• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Chef Dennis
  • Recipe Index
  • On the Road
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Contact
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe Index
    • About
    • Contact
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Recipes » Recipes

    Homemade Cocktail Sauce – Restaurant Quality

    Published: Sep 22, 2022 by Chef Dennis Littley

    482 shares
    • Facebook48
    • Email
    5 from 33 votes
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Making delicious tangy cocktail sauce that will rival (or be better than) your favorite seafood restaurant is easier to make than you think. It only takes 5 minutes to make and with my chef’s secret ingredient you’ll never be satisfied with the seafood sauce that is served in many restaurants.

    homemade cocktail sauce in a glass bowl with a spoon

    Don’t be fooled by recipes that tell you, you only need 3 or 4 ingredients because they’re leaving out the most important ingredient!

    overhead view of shrimp cocktail and cocktail sauce on an iced plate with a lemon wedge

    I love seafood and most days cocktail sauce is my preferred condiment for seafood, especially when it’s served with shrimp cocktail.

    fried shrimp platter with cocktail sauce and tarter sauce

    It’s also my favorite seafood sauce for Fried Shrimp. I guarantee that after one taste you’ll agree it’s the Best Cocktail Sauce you’ll ever make.

    Table of Contents:

    • Ingredients to make Restaurant Quality Cocktail Sauce
      • Can I make cocktail sauce without Heinz chili sauce?
    • How to make Restaurant Quality Cocktail Sauce
    • Recipe FAQ’s
    • More Recipes You’ll Love!
    • Homemade Cocktail Sauce – Restaurant Quality
      • Ingredients
      • Instructions
      • Nutrition

    Ingredients to make Restaurant Quality Cocktail Sauce

    ingredients to make recipe

    Let’s start by gathering the ingredients we need to make homemade cocktail sauce. In Chef Speak this is called the “Mise en Place” which translates to “Everything in its Place”.

    Not only does setting your ingredients up ahead of time speed up the cooking process, it also helps ensure you have everything you need to make the dish.

    There are only 5 simple ingredients needed to make this classic seafood sauce.

    • ketchup (preferably Heinz)
    • Heinz Chili Sauce (Secret Ingredient)
    • Worchestershire sauce
    • lemon juice
    • prepared horseradish

    Heinz chili sauce is the only chili sauce you can use to make this amazing seafood sauce. Trust me on this one, there are no substitutes. I don’t include hot sauce in my recipe as it’s not really necessary, but feel free to add some if you really like heat in your food.

    This really is a simple sauce and other ingredients aren’t going to help it, no other seasonings like garlic, onion, or black pepper are needed. And whatever you do, don’t try and make this sauce from tomato paste!

    Can I make cocktail sauce without Heinz chili sauce?

    You sure can. It won’t be an epic seafood cocktail sauce, but it will still be pretty darn good!

    How to make Restaurant Quality Cocktail Sauce

    ketchup and chili sauce in a glass bowl with spoon.

    The first step is to add the chili sauce and ketchup into a small mixing bowl.

    horseradish added to the bowl of ketchup an chili sauce

    Add the horseradish to the sauce. The horseradish is what makes it a spicy cocktail sauce. Remember you can always add more if you want the sauce spicier.

    If you accidentally put too much horseradish in or it turns out to be too spicy for you, just add a little more ketchup to the mixture and make it your own cocktail sauce, suited to your tastes.

    horseradish mixed into the chili sauce ketchup mixture

    Mix the prepared horseradish with ketchup and chili sauce.

    Worcestershire and lemon juice added to the mixture

    Add the lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce to the mixture and blend together.

    homemade cocktail sauce in a glass bowl with a spoon

    You’ve just created a Classic Cocktail Sauce, used for generations by premier seafood restaurants in the United States. This sauce goes well with all my favorite seafood and I know it will with your favorites too!

    Let the cocktail sauce sit for a few hours before using. This allows the flavor profile to become more intense. Kept in an air tight container this sauce can be kept refrigerated for 6 months, although I wouldn’t recommend keeping it longer than 2 months.

    Recipe FAQ’s

    Can I make this seafood sauce without Heinz chili sauce?

    Yes you can. It won’t be the epic sauce that it could be, but it will still be a delicious homemade cocktail sauce.

    Can I use another brand of chili sauce?

    Well technically you can, but don’t expect it to taste as good. Heinz chili sauce is the real deal. You’re better to leave out the chili sauce if you can’t find Heinz.

    More Recipes You’ll Love!

    • overhead view of shrimp cocktail and cocktail sauce on an iced plate with a lemon wedge
      Shrimp Cocktail Recipe {Restaurant-Style}
    • fried lobster tails on a white plate
      Restaurant-Style Fried Lobster Tails
    • partial overhead view of peel and eat shrimp with cocktail sauce and lemons in a white bowl
      Restaurant Style Peel and Eat Shrimp
    • golden brown fried shrimp on a white plate with tarter sauce, cocktail sauce and lemon slices
      Classic Restaurant Style Fried Shrimp

    Did you make this? Please RATE THE RECIPE below!

