This cajun remoulade recipe is a creamy, zesty Louisiana-style sauce made with mayonnaise, mustard, hot sauce, horseradish, capers, and fresh herbs. It is the kind of quick sauce that makes fried shrimp, crab cakes, po' boys, fries, and fried green tomatoes feel like they got dressed up without anybody making a fuss.
Cajun remoulade is a spicy, mayo-based dipping sauce with mustard, lemon, hot sauce, horseradish, Worcestershire, Cajun seasoning, capers, parsley, and chives. This version blends the base until smooth, then folds in the herbs and capers so the sauce stays creamy with just enough texture.
What Is Cajun Remoulade Sauce?
Cajun remoulade sauce is a creamy Louisiana-style condiment with a tangy, spicy kick. Unlike classic French remoulade, which is often more herb-forward and mayonnaise-based, Cajun remoulade usually brings in hot sauce, Creole or whole grain mustard, horseradish, Worcestershire, and Cajun seasoning.
It is not quite tartar sauce, either. Tartar sauce leans pickle-heavy and mild. Cajun remoulade has more depth from mustard, capers, hot sauce, horseradish, and warm seasoning.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Fast prep: The sauce takes about 10 minutes to mix.
- Big flavor: Mustard, horseradish, hot sauce, capers, and Cajun seasoning bring tang, heat, and briny depth.
- Make-ahead friendly: The flavor gets better after an hour in the refrigerator.
- Flexible heat: Taste and adjust with more Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, or lemon juice.
- Useful all week: Serve it as a dip, sandwich spread, burger sauce, or seafood sauce.
Recipe At-a-Glance
- Flavor: Creamy, tangy, briny, lightly sweet, and spicy.
- Texture: Smooth base with bits of parsley, chives, and capers.
- Difficulty: Easy.
- Prep time: 10 minutes.
- Chill time: 1 hour.
- Yield: About 1 ¼ cups, or 10 servings.
- Freezer-friendly: No. The mayonnaise base can separate.
Where This Sauce Comes From
Remoulade has French roots, but Louisiana cooks turned it into something bolder, spicier, and built for seafood. In New Orleans and across Louisiana cuisine, remoulade often shows up with fried shrimp, crab cakes, oysters, po' boys, and other fried foods that need a creamy sauce with enough acid and heat to cut through richness.
Ingredients You'll Need
- Mayonnaise: The creamy base that carries the seasonings.
- Garlic: Fresh minced garlic gives the sauce a sharper savory note.
- Ketchup: Adds a little sweetness, color, and tomato depth.
- Dijon mustard: Brings smooth tang.
- Whole grain mustard or Creole mustard: Adds texture and bolder mustard flavor.
- Fresh lemon juice: Brightens the sauce and keeps it from tasting heavy.
- Tabasco hot sauce: Adds Louisiana-style heat and vinegar tang.
- Prepared horseradish: Gives the sauce its signature sharp kick.
- Caper brine and capers: Bring salty, briny flavor that works beautifully with seafood.
- Worcestershire sauce: Adds savory depth.
- Old Bay and Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning: Build warm seafood-friendly seasoning.
- Granulated sugar: Rounds out the acid, spice, and mustard.
- Parsley and chives: Fresh herbs keep the finished sauce bright.
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Tools That Make It Easier
- Blender or food processor
- Small mixing bowl
- Knife and cutting board
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Rubber spatula or spoon
- Airtight storage container
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → 
Buy Now → How to Make Cajun Remoulade Sauce
- Prep the mix-ins. Finely chop the parsley and chives, coarsely chop the capers, and mince the garlic.
- Blend the base. Add the mayonnaise, garlic, ketchup, Dijon, whole grain or Creole mustard, lemon juice, Tabasco, horseradish, caper brine, Worcestershire, Old Bay, Cajun seasoning, and sugar to a blender or food processor. Process until completely smooth and evenly blended.
- Stir in the fresh pieces. Transfer the smooth sauce to a bowl. Stir in the parsley, chives, and chopped capers until evenly distributed.
