl the pan to emulsify.

2) Parsley green sauce

Taste: Herbal, mild garlic and wine.
Ingredients:

• 2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• 1 bunch of parsley (30 g), finely chopped
• 60 ml white wine
• 200 ml fish stock (or water + ½ stock cube)
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp cornstarch dissolved in 1 tbsp cold water (optional for thickening)
• Sal Island

Steps (8–10 min):

1. Doura it in EVOO 30–40 s gentle.
2. Add parsley, removes 20 s.
3. Fourth wine and reduces by half (1–2 min).
4. Aggregate hot and boil for 3–4 min.
5. If you want it tighter: add the cornstarch and stir for 1 min.
6. Adjust the salt and serve.

Perfect for hake, fresh cod, kokotxasIf it's too strong, add 1–2 tbsp of water.

3) Express tartar sauce

Taste: creamy, acidic and crunchy from pickles.
Ingredients:

• 120g mayonnaise + 60g natural yogurt (or 180g mayo if you want it more classic)
• 20g capers, finely chopped
• 40g gherkins, finely chopped
• 15g chives, chopped
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard (optional)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice (≈15 ml), salt and pepper

Steps (5 min + rest):

1. Mix everything in a bowl.
2. Adjust acidity with lemon and salt.
3. rest 15 min cold so that the flavor settles.

Use: ideal with fried or battered (rooster, cod, squid). If it's too thick, thin it with 1–2 tbsp of cold water.

4) Yogurt, dill and cucumber (tzatziki style)

Taste: fresh and aromatic.
Ingredients:

• 250g Greek or thick natural yogurt
• ½ cucumber (150 g) grated
• 1 tbsp fresh dill (or 1 tsp dried)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 pinch of salt
• ¼ grated garlic clove (optional)

Steps (10 min + rest):

1. Grates lightly salt the cucumber and drain squeezing with your hands or a cloth.
2. Mix with yogurt, dill, olive oil, lemon (and garlic if using).
3. rest 30 min in refrigerator.

Use: spectacular with grilled salmon or troutIf you want it lighter, use natural yogurt and add an extra 1 tsp of extra virgin olive oil.

5) Piccata de alcaparras

Taste: browned butter, lemon and a touch of salt.
Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 60 g butter
• 80 ml white wine
• 2 tbsp capers (20 g), washed
• Juice of ½ lemon (≈15 ml) + ½ tsp zest
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley, salt

Steps (6–8 min):

1. Remove the cooked fish.
2. Deglaze the pan with wine over medium heat and reduce for 1–2 min.
3. Lower the fire and emulsifies with butter diced, moving the pan.
4. Out of the fire, he adds lemon, capers y parsley. Salt (note, the capers are already salty).

Use: top with Baked sea bream or sea bass.

6) Garlic with chili pepper

Taste: golden garlic with a spicy touch.
Ingredients:

• 60 ml EVOO
• 4–5 thinly sliced ​​garlic cloves
• 1 dried chili pepper (or ½ fresh, sliced)
• 1 tbsp chopped parsley
• Sal Island
  

Steps (6–7 min):

1. put Extra virgin olive oil + garlic + chili pepper cold and then heats up low-medium.
2. Candied until the garlic is light gold (4–5 min).
3. Turn off, add parsley and a pinch of salt.
4. Fourth In hot about the fish.

Keys: If the garlic gets too dark, it will become bitter; lower the heat. Perfect for cod, monkfish, sea bass baked on the bone.

7) Marinera with white wine

Taste: mild, onion and wine flavored, with a light body.
Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ½ onion (80 g) finely chopped
• 1 clove of minced garlic
• 1 tbsp flour (10 g) Optional
• 150 ml white wine
• 250 ml fish stock
• 1 bay leaf, salt

Steps (12–14 min):

1. Pocha onion in EVOO 7–8 min (medium-low heat).
2. Add garlic 30 seconds.
3. If you want more body: add flour, cook 1 min.
4. Fourth wine and reduces 1–2 min.
5. Add broth + bay leaf and boil gently for 6–8 min.
6. Remove bay leaves, grind (optional) and adjust the salt.

Use: hake fillets, corvina or any soft white.

8) Quick Teriyaki (glazed)

Taste: bright sweet-salty. 

Ingredients:

• 60 ml soy sauce
• 40 ml mirin (or 40 ml white wine + 1 tbsp sugar)
• 1 tbsp brown sugar (15 g)
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1 tsp grated garlic (optional)
• 1 tsp cornstarch + 1 tbsp water (optional, for extra thickness)
  

Steps (4–6 min):

1. put soy sauce, mirin, sugar, ginger (and garlic) to a gentle boil 2–3 min.
2. If you want a dense shine: add dissolved cornstarch and cook for 1 minute until thickened.
3. Surface contracting the fish in the pan last 30–60 s or it can be served as a separate sauce.

