The original post published in May 2011. I’ve updated the photos to spare myself some embarrassment from the total lack of photography skills in the early days of blogging.
Ask anyone from Mississippi if they know about Comeback Sauce and they will look at you shocked for even asking the question. Of course, everyone in Mississippi knows about Comeback Sauce. Even if you’ve never heard the name, you probably know it, too. The sauce that’s served by the steak house chain made famous by the onions that bloom, is reminiscent of Comeback Sauce. Chances are you’ve had it on a burger or sandwich at a new age sandwich shop. It’s a versatile sauce that also makes a great salad dressing. The origins are debated, but most attribute the sauce to a Greek immigrant who settled in Mississippi after WWII.
Most recipes agree on the proportions of mayonnaise to ketchup to chili sauce and heavy on the black pepper. After that, the amounts of all the other ingredients are up for grabs.
Del Monte Chili Sauce. Look for it on your condiment aisle. If you can’t find Del Monte, Heinz is a suitable substitute.
Chili Sauce is a condiment that is usually found on the same aisle as ketchup, mayo and mustard. Look for it on the top shelve. The bottle contains 12 ounces. I’ve always preferred Heinz, but, my store was recently out of Heinz and I bought Del Monte which I’ve found is just as good. It’s always nice to have an option. Chili Sauce and chili pepper are not the same.
I formulated this recipe to give it as much shelf life as possible. Since I opted for garlic powder and onion powder over fresh garlic and onion, the sauce will keep in your refrigerator for as long as you would keep mayonnaise and ketchup. But, don’t worry. It will be eaten long before you have to worry about it spoiling.
It’s uses are many. It’s a dip for vegetables and chips, a salad dressing, a sauce for seafood or a sandwich spread. I will be serving mine tonight with Salmon Patties. It is good on EVERYTHING, except Cheerios.
Comeback Sauce
Mix all ingredients well and store in refrigerator overnight. It needs to sit to let the flavors become “acquainted”. They shouldn’t rush into marriage.
yield: one pint
1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise (one of my Favorites)
1/4 cup Heinz ketchup
1/4 cup chili sauce ( I prefer Heinz or DelMonte. DO NOT substitute Thai Chili Sauce)
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
1/4 cup light olive oil
juice of one lemon
Mix all ingredients well and store in refrigerator overnight.
Comeback Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Duke’s mayonnaise one of my Favorites
- 1/4 cup Heinz ketchup
- 1/4 cup chili sauce I prefer Heinz or DelMonte. DO NOT substitute Thai Chili Sauce
- 1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
- 1/4 cup light olive oil
- juice of one lemon
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients well and store in refrigerator overnight. It needs to sit to let the flavors become “acquainted”. They shouldn’t rush into marriage.
- Comeback Sauce goes with EVERYTHING.....except Cheerios.
Allison Hall says
Jackie…I have everything I need to make this recipe but the chili sauce! Do you think I could substitute chili powder?
Jackie Garvin says
Allison,
Substitute an equal amount of ketchup and add a pinch more (about an 1/8th of a teaspoon) of garlic powder and onion powder. You might want to add a pinch of chili powder, too.
Allison Hall says
Thanks!
Leigh in NC says
can’t imagine a world without Duke’s….so sad.
got this recipe from a friend years ago, never knew it by that name….very good.
Jackie Garvin says
Leigh,
Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate you taking the time to read and comment. We love Duke’s! 🙂
Natasha says
I found your recipe through Pinterest and definitely want to try this! It sounds similar to fry sauce (which seems to go with everything too).
Jackie Garvin says
Natasha,
I hope you enjoy this sauce as much as we do! Thank you so much for stopping by and taking the time to read and comment. 🙂
Amanda Gattis says
My husband grew up in Utah, so we are big on Fry Sauce (Mayo and Ketchup) at our house, I can’t wait to try this! I am sure he will love it!
Jackie Garvin says
Amanda,
I think you will LOVE this sauce! Please let me know what you think about it. 🙂
DeeAnn says
It sounds like A sauce we have in the west called fry sauce we use ketchup and mayo, some places will do barbecue sauce and mayo and others will add stuff to the mayo and ketchup mixer….
Jackie Garvin says
DeeAnn,
A few people have compared this to Fry Sauce. I’m just now hearing of Fry Sauce but it does seem that Comeback Sauce is similar. Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
Sherron says
This sounds a lot like what we here in Utah call Fry Sauce. It is wonderful on hamburgers and used for fries or tater tots. This recipe has more spices in it than most Fry Sauce, but it is very similar to what I make at home! Thanks for the recipe!
Jackie Garvin says
Sherron,
Enjoy the recipe! I’m hearing about Fry Sauce for the first time. 😉
Conchita Elvir says
My daughter was born in Mississippi almost 23 years ago, but since I am from Honduras, we returned to our home country when she was a baby and never came back to the magnolia state. I am sure she will love this sauce, especially if it resembles the taste of Mississippi. I still have memories about some delicious foods I tried! Thanks for being so kind to share.
Jackie Garvin says
Conchita,
Happy Eating to you and your daughter! I hope you enjoy the sauce. 🙂
shannon says
Well this just sounds amazing! I bet it would be Heaven on popcorn shrimp and homemade fries! We’ll be trying it soon, thank you for the recipe 🙂
Jackie Garvin says
Shannon,
You’ll find so many uses for this wonderful sauce. I hope you enjoy this as much as we do. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment. 🙂
Vanalee says
Just made this in Tokyo. Ranch dressing is no longer welcome in my house, this is so good.