- Taste and adjust. Add more Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, or lemon juice if you want a little more punch.
- Chill before serving. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour so the flavors can blend. Stir well before serving.
Helpful Tips Before You Start
The sauce tastes sharper right after blending, then settles into a rounder flavor after chilling. If you can, wait until after the one-hour chill to make final seasoning adjustments.
- Use prepared white horseradish for the cleanest sharpness.
- Stir the herbs and capers in by hand so the sauce stays fresh-looking and lightly textured.
- Start with the listed Cajun seasoning, then add more only after tasting.
- If the sauce tastes too rich, add a small squeeze of lemon juice.
- If it tastes too sharp, let it chill longer before changing the recipe.
A Few Easy Mistakes to Avoid
The easiest mistake is over-seasoning before the sauce has had time to chill. Horseradish, mustard, hot sauce, and Cajun seasoning all bloom as the sauce sits, so a sauce that seems a little edgy at first often tastes just right an hour later.
- Do not blend the herbs into the base unless you want a green-tinted sauce.
- Do not skip the chill time if you want the best flavor.
- Do not use too much caper brine; it should lift the sauce, not make it salty.
- Do not freeze it. The mayonnaise can separate and turn grainy.
A Few Things That Make This Recipe Better
Using both Dijon and whole grain or Creole mustard gives this remoulade more character than a one-note mayonnaise sauce. The Dijon blends smoothly into the base, while the whole grain or Creole mustard adds a bolder Southern flavor.
The tiny bit of sugar matters, too. It does not make the sauce sweet; it just rounds off the mustard, hot sauce, lemon, and horseradish so the finished sauce tastes balanced.
Keeping Leftovers Fresh
Store Cajun remoulade sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Stir well before serving if any separation occurs.
Freezing is not recommended because the mayonnaise base can separate and become grainy after thawing.
Can You Make It Ahead?
Yes, Cajun remoulade is a great make-ahead sauce. Make it at least 1 hour ahead, or up to a day before serving, so the garlic, mustard, horseradish, hot sauce, and herbs have time to blend.
What to Serve with Cajun Remoulade
Cajun remoulade is especially good with fried shrimp, crab cakes, oysters, po' boys, fish sandwiches, fried green tomatoes, hush puppies, french fries, roasted vegetables, burgers, and sandwiches.
For internal links, this sauce is a natural fit with Cajun Fried Catfish, Jalapeno Hush Puppies, Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp Tacos, Shrimp Boil, and Easy Lemon Dill Sauce.
FAQs
Is Cajun remoulade the same as tartar sauce?
No, Cajun remoulade is usually spicier and more complex than tartar sauce. Tartar sauce often leans on pickles and mayonnaise, while Cajun remoulade adds mustard, hot sauce, horseradish, Worcestershire, Cajun seasoning, capers, and herbs.
Can I use Creole mustard instead of whole grain mustard?
Yes. Creole mustard can replace whole grain mustard and gives the sauce a bolder Louisiana-style flavor.
How spicy is this remoulade sauce?
This remoulade has a noticeable spicy kick, but it is still balanced by mayonnaise, mustard, lemon, sugar, and herbs. Add more hot sauce or Cajun seasoning if you want it hotter.
Can I make Cajun remoulade without a blender?
Yes, but the texture will be a little more rustic. Mince the garlic very finely, whisk the base ingredients until smooth, then stir in the parsley, chives, and capers.
How long does homemade remoulade last?
Homemade remoulade keeps for up to 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Stir before serving.
Can you freeze remoulade sauce?
Freezing is not recommended. The mayonnaise base can separate and become grainy after thawing.
Get More Recipes Like This
If you love practical Southern recipes, sauces, sides, and comfort food favorites, join my email list here: Get more recipes from JenniferCooks.
Tried It?
If you make this Cajun remoulade sauce, leave a rating and tell me what you served it with. I am always interested in whether it went with shrimp, crab cakes, sandwiches, fries, or something wonderfully snacky.
