Skip to content

Top Navigation

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Food and Recipes
  • Culture and Lifestyle
  • Style
  • Holidays & Occasions
  • Home
  • Gardening Ideas
  • News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living Books this link opens in a new tab
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Southern Living

Southern Living Southern Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • The Best New Haircuts to Try in 2022

      The Best New Haircuts to Try in 2022

      Here are the haircuts you'll be seeing everywhere this year. Read More
    • How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      How To Season A Cast-Iron Skillet

      Learn how to season this Southern kitchen staple in five easy steps. Read More
    • 50 Thoughtful Messages for a Meaningful Thank You Note

      50 Thoughtful Messages for a Meaningful Thank You Note

      Not sure what to write in a thank you card? Here's how to show your gratitude with a handwritten note. Read More
  • Food and Recipes

    Food and Recipes

    See All Food and Recipes
    4 Easy Ways to Tell if an Egg Has Gone Bad

    4 Easy Ways to Tell if an Egg Has Gone Bad

    It’s not all in the senses, but they sure can help.
    • Recipes
    • Quick and Easy Dinner
    • Kitchen Assistant
    • Casserole
    • Holiday and Occasion Food
    • Slow Cooker Recipes
    • Desserts
    • Healthy and Light
    • Side Dishes
    • Party Food and Drink
    • Appetizers
    • Meat
    • Breakfast
    • BBQ
    • Drinks
    • What's Cooking
  • Culture and Lifestyle

    Culture and Lifestyle

    See All Culture and Lifestyle
    70 Cute and Funny Nicknames For Your Best Friends

    70 Cute and Funny Nicknames For Your Best Friends

    Let your besties know how much they mean to you with these unique nicknames.
    • Quotes and Sayings
    • Biscuits and Jam Podcast
    • Travel
    • Pets
    • Healthy Living
    • Coastal Living
  • Style

    Style

    See All Style
    The Coziest Winter Nail Colors for January 2022

    The Coziest Winter Nail Colors for January 2022

    The beginning of a new year often has us all feeling like starting off fresh by taking on better habits, getting rid of old ones, and—most commonly—changing up our look. While others are hitting the squats and going into the salon for a pixie cut, why not start slow and steady with a cozy winter manicure in a color that feels new to you? It takes only a little courage to step outside your usual OPI Lincoln Park After Dark or Essie Bordeaux, which is all you need to kick 2022 off on a fanciful foot.  From new wintry takes on classic dark nail colors to unique pops of color that'll have you feeling the opposite of boring, these are the best nail colors to try this January and tick off all the way into spring. 
    • Beauty
    • Hair
    • Fashion
    • Short Hairstyles
    • Nails
    • Medium Hairstyles
    • Skincare
    • Long Hairstyles
  • Holidays & Occasions

    Holidays & Occasions

    See All Holidays & Occasions
    • Thanksgiving
    • Gifts
    • Christmas
    • Mother's Day
    • Hanukkah
    • New Year's
    • Easter
    • Mardi Gras
    • 4th of July
    • Weddings
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    16 Kitchen Design Trends Southern Designers Predict Will Be Everywhere in 2022

    16 Kitchen Design Trends Southern Designers Predict Will Be Everywhere in 2022

    There's no denying how the pandemic fundamentally changed the world—including how we live (and work) inside our homes. An overall trend toward celebrating the history and originality of our homes is displacing ultramodern aesthetics and sharp lines as we all look to create cozier, colorful, more personalized spaces that better suit our lifestyles. We're turning away from big-box stores and toward vintage items—first, out of necessity due to supply-chain issues, and now, for design reasons—to add charm and character to every room in the house, including the kitchen. Here, interior designers from around the South share their predictions for what's trending in kitchen design for 2022 and beyond.
    • Home Decor Ideas
    • Idea Houses
    • Kitchen Design
    • Before & After Photos
    • Bathroom Design
    • Curb Appeal
    • Bedroom Design
    • DIY Home Decor
    • Color Palettes & Paint
    • House Plans & Builders
    • Inspired Communities
  • Gardening Ideas

    Gardening Ideas

    See All Gardening Ideas
    If You Keep Finding Ladybugs in Your House, Here's What You Need to Know

    If You Keep Finding Ladybugs in Your House, Here's What You Need to Know

    Plus a few strategies for keeping them out-of-doors
    • Container Gardening
    • Gardening Flowers
    • Fruit, Vegetable & Herb Gardens
    • Garden Pests
    • Plant Guides A-Z
    • Indoor Plants
    • Fall Plants
    • Landscaping Ideas
    • The Grumpy Gardener
  • News

    News

    See All News
    • Celebrities
    • Local News
  • Video

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout

More

  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Southern Living Books this link opens in a new tab
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Southern Living
  2. Food and Recipes
  3. Seafood
  4. 18 Standout Dipping Sauces Made To Go With Southern Seafood

