Remove Tartar Sauce Stains

By Matt Oden | Comments | Food and Drink Stains → Tartar Sauce

Knowing how to remove tartar sauce stains can save you from hating this delicious condiment! Tartar sauce is perfect when enjoyed with fish, but is less than perfect when smeared into your tablecloth or your silk tie! Don’t give up fish’s favorite sauce, and rather learn the best methods of getting rid of these stains that can also be on the pungent side due to the pickles and onions in the sauce!

Tartar sauce may seem like a relatively harmless condiment to enjoy with your fish and chips, but it can also unfortunately leave several stains that are a bit of a challenge to get rid of. This is due to the fact that tartar sauce can very often contain several ingredients that are prone to causing stains, like vinegar, oil, and eggs. If you are able to effectively target those ingredients then you’ll be able to readily remove tartar sauce stains without much fuss.

Remove Tartar Sauce Stains From Clothing

What You Will Need Before You Start

Cornstarch
Liquid dish detergent
Baking soda

As with any stain, it is important that you work to remove tartar stains sauce stains swiftly so that the oils and other ingredients in this delicious tangy sauce don’t drive themselves further and permanently into the fibers of the fabric.

Remove as much of the tartar sauce from the garment as is possible, if the stain is fresh. This can be done with a paper towel but using a spoon is probably best so that you don’t inadvertently rub the tartar sauce further into the fabric fibers.
Sprinkle a liberal coating of cornstarch over the stain and allow the cornstarch to dry on the fabric. Cornstarch is incredibly effective at absorbing liquids, like oils.
Once tried, carefully brush the cornstarch off of the garment.
Create a cleaning paste using liquid dish detergent and baking soda. The consistency of the paste should be very similar to toothpaste. Dish detergents are very effective at lifting stains, especially those that are oil-based.
Allow the cleaning paste to set on the garment, for up to fifteen minutes.
Rinse clear and examine the stain. The stain should be thoroughly removed at this point, and the garment can be laundered as per the care instructions on the garment’s tag.

Stains that are proving a bit more of a challenge can be soaked in oxygen bleach for up to thirty minutes. Be sure that you do not apply any heat to the stain garment until you are absolutely sure that the stain has been removed, otherwise you run the risk of permanently setting the stain into the fabric.

Remove Tartar Sauce Stains From Silk

What You Will Need Before You Start

Baking soda
Rubbing alcohol
Clean sponge
White absorbent towel

Silk can be incredibly difficult to work with, so it is important to use the utmost care when working to remove tartar sauce stains from silk garments. If you are not confident enough to work on removing the stains yourself then be sure to point them out when you take the garment to your professional cleaners.

Lay the towel down flat on your kitchen or bathroom counter and place the stained silk item on top of it.
Remove as much of the spilled tartar sauce as possible, using a spoon or paper towels.
Completely cover the stained spot on the silk with baking soda and allow the baking soda to dry thoroughly.
Remove the baking soda by brushing it off into the sink or the trash can.
Lay the garment down flat again and dab a bit of rubbing alcohol onto a clean sponge or a cotton swab.
Blot at the stain with the rubbing alcohol until the stain starts to lift out.
Once the stain has been removed, carefully clean the silk with a bit of water.

When the silk garment has been completely cleaned, you can launder it as per the recommended guidelines for that particular item of clothing.

Remove Tartar Sauce Stains From Upholstery

What You Will Need Before You Start

Cornstarch
Baking soda
Vinegar
Liquid dish detergent
Clean sponge
White absorbent towel

Your upholstered furniture can often take a beating after dinnertime, especially when dinner includes condiments that can be dropped and spilled. Don’t despair at a tartar sauce stain on your lovely beige sofa, however. There are some really effective methods that will help you to remove tartar sauce stains in no time at all.

Remove as much of the tartar sauce as is possible from fresh stains.
Place a liberal amount of cornstarch over the stain in order to absorb the oils and other liquids in the stain.
Allow the cornstarch to dry on the stain, for up to thirty minutes, and then brush off carefully or use a hand-held vacuum to suck it up off of the furniture.
Mix a teaspoon of liquid dish detergent with half a cup of white vinegar to create a cleaning solution.
Blot the cleaning solution onto the stain, using a clean sponge or rag.
Blot until the stain has been saturated with your cleaning solution.
Place a towel firmly on top of the stain and press down with as much pressure as you can. You may find it easier to place a stack of books or even a garden landscaping brick on top of the towel in order to pull up the moisture and the stain along with it.
After fifteen minutes, lift up the white towel and take a look at the stain. If it is still there then you will need to repeat steps four through six until the white towel is lifting up completely clear.
Sponge clean fresh water onto the area in order to remove any soapy residue that could otherwise create a sticky spot, which would then turn into a magnet for dirt and dust to stick to.
Use another towel to firmly lift up the excess moisture from the furniture in order to speed up the drying time.

Once the furniture has completely dried, you can sprinkle a bit of baking soda onto the formerly stained area so that it can effectively absorb any lingering smells from the tartar sauce. Simply vacuum the baking soda up after fifteen minutes.

Remove Tartar Sauce Stains From Carpet

What You Will Need Before You Start

Baking soda
White absorbent towels
Clean sponge
Oxygen bleach
Liquid dish detergent
White vinegar

A stain on a carpet is often enough to make you swear off of the offending food that is responsible for the stain! Don’t give up on fish and chips night at your house! With the right cleaning solutions and methods, you’ll soon remove tartar sauce stains and be ready for your next fish and chips night with the family.

Clean up as much of a fresh spill as possible, using paper towels or even a spoon to scoop the sauce up.
Layer a liberal amount of baking soda onto the stain. This will serve the dual purpose of helping to rid the carpet of the tartar sauce odor and also help to effectively absorb the oils in the sauce.
Once the baking soda has dried, you can vacuum it up with your hand-held vacuum cleaner.
Mix a teaspoon of liquid dish detergent, a cup of white vinegar and half a scoop of oxygen bleach powder. This should create a small amount of cleaning solution that should cover the tartar sauce stain. Make more if you need more to cover larger stains.
Spread the cleaning solution onto the stain, using a clean sponge.
Allow the cleaning solution to set into the fibers of the carpet for up to fifteen minutes.
Blot at the stain using a clean sponge and fresh water.
Press a towel down firmly between each blot, in order to lift up the cleaning solution and the stain simultaneously.
Repeat steps seven and eight until the stain has vanished from the carpet and there are no traces of the cleaning solution left on the carpet.
Use a clean white towel on the damp carpet and press down firmly, using a heavy object to weigh the towel down. This will absorb much of the moisture from the carpet.

Once the carpet has thoroughly dried, sprinkle a bit of baking soda onto the area and vacuum it up after a few minutes. This will help to further deodorize the carpet so that you aren’t stuck smelling pickle relish for the next several weeks.