More Recipes You Might Like
- Easy Lemon Dill Sauce
- Cajun Fried Catfish
- Jalapeno Hush Puppies
- Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp Tacos
- Shrimp Boil
Easy Lemon Dill Sauce
This creamy Lemon Dill Sauce recipe is a quick, delicious sauce made with sour cream, fresh dill, lemon juice, and garlic. Perfect for seafood, veggies, and more! Whip it up with simple ingredients today.
The Best Spicy Cajun Fried Catfish Recipe
Classic Cajun Fried Catfish, soaked in buttermilk and crusted in spicy seasoned cornmeal, is more than just a dish-it's a deep South tradition wrapped in a whole lot of flavor!
Jalapeno Hush Puppies
A few days ago I posted my Cajun Fried Catfish, and nothing goes better with fried fish than Hush Puppies. But I couldn't make just regular hush puppies, I had to make Jalapeño Hush Puppies (you know how I love spicy foods). You'll notice these pups are long and skinny, that's because I piped them
Grilled Cilantro Lime Shrimp Tacos with Strawberry Jalapeño Salsa
I am so excited about this recipe, y'all! I was hesitant about combining a strawberry salsa with shrimp, but let me tell you it more than worked well ~ it was fantastic! These Shrimp Tacos were so quick and easy, I whipped them up in 20 minutes for lunch this week. The slightly sweet, tart
Shrimp Boil
One of my favorite things about living in Houston is the close proximity to fresh Gulf seafood. I LOVE seafood...especially shrimp. Recently, Q and I took the kids down to Kemah, a nearby fishing town where you can buy fresh seafood at many markets right off of the nearby Kemah Boardwalk. Kemah is a very
Easy Homemade Cajun Remoulade Sauce Recipe
This creamy Cajun Remoulade Sauce is bold, tangy, and packed with Louisiana-inspired flavor. Made with mayonnaise, Dijon and Creole-style mustard, horseradish, fresh herbs, capers, and Cajun seasoning, it comes together in minutes and tastes even better after chilling. Serve it as a dipping sauce for fried shrimp, crab cakes, and French fries, or spread it on po' boys, burgers, fish sandwiches, and wraps for an easy way to add a zesty kick to any meal.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Chilling Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 ¼ cup (10 servings) 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Cajun / Creole, French
Ingredients
¾ cup mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ketchup
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard or Creole mustard
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons Tabasco hot sauce
2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
1 teaspoon caper brine
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
½ teaspoon Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, plus more if needed
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
Mix-Ins
¼ cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
¼ cup finely chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped capers
Instructions
Prep
- Finely chop the parsley, chives, and capers.
- Mince the garlic.
Assemble
- Place the mayonnaise, garlic, ketchup, Dijon mustard, whole grain or Creole mustard, lemon juice, Tabasco, Old Bay seasoning, horseradish, caper brine, Worcestershire sauce, Cajun seasoning, and sugar in a blender or food processor.
- Process until the mixture is completely smooth and evenly blended.
- Transfer the sauce to a bowl.
- Stir in the parsley, chives, and chopped capers until evenly distributed.
- Taste and adjust with additional Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, or lemon juice if desired.
Chill
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving to allow the flavors to blend.
••Stir well before serving.
Notes
Substitutions
- Creole mustard can be used in place of whole grain mustard for a bolder flavor.
- Prepared white horseradish works best, but creamy prepared horseradish may also be used.
- If fresh chives or parsley are unavailable, dried herbs may be substituted in smaller amounts, though the flavor will be less vibrant.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve with fried shrimp, crab cakes, oysters, po' boys, fish sandwiches, or fried green tomatoes.
- Use as a spread for burgers and sandwiches or as a dipping sauce for fries and roasted vegetables.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Stir before serving if any separation occurs.
Freezing
- Freezing is not recommended. The mayonnaise base can separate and become grainy after thawing, affecting the texture.
0