Homemade Cocktail Sauce is so simple to make with only 4 ingredients. You will never want store bought sauce again.
If you enjoy shrimp be sure to try hot shrimp dip , BBQ shrimp and shrimp etouffee.
One of my mom’s favorite things to eat is shrimp cocktail. If she didn’t feel like cooking, we would have that for dinner with potatoes and a vegetable. It was also served at every holiday meal and party.
I never remember her buying cocktail sauce from the store. She always made it from scratch and would joke that she would disown me if she caught me buying store bought sauce.
Homemade is the way to go with cocktail sauce. The fresh ingredients makes such a huge difference in taste, it’s worth the few minutes it takes to make it.
What you need
Chili sauce – I prefer this to Ketchup. It has a little bit of a bite and already tastes a little like cocktail sauce on it’s own.
Prepared horseradish – Make sure not to use horseradish sauce because it contains other ingredients like mayonnaise. You can typically find it in the condiment aisle of the grocery store.
Worcestershire sauce – This adds a little saltiness.
Lemon juice – The juice adds acid to the sauce to help balance out the flavors.
How to make
Scroll down for full printable recipe, ingredients and video.
This can be made in less than 5 minutes. An advantage to making it yourself is the ability to adjust the level of spiciness.
If you like it more spicy, add more horseradish. If you like it extra tangy, add more lemon juice.
- Stir all of the ingredients together in a bowl making sure to get the combined. Serve immediately or story in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Recipe Tips
- If you are making for a party, prepare it ahead of time and let chill.
- Adjust the amount of horseradish to desired spiciness level. If you accidentally add too much, add more chili sauce or ketchup.
- This recipe makes about 1 1/2 cups. It can be doubled for a large crowd or party.
How long does it last?
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
What to serve with homemade cocktail sauce
- I think the classic thing to use it with is shrimp cocktail. Choose your favorite cooked shrimp and serve alongside the sauce.
- It can also be served with oysters, calamari and crab.
- Crab cakes is another great way to enjoy this sauce.
- Fish sticks – My kids like using it for dipping.
- Shrimp and sausage dinner
What type of shrimp is best?
Shrimp are available in different sizes, along with tail on or off and shell on or off. They also come fresh and frozen.
If you are making a shrimp cocktail appetizer, it is recommended to buy tail on because it makes them easier to pick up and just looks nice on the plate.
Shell or no shell is a personal choice. Leaving it on can add flavor but does make it a little more messy.
Fresh or frozen shrimp is again a personal choice. I find that the frozen shrimp tend to be very fresh. If you are short on time, fresh is the way to go, just make sure to smell your fresh seafood before bringing it home. There should not be a “fishy” smell.
More tasty condiments
- Tartar sauce – This is another great dipping sauce for seafood.
- Chick-Fil-A sauce – Make this restaurant favorite at home with a few simple ingredients.
- Teriyaki Sauce – This easy homemade sauce is the base for chicken teriyaki.
*** If you made this recipe, please leave a comment and rating below.
Cocktail Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 16 oz chili sauce
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup prepared horseradish
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Mix everything together in a bowl. Serve or store in the refrigerator.
Video
Notes
- Adjust the amount of horseradish to desired spiciness level. If you accidentally add too much, add more chili sauce or ketchup.
- Will last about 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
Rosemary
Reading this made me realize that I haven’t had shrimp cocktail in a while. Need to add that to the quarantine weekly menu. Agree, with your mom, fresh ingredients are always better. Thanks for the reminder.
sara lafountain
I tried this tonight and it was so easy and SO DELICIOUS! Loved it with some shrimp cocktail.
Catalina
My dinner will be better with this sauce. Everyone will love it!
Marysa
I never thought to make our own. This sounds delicious, and it is nice to make a homemade version that is fresh.
Chef Dennis
This Homemade Cocktail Sauce looks really yummy and it will be perfect for my shrimp recipe. My wife will surely love to have this, Thanks for sharing.
Beth
My mom used to make cocktail sauce all the time, I tried to recreate it using ketchup, but it wasn’t quite right. Reading this, I’m pretty sure she also used chili sauce. Thanks for sharing this!
Liz
Looks DELICIOUS! We love eating seafood in this house so definitely bookmarking for later.
Terri Steffes
I have to make mine, too and I almost have the same recipe, but I don’t add the worchestershire sauce, but I am going to start. That sounds so good.
Pam Wattenbarger
I love making my own condiment sauces. I have a recipe that is very similar to this one that my family loves. I’ll have to try your version too.
Tasheena
I had no idea how easy this was to make. Looking forward to giving this recipe a try.
Bruce DeMustchine
In all my years of cooking, I’ve yet to use a chili sauce vs. ketchup in my cocktail sauce. I’ll be “borrowing” your recipe for my next shrimp cocktail. Thanks, Heather!
Rena
I love cocktail sauce but I never even thought about making my own! I’m pinning this to give it a try.
Amber Myers
Oh yum, my husband loves cocktail sauce with his shrimp. I’ll have to show him this!
Jen
This looks tasty! I am a major shrimp-aholic. I could seriously eat it every day!
melissa chapman
That shrimp cocktail looks so good and my son loves shrimp. I have to try to make this sauce and use it on so many things.
Sarah Bailey
OK now this sauce sounds right up my street – I do love a bit of seafood and could just imagine dipping in some prawns oh yum!