    Please SUBSCRIBE and FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST!

    glass bowl of cocktail sauce
    Print Recipe Save Saved!
    5 from 33 votes

    Homemade Cocktail Sauce – Restaurant Quality

    Making delicious tangy cocktail sauce that will rival (or be better than) your favorite seafood restaurant is easier to make than you think. It only takes 5 minutes to make and with my chef's secret ingredient you'll never be satisfied with the seafood sauce that is served in many restaurants.
    Prep Time5 minutes mins
    Cook Time0 minutes mins
    Total Time5 minutes mins
    Course: condiment, Sauce
    Cuisine: American
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 33kcal

    Ingredients

    • ½ cup ketchup
    • ½ cup Heinz chili sauce
    • 2 tsp worcestershire sauce
    • 3 tsp prepared horseradish more or less depending upon how spicy you like cocktail sauce.
    • 2 tsp lemon juice
    US Customary – Metric
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Mix the ketchup, chili sauce, horseradish, lemon juice, worcestershire sauce in a small bowl.
    • Depending upon how spicy you like cocktail sauce adjust the amount of horseradish. Remember you can always add more.
    • Chill until needed.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 33kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.1g | Saturated Fat: 0.01g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.04g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 392mg | Potassium: 123mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 194IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 8mg | Iron: 0.3mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @askChefDennis or tag #askChefDennis!

    More Recipes

    • Seasoned smoked chicken legs on a white platter.
      Smoked Chicken Legs
    • Graphic showing glasses of beer in a row for beer and food pairing guide.
      Beer and Food Pairing Guide
    • banana chocolate chip muffins on a white plate
      Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
    • roasted eggplant dip in a white bowl with lemons and a piece of bread dipping into the mixture.
      Roasted Eggplant Dip

    About Chef Dennis

    Picture of Chef Dennis

    Chef Dennis Littley is a classically trained chef with over 40 years of experience working in the food service industry. In his second career as a food blogger he has made it his mission to demistify cooking by sharing his time-tested recipes, knowledge, and chef tips to help you create easy-to-make restaurant-quality meals in your home kitchen. Let Chef Dennis help you bring the joy of cooking into your home. For more details, check out his About page.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Comment Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




      This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    1. Patricia Sgro

      September 24, 2022 at 9:26 am

      Chef Dennis : I am an old time Italian mother, nonna and bisnonna. I have been cooking for many years but must confess mostly Italian dishes are mainly my forte. The family has me on a pedestle for my cooking but they haven’t had your cooking. I now cook only for myself daily which is a challenge, or if the family gets together. I love the way you feature your recipes with instructions that are so simple to follow. I have tried many and they turned out fantastic. I am so happy I ran into you, I look forward to your newsletter and new food challenges. Thanks and keep them coming.

      Reply
      • Chef Dennis Littley

        September 24, 2022 at 9:52 am

        Thank you so much for your comment Patricia, you really made my day!

        Reply

    Primary Sidebar


    My name is Dennis Littley or “Chef Dennis” as I’m known both at work and across the blogosphere. As a classically trained chef with 40+ years of experience in the kitchen, I share my time-tested recipes, knowledge, and chef tips to help you create easy-to-make restaurant-quality meals in your home kitchen.

    More about me →

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

    Fan Favorites

    • loaf of homemade artisan bread on a wooden cutting board
      Almost No-Knead Artisan Bread Recipe
    • 2 Maryland crab cakes on a white plate
      Baked Maryland Crab Cakes Recipe
    • chicken parm with pasta on a white plate
      Chicken Parmesan Recipe
    • seasoned crispy chicken legs on a foil wrapped tray
      Best Baked Chicken Legs {Drumsticks}
    • side view of slice of bee sting cake being taken out of full cake
      German Bee Sting Cake (Bienenstich) Recipe
    • Tiramisu with a fork on a white plate
      Best Tiramisu Recipe {step by step}
    • overhead view of barbecued half racks of baby back ribs on a white platter
      Easy Oven Baked Baby Back Ribs
    • overhead view of veal parm and linguine on a white plate
      Restaurant Style Veal Parm Recipe

    Featured In

    logos of all the places chef dennis has been featured

    Popular Posts

    • crispy seasoned chicken leg quarters on a white platter
      Best Baked Chicken Leg Quarters
    • cropped-Gunniess-Beef-Stew-13.jpg
      Authentic Guinness Beef Stew Recipe
    • overhead shot of baked crab imperial on a white plate with sauteed greens and roasted potatoes
      Maryland Style Jumbo Lump Crab Imperial
    • close up of half a chicken salad sandwich on a white plate
      Best Chicken Salad – Deli Style
    • oysters rockefeller with a slice of lemon on a bed of rock salt on a white platter
      How to Make Restaurant Style Oysters Rockefeller
    • sliced dry rub roasted brisket with cilantro and tomatoes on on a white platter
      Easy Oven Baked Beef Brisket Recipe
    • rack of pork with end cut off
      Oven Roasted Rack of Pork {Pork Rib Roast}
    • sliced meatloaf with the rest of meatloaf on a white platter
      Classic Meatloaf Recipe with Zesty Glaze

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    INFO

    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclosure Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Accessibility Policy

    SUBSCRIBE

    Sign Up Today and start getting my easy-to-make restaurant-quality recipes!

    CONTACT

    • About
    • Contact
    © 2009-2023 · Ask Chef Dennis ·

    Proud Member of:
    Mediavine Publisher Network
    482 shares
    • 48