Use: salmon, seared tuna, swordfishDon't reduce it too much: it gets too salty.

9) Miso and honey

Taste: soft, slightly caramelized umami.
Ingredients:

• 30 g white miso (1½ heaped tbsp)
• 1 tbsp honey (20 g)
• 1 tbsp soy sauce (15 ml)
• 1 tbsp water (15 ml)
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 1 tsp sesame oil (optional)

Steps (2–3 min + 10 min optional marinating):

1. Mix all the ingredients until the miso is dissolved.
2. Option A (fast): Heat 1–2 min and pint the fish at the end.
3. Option B (marinade): coat the fish and leave 10–15 mins; cooks and adds a final touch.

Use: cod, halibut, baked hakeIf it is too salty, add 1–2 tbsp of water.

10) Mild coconut and lime curry

Taste: exotic, citrusy and creamy.
Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp yellow curry paste (or 1 1/2 tsp mild curry powder)
• 200 ml coconut milk
• Zest of ½ lime + 20 ml of its juice
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar (optional)

Steps (6–8 min):

1. Toast curry in EVOO 30 s.
2. Add coconut milk + zest and boil gently for 4–5 min.
3. Turn off the fire, incorporate lime juicesalt (and sugar if you want to balance it out).
   

Use: sea ​​bream, tilapia, poutServe with white rice. Don't add the juice too soon, or it will become bitter.

11) Creamy Piquillo Pepper

Taste: Piquillo pepper sweet, very mild.
Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 garlic clove
• 6 piquillo peppers (≈180 g)
• 120 ml light cream or evaporated milk (lighter)
• Salt and pepper
  

Steps (10 min):

1. Saute it in EVOO 30 s.
2. Add piquillosSkip 2 min.
3. Incorporates evaporated cream and cook for 3–4 min.
4. Shreds very fine; if you want extra silky, strain.
5. Adjust salt/pepper and heat for 1 minute before serving.

Use: cod, hake, snuff; also oven safe.

12) Mango, lime and cilantro (fresh salsa)

Taste: tropical and acidic, uncooked.
Ingredients:

• 1 ripe mango (≈300 g) diced
• ½ spring onion (30 g) finely chopped
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
• Juice of 1 lime (≈30 ml)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ tsp salt
• Fresh chili or chili flakes (to taste, optional)
  

Steps (10–15 min):

1. Mixture mango, spring onion, cilantro.
2. Season with lime, extra virgin olive oil and salt (and chili if you want).
3. rest 15–20 min cold.
   

Use: grilled tuna or swordfishIf the mango isn't very sweet, add ½ tsp of honey.

Which sauce goes best with each type of fish?

• White fish (hake, codsole, sea bream, seabass): meunière, green sauce, marinara, piquillo, piccata, yogurt-dill.
• Blue Fish (salmon, mackerel, tuna): teriyaki, miso and honey, garlic with chili (light), mango-lime, mild curry.
• Fried or breaded: tartare, piquillo, meunière.
• Oven/griddle: meunière, piccata, green, marinera, miso, teriyaki.
  

Quick tricks to make sure they always turn out well

• Professional shine: Add the fat (butter/EVOO) at the end off the heat and mix with back-and-forth movements.
• Thicken without flour: 1 tsp of cornstarch in 2 tsp of cold water; add in a thin stream and stir for 1 min.
• Intelligent seasoning: Soybeans, capers, and miso already provide salt; adjust at the end.
• Tailored acidity: If the sauce is too heavy, a few drops of lemon or a splash of white wine will lift it.
• Fine texture: For red/creamy sauces, blend and strain if you want a restaurant finish.
  

Healthy and allergen-free options

• Without lactose: replace butter with extra virgin olive oil; use coconut milk or plant-based yogurt.
• Light: half mayonnaise + half yogurt in tartar sauce; evaporated milk instead of cream in piquillo peppers.
• Without gluten: Avoid flour; use cornstarch if you need to thicken.
  

quick questions

• How much sauce per serving? 2-3 tablespoons are usually enough.
• Can it be frozen? Teriyaki and piquillo peppers are fine; dairy products with cream/yogurt are not recommended.
• Can they be done in advance? Yes: green, marinera, piquillo, teriyaki and curry 3–4 days in refrigerator In an airtight jar. Tartar sauce and yogurt are best. 24–48 hours. The butter ones (meunière/piccata) are prepared at the moment (5 min).