18 Standout Dipping Sauces Made To Go With Southern Seafood

Kaitlyn Yarborough, Assistant Editor and Writer for Southern Living
By Kaitlyn Yarborough
Skip gallery slides
FB
Tortilla-Crusted Tilapia with Citrus Slaw and Chipotle Tartar Sauce
Credit: Stephen DeVries

Something that we will never, ever deny is that a dipping sauce makes anything better, especially when it comes to Southern seafood favorites like fried catfish, boiled shrimp, crab cakes, conch fritters, or even freshly shucked oysters. (If you've never had mignonette sauce on an oyster, you're missing out on a serious bite.) Because if you have perfectly grilled, boiled, or fried seafood on a plate with an even better sauce to slather on it, all you need is a bucket of fries or hush puppies and a cold beverage to wash it all down. If you're like us, you don't want to live in a world with cocktail sauce, Old Bay rémoulade, Cajun comeback sauce, or tartar sauce—and don't dare us when we say we'd just about bathe in our herby warm butter sauce. 

Here are 18 must-have dipping sauces for when Southern seafood is on the menu. Many of these sauce recipes come included in their own seafood recipes, but feel free to pull any sauce out and pair with anything you'd like.

Start Slideshow

1 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Homemade Cocktail Sauce

Garlic Butter-Roasted Shrimp Cocktail
Credit: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Karin Olsen; Food Styling: William Smith

Recipe: Garlic Butter-Roasted Shrimp Cocktail with Cocktail Sauce

Homemade cocktail sauce only requires a handful of ingredients, but the payoff for just a couple minutes of prep time is more than worth it. We credit this recipe's major flavor to three big tablespoons of horseradish and fresh lemon juice and zest. 

1 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Old Bay Rémoulade

Old Bay Rémoulade with Crudités and Shrimp
Credit: Johnny Autry; Prop and Food Styling: Charlotte L. Autry

Recipe: Old Bay Rémoulade with Crudités and Shrimp

Is there anything that Old Bay seasoning can't do? We've yet to find it. In this recipe, classic creamy rémoulade gets an extra kick of flavor from Old Bay and stone-ground mustard. 

2 of 18

3 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Comeback Sauce

Comeback Sauce
Credit: Photo: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller

Recipe: Comeback Sauce

We all know this crowd-favorite dipping sauce that's often paired with hush puppies, fried shrimp, chicken fingers, or even slathered on a fish sandwich or burger. Similar to a rémoulade, it is super creamy, mayonnaise-based, and infused with just a tipple of hot sauce. 

3 of 18

Advertisement

4 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Black-Eyed Pea Ranchero Sauce

Fried Delacata Catfish
Credit: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Prop Styling: Buffy Hargett Miller; Food Styling: Katelyn Hardwick

Recipe: Black-Eyed Pea Ranchero Sauce

This might seem out of the ordinary for fried catfish, but a super smoky ranchero sauce made with black-eyed peas makes one delicious complement for crispy fried catfish spritzed with fresh lemon wedges. 

4 of 18

5 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Traditional Mignonette Sauce

Traditional Mignonette Sauce
Credit: Stephen Devries; Prop Stylist: Rachael Burrow; Food Stylist: Catherine Steele

Recipe: Traditional Mignonette Sauce

Mignonette is a classic vinegary sauce made to be paired with freshly shucked oysters, with folks spooning just enough on to coat the taste buds when sucking the whole thing on. All it takes is three easy ingredients. 

5 of 18

6 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Old Bay Sauce

Air Fryer Popcorn Shrimp
Credit: Southern Living

Recipe: Air Fryer Popcorn Shrimp with Old Bay Sauce

What if we told you that there was always a creamy seafood sauce sitting in your kitchen? Mayonnaise, lemon juice, Old Bay seasoning, and a pinch of sugar can get you there. 

6 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Chipotle Tartar Sauce

Tortilla-Crusted Tilapia with Citrus Slaw and Chipotle Tartar Sauce
Credit: Stephen DeVries

Recipe: Tortilla-Crusted Tilapia with Citrus Slaw and Chipotle Tartar Sauce

Tartar sauce can sometimes feel boring or overdone, which is exactly why we prefer this approach that includes canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce and lime juice. Serve with any fried fish. 

7 of 18

8 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Hot Mignonette Sauce

Hot Mignonette Sauce
Credit: Stephen Devries; Prop Stylist: Rachael Burrow; Food Stylist: Catherine Steele

Recipe: Hot Mignonette Sauce

We gave an extra kick to mignonette, the classic vinegary oyster sauce, by adding Sriracha sauce to the traditional recipe. 

8 of 18

9 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Romesco Sauce

Roasted Gulf Shrimp with Romesco Sauce
Credit: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Roasted Gulf Shrimp with Romesco Sauce

Romesco is a warm, roasted red pepper-based sauce often paired with rustic Italian dishes—and it goes with oven-roasted shrimp like nobody's business. 