Jackie Garvin says
Vanalee,
Thank you so much for taking the time to comment on this wonderful sauce. You’ll find so many uses for it! Please visit us again. You’re always welcome. 🙂
Melissa says
My parents are originally from Lake Charles, LA. My mom made this all time when I was a kid. She found the recipe in a jr league cookbook from either Lake Charles or Lafayette. We used to also call it homemade 1000 Island. Loved it as a veggie dip or salad dressing. About 5-7 yrs ago, I tried Raising Cane’s for the first time. Their dipping sauce taste just like the Comeback Sause that my mother made. Thanks for sharing!!
Jackie Garvin says
Melissa,
Thank you for sharing your story about your experience with Comeback Sauce. It is truly and incredible, versatile sauce. 🙂
Meg says
Came across this recipe on Pinterest and made it last week. It is so good! I’ve had it with onion rings, on salmon patties and on a sandwich so far. Thanks for sharing!
Jackie Garvin says
Meg,
I’m so happy you tried this great sauce. It’s is so versatile. Don’t forget to try it as a salad dressing, too!
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment. 🙂
Jana Burrow says
Any idea how long this would keep? I’m guessing as long as the mayo would maybe? I really want to make it but my family doesn’t go through things like this very quickly because my husband doesn’t eat mayo….it will just be me using it probably!
Jackie Garvin says
Jana,
I formulated this recipe to give it a long shelf life. Some recipes use fresh garlic and onions but I decided to use garlic powder and onion powder for the staying power. The main ingredients are mayo, ketchup and chili sauce. I’ve never seen any one of those go bad. So, the Comeback Sauce should last a long time in your refrigerator.
Enjoy!
Elisabeth says
Add me to the many who found this on Pinterest! I was intrigued right away and made my first batch a couple weeks ago… I’m making my 2nd batch right now! Thank you so much for sharing! I live in the Midwest so I don’t get Duke’s but I tried Hellman’s Light Mayonnaise and it tastes just fine (although never having Comeback Sauce before I wouldn’t know what it’s really supposed to be like! Either way – delicious!)
Thanks again! 🙂
Jackie Garvin says
Elizabeth,
I’m so happy to hear that you’re enjoying Comeback Sauce! It sounds like it might become a refrigerator staple for you.
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment! 🙂
Katie says
Thanks for recipe!!…I think I made a mistake though, I used some asian chili sauce that I happened to have in the fridge….and I’m not sure the taste is quite right. Something is definantly off. When I head to the grocery store I will pick up some heinz chili sauce and try again. I found your blog through pinterest and look forward to poking around!
Jackie Garvin says
Katie,
Welcome to Syrup and Biscuits! I’m so glad you found us!
I’ve never used Asian Chili sauce so I can’t comment on the flavor. Heinz is usually the brand I use. I hope it works out better for you. 🙂
Jess says
I was really excited to make this, but I was SO disappointed! I’m not sure where I went wrong, but is it supposed to taste so fishy? I’m not a huge seafood fan, and my sauce tastes really really fishy. I keep trying to use a little bit on different things that I have eaten throughout the week, but I just cannot stand it. I’m sad that I’m going to have to throw it all away, and it’s a waste of all the ingredients that I went out and bought specifically for this recipe. Even my boyfriend, who loves seafood, thinks it tastes like fish. What did I do wrong? and is there anything I can add to fix it?
Jackie Garvin says
Jess,
If you used Thai Chili Sauce instead of regular chili sauce, that would account for the fishy taste. Thai Chili Sauce contains fish sauce and sometimes shrimp paste. That’s the only thing I can imagine that would make it taste fishy. None of the standard ingredients contain any fish or seafood products.
mississippigirl says
Comeback sauce is very popular in Mississippi and probably originated in the Jackson area where there is a good number of Greek imigrants from years ago. Restaurants always have it on their tables to eat with crackers as well as other things too. There are numerous restaurants, chefs, and just good cooks who bottle and sell it from one end of the state to the other. There are also many recipes for it, some using fresh onion and garlic and some of them use catsup instead of chili sauce, but it’s all good! It is very similar to a homemade Thousand Island dressing, but better.
I ran across you on a FB post by The Pioneer Woman. Glad I found you!
mississippigirl says
BTW that jar of sauce looks so good I could lick my screen! lol
mississippigirl says
I’m sorry, I was wrong about the Pioneer Woman post – it was a Duke’s mayonnaise post!
Jackie Garvin says
Mississippigirl,
Whether it was Pioneer Woman or Duke’s, I just glad you found us! I enjoyed your comments about Comeback Sauce! It is so good and has become the most popular recipe on my site.
I hope you and your loved ones enjoy a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Welcome home! 🙂
jessica largus says
I used the Sirichia or however it’s spelled, chili sauce and my comback came out really really spicy – I tried adding more mayo but it is still too spicy for my 2 yr old or my husband who doesn’t really like spicy things…more for me I guess! 😉 I’ll try the sweeter chili sauce next time I guess
Jackie Garvin says
Jessica,
Sweet chili sauce doesn’t have much of a zing at all. My two year grandchildren love Comeback Sauce made using my recipe. Your little one will probably love it, too! Look for Heinz Chili Sauce. It’s usually in the same section as ketchup on the top shelf and comes in bottles smaller than ketchup.
Christin says
I used the Siracha sauce too, because I wasn’t familiar with the Heinz Chili sauce. I love spicy, so it was great for me. My husband on the other hand was hurting, lol! So now I