Homemade Shrimp Cocktail Sauce Recipe (2025)

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Shrimp Cocktail is the appetizer everyone looks forward to! This Homemade Cocktail Sauce packs a punch of flavor using ingredients like ketchup, horseradish, fresh lemon juice, and tabasco sauce to take your Shrimp Cocktail to a restaurant-worthy level!

I really prefer to make my own sauces since you just can’t beat the taste of homemade! Whether you’re just getting into making your own sauces or have been for years, my Burger Sauce and Fish Taco Sauce are also worth checking out!

Shrimp Cocktail is a great addition to any buffet-style snack spread! It politely breaks up the monotony of chips and dips and vegetable trays, delivering fresh seafood with homemade cocktail sauce!

Homemade Shrimp Cocktail Sauce takes just 5 minutes to make, that’s faster than running to the store for a bottle! This sauce can be made up to 2 weeks in advance allowing you to prepare for your parties earlier!

What Is Shrimp Cocktail?

Shrimp Cocktail is a seafood dish that’s made of cooked and shelled prawns. It’s commonly served in a glass partially filled with a type of cocktail sauce that’s used for dipping.

Shrimp Cocktail Sauce Ingredients

This sauce is a mixture of ketchup, horseradish, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, white vinegar, and tabasco sauce. Garlic powder and onion powder finish up the list of ingredients necessary for bringing this zesty sauce to life!

How To Make Shrimp Cocktail

Simply just whisk together all of the ingredients in a small bowl. See! It’s so easy there’s no excuse not to try making your own Homemade Cocktail Sauce at least once!

Refrigerate until ready to serve, now the only thing left to do is get your shrimp ready!

Recipe Tip: Really want a lemony cocktail sauce? Zest the lemon peel and add the lemon zest in along with the juice!

Prepare Your Shrimp

Depending on the shrimp you’ve gotten will determine how you prepare it.

Fresh, raw shrimp will need to be cooked. You’ll need to peel and devein the shrimp beforehand but be sure to leave the tail attached.

Add water to a large pot and bring to a boil with bay leaves, once boiling reduce heat to a simmer. Then place the shrimp inside the pot for about 3 minutes, this is long enough for them to turn pink. The shrimp should still be fairly firm to the touch, let them to cool before serving.

My favorite method is using pre-cooked frozen shrimp that just need to be thawed! Once they’re thawed, refrigerate until you’re ready to serve them alongside the Cocktail Sauce.

Serving Shrimp Cocktails

You can serve Shrimp Cocktail on a large platter that rests on a bed of crushed ice. This will allow the shrimp to stay chilled.

Another popular method is serving large shrimp in individual glasses that are ready to grab by guests!

How To Store

You can store this sauce for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator. This can also be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Once the sauce has been used for dipping I recommend discarding any leftovers.

Tabasco Sauce Substitutions

You can always substitute the tabasco sauce for your personal favorite hot sauce or chili sauce!

Serving Size

This cocktail sauce recipe is designed to serve with 1lb of shrimp. If you’ll be serving more than one pound you’ll want double or even triple the sauce recipe!

One bite of Homemade Shrimp Cocktail Sauce will have you walking down the path of making all your own sauces! Let your starting line be right here with more of my favorite sauce recipes!

• Easy Alfredo Sauce – Rich, creamy, and cheesy sauce ready in 10 minutes!
• Marinara Sauce – Top all of your favorite pasta dishes with this delicious sauce!
• Penne Alla Vodka Sauce – A comforting and flavorful recipe the whole family will love!
• Maple Mustard Dipping Sauce – Just 3 ingredients and ready for your chicken in 5 minutes!
• Pomodoro Sauce – Italian pasta sauce made with tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, and red pepper flakes!

👋 Let’s Connect!

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