If you're looking for a fresh, flavorful, and delicious homemade cocktail sauce, you've come to the right place! Using a few simple ingredients and just a few minutes you'll have a dipping sauce that pairs perfectly with any shrimp dish.

Homemade Cocktail Sauce in a white bowl surrounded by breaded shrimp

Why You'll Love This Homemade Version

Fast. A flavorful homemade shrimp sauce is done in under 30 minutes.
Easy. A simple no cook recipe that will have you making your own cocktail sauce at home instead of buying a jar at the store.
Minimal Ingredients. Under 5 ingredients for a tasty addition to your next seafood meal.
Budget-friendly. Use ingredients you likely already have in your refrigerator to create a delightfully new sauce experience.

What Is Cocktail Sauce?

Cocktail sauce is a delicious blend of a tomato base with a hint of salt, spice, umami, and a finishing touch of acidity.

It is used most commonly as a dip but can be utilized as an add-in ingredient to many of your favorite seafood or beef protein main courses or appetizers.

How Is Cocktail Sauce Different From Ketchup?

I get it, they're both red sauces that are traditionally used for dipping. They both have a slightly sweet profile and kids love them. So, they've got to be the same thing, right?

Not exactly. Ketchup is a tomato-based sauce that is seasoned and sweetened to make a dip that is fairly bland in flavor.

Cocktail sauce is a dip with many layers of flavor. In fact, it uses ketchup as one of the primary ingredients.

So before you go dipping your next shrimp appetizer in ketchup (no judgment if that's your thing) take a minute to whip up this super easy homemade cocktail sauce instead.

Ingredients You'll Need

This is an incredibly simple homemade cocktail sauce, but don't let that fool you. Minimal ingredients don't have to be minimal flavor. The layers of flavor created in this shrimp dipping sauce pair perfectly with some of your favorite foods!

Ketchup
Worchestershire Sauce
Horseradish
Lemon Juice

What Can I Use Instead Of Horseradish In Cocktail Sauce?

Cocktail sauce traditionally uses horseradish to give a subtle hint of heat in every bite. If you don't have any horseradish in your fridge and you don't want to make a trip to the grocery store, here are a few things you can use in place of it:

Hot sauce
Blended chipotles in adobo sauce
Red chili flakes

The amounts you will need to substitute for horseradish will vary, so start by adding just a little and increase in small increments until your homemade cocktail sauce is at the perfect heat level for you.

How To Make Homemade Cocktail Sauce

This homemade cocktail sauce is so simple, you won't believe you've never tried making your own version at home before! Follow the easy steps below for a fail-proof cocktail sauce that will take your next bite to the next level.

Add the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, and lemon juice to a bowl.
Briskly whisk the ingredients until they are well incorporated.
Serve the homemade cocktail sauce with your favorite appetizer or main course for dipping.

Homemade Cocktail sauce in a white bowl served with breaded shrimp

Variations

Add some texture. Seafood often pairs well with tropical, citrusy flavors. For some added texture, finely dice up some pineapple or mango and stir it into the cocktail sauce.
Make it Smokey. Blend up some chipotles in adobo sauce and add a teaspoon to the homemade cocktail sauce for a slightly spicy and smoky addition.
Freshen it up. The sweetness from the ketchup and the spiciness of the horseradish can always use some acidity and freshness to help balance them. Chop up some fresh cilantro and squeeze in extra lemon juice for a bright pop of flavor.

What To Serve With Cocktail Sauce

While homemade cocktail sauce is most often used as a dipping sauce for shrimp, it can be used for a variety of other things. Here are some of my favorite ways to use it:

Cocktail Shrimp
Breaded Shrimp
Crab Cakes
Mozzarella Sticks

How Long Does It Last?

For the best bite, I would recommend storing any leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container and enjoying them within 1 week of preparing the homemade cocktail sauce.

For the freshest flavor, and longest-lasting cocktail sauce, avoid dipping any food directly into the sauce that you don't intend on consuming immediately.

More Awesome Sauce Recipes

If you love making your own homemade sauces to switch up the flavors of some of your favorite meals, check out some of my other awesome sauce recipes!

Homemade Cocktail Sauce recipe Pin with text overlay

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