9 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Herb Butter Sauce

Grilled Clambake Foil Packets with Herb Butter
Credit: Linda Pugliese; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Anna Hampton

Recipe: Grilled Clambake Foil Packets with Herb Butter

Melted herb-infused butter literally always makes a delicious option for any form of boiled, broiled, or grilled seafood—from clam bakes to shrimp to mahi mahi. This recipe calls for the addition of shallot, dill, parsely, lemon, and—of course—Old Bay. 

10 of 18

11 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Boom Boom Sauce

Boom Boom Sauce
Credit: Southern Living

Recipe: Boom Boom Sauce

Known for its signature tangy kick, thanks to sweet chili sauce, this four-ingredient sauce is a match made in heaven with our Boom Boom Shrimp recipe. 

11 of 18

12 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Dao Family Crawfish Sauce

Dao Family Crawfish Sauce
Credit: Cedric Angeles

Recipe: Dao Family Crawfish Sauce

Any crawfish boil can stand on its own with massive amounts of seasoning, of course; but we'd also like to have this chunky, spicy, fiery sauce (made with orange peels, onions, garlic, butter, and plenty of spices) on hand to ramp up the flavor and festivities. 

12 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Summer Sauce

Summer Sauce
Credit: Greg DuPree; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Cat Steele

Recipe: Summer Sauce

This might not be solely just a seafood sauce, but man, does it really do some major good when brushed onto grilled fish or shrimp. Like a looser, fresher, lighter version of pesto, it's packed with fresh herby flavor. 

13 of 18

14 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Cajun Sauce

Cheesy Mushroom Tartlets
Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Kay E. Clarke; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Mini Crab Cakes with Cajun Sauce

Cajun sauce is a creamy finishing touch often paired with fried catfish or crab cakes, and it only requires a simple combination of hot sauce, lemon, Cajun seasoning, and mayo. 

14 of 18

15 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Sweet Mignonette Sauce

Sweet Mignonette Sauce
Credit: Stephen Devries; Prop Stylist: Rachael Burrow; Food Stylist: Catherine Steele

Recipe: Sweet Mignonette Sauce

Another vinegary mignonette to top off freshly shucked oysters, this sweet three-ingredient rendition adds rice wine vinegar and diced green apple for a sweet zing. 

15 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Quick Rémoulade Sauce

Grilled Shrimp Po'Boys with Quick Rémoulade Sauce Recipe
Credit: Max Kelly

Recipe: Grilled Shrimp Po'Boys with Quick Rémoulade Sauce

By quick, we mean incredibly easy. A handful of ingredients you most likely have on hand has a rémoulade sauce ready to be spread onto a po'boy. 

16 of 18

17 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Grilled Hot-Pepper Sauce

Grilled Hot-Pepper Sauce
Credit: Greg Dupree; Prop Styling: Ginny Branch; Food Styling: Anna Hampton

Recipe: Grilled Hot-Pepper Sauce

Who doesn't love a couple sprinkles of hot sauce on their fresh catch, no matter the form? This homemade option gets epic smokiness from grilling all the peppers and can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. 

17 of 18

18 of 18

FB
Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Maui Mustard Sauce

Coconut Shrimp with Maui Mustard Sauce
Credit: Howard L. Puckett

Recipe: Coconut Shrimp with Maui Mustard Sauce

Coconut shrimp certainly always packs a flavorful punch, but the real sensation here is the super tangy mustard sauce made with pineapple preserves, apricot preserves, and stone-ground mustard.

18 of 18

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Kaitlyn Yarborough

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 18 Homemade Cocktail Sauce
    2 of 18 Old Bay Rémoulade
    3 of 18 Comeback Sauce
    4 of 18 Black-Eyed Pea Ranchero Sauce
    5 of 18 Traditional Mignonette Sauce
    6 of 18 Old Bay Sauce
    7 of 18 Chipotle Tartar Sauce
    8 of 18 Hot Mignonette Sauce
    9 of 18 Romesco Sauce
    10 of 18 Herb Butter Sauce
    11 of 18 Boom Boom Sauce
    12 of 18 Dao Family Crawfish Sauce
    13 of 18 Summer Sauce
    14 of 18 Cajun Sauce
    15 of 18 Sweet Mignonette Sauce
    16 of 18 Quick Rémoulade Sauce
    17 of 18 Grilled Hot-Pepper Sauce
    18 of 18 Maui Mustard Sauce

    Share & More

    Tweet Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Southern Living

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • About Us
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Books from Southern Living
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Follow Us
    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    MeredithSouthern Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. Southern Living is a registered trademark of Meredith Corporationthis link opens in a new tab All Rights Reserved. Southern Living may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Southern Living. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.southernliving.com

    Sign in

    View image

    18 Standout Dipping Sauces Made To Go With Southern Seafood
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.