Cocktail Sauce

Delectable Shrimp Cocktail is a classic appetizer recipe that will never go out of style. Enjoy fresh poached shrimp with a delicious savory and spicy cocktail sauce that you won’t be able to resist.

If shrimp cocktail is on the menu when I’m ordering appetizers, it’s almost guaranteed that I’ll be getting it. A good shrimp cocktail is the perfect before dinner snack. It’s high in protein, just filling enough not to ruin my chances of enjoying a delicious dinner, and so tasty! 

I think my favorite part might be the cocktail sauce. Here I’ve created my own using all of the best ingredients in the perfect amounts. These are ingredients that you probably already have at home too. This sauce is spicy, salty, savory, and the perfect complement to sweet poached shrimp. 

Why You’ll Love This Shrimp Cocktail Recipe

I’ll say it again, Shrimp Cocktail is the perfect appetizer. Make this for a regular family dinner, or serve it to a crowd by doubling the recipe. 

• It’s a festive appetizer. Shrimp is great for holiday dinners like Christmas or New Years, or any time you’re celebrating. 
• This shrimp cocktail sauce is better than store-bought. Pre-made cocktail sauce in a jar will never be as good as this simple recipe that you can make in 5 minutes. Plus, it’s much cheaper to make your own when you want it. 
• Use this recipe as a seafood sauce, and serve with all sorts of seafood dishes. Try it as a dipping sauce with crab legs, lobster, fried shrimp, oysters, or fish. 
• Learning how to make seafood sauce gets you one step closer to being a kitchen pro! This cocktail sauce recipe is just like you’d find in a high-end restaurant. 
• This recipe is quick. It will take you less than five minutes to create your own delicious cocktail sauce. 

What is Cocktail Sauce? 

Cocktail sauce is a cold spiced sauce traditionally served with a dish called a seafood cocktail. British celebrity chef Fanny Cradock is often credited as being the first to create the cocktail sauce recipe, and the seafood cocktail has been around since the early 1960s.

Seafood cocktails were often made with shrimp or oysters, but may have appeared with any type of seafood. Typically the seafood was served cold and in a glass dish with the sauce in the center and the seafood artfully arranged around it.

Minimally, cocktail sauce in North America includes ketchup or chili sauce mixed with horseradish. Additions of lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and tabasco sauce are also common. In Europe, mayonnaise is often included, making a pink sauce that matches the shrimp.

Here we’re making a traditional cocktail sauce recipe like you’d see in the United States or Canada.

Ingredients in Shrimp Cocktail Sauce

• Heinz Chili Sauce – I’m using chili sauce because I love the extra kick it gives. If you can’t find it, no worries. Regular ketchup will work as well. Sometimes I do half chili sauce, and half ketchup and that works well!
• Lemon Juice – Freshly squeezed, please! About two tablespoons.
• Hot Sauce – The type of hot sauce is important. I’d recommend a basic like Tobasco, Louisiana, or Crystal hot sauce.
• Worcestershire Sauce – This adds a savory, umami flavor that nothing else can replicate.
• Prepared Horseradish – This is typically found in glass jars in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, or near the seafood. It’s spicy in the best way.

How to Make Cocktail Sauce

1. Whisk Together. In a small bowl, whisk together the chili sauce (or ketchup) with lemon juice, hot sauce, and Worcestershire sauce until combined.
2. Add Horseradish. Gradually whisk in prepared horseradish, tasting and adding more if desired.
3. Serve. Serve immediately or chill until ready to be served.

How to Adjust the Spice of Seafood Sauce

This recipe makes a cocktail sauce that is perfectly spicy for my tastes, but you can make some adjustments to the recipe to make it spicier or milder so that it’s perfect for you and your family.

If you want a spicier cocktail sauce, add additional horseradish or hot sauce a little bit at a time, tasting as you mix until it’s just the way you like it.

To make a milder sauce, reduce the amount of hot sauce in the recipe or remove it all together. Add just enough horseradish until the spice level is right.

Did you make the sauce already and it’s too spicy? No problem. Just add more ketchup to balance the spice with more sweetness. 

How To Serve Shrimp Cocktail

This cocktail sauce pairs perfectly with my freshly poached shrimp. Jumbo shrimp, or the 16-25 count, are the best-sized shrimp for dipping into this sauce.

For a small dinner party, serve shrimp cocktails plated individually. For each person, place a small ramekin of cocktail sauce in the center of an appetizer plate and surround it with 4-6 jumbo shrimp. Garnish with a lemon wedge and something green like parsley or green leaf lettuce.

To serve a crowd, shrimp cocktail makes a beautiful plattered appetizer. Start with a bowl full of your delicious seafood sauce in the center of a platter. Line the platter with green leaf lettuce or curly kale and put down a few ice cubes to keep everything cold. Fill the platter with shrimp when ready to serve and garnish with lemon wedges.

Frequently Asked Questions

Now you know how simple and delicious it is to make your own homemade shrimp cocktail sauce! Enjoy adjusting the ingredients and making this dish your own. You’ll never have to buy jarred seafood sauce again! Remember to Pin this post so others can enjoy this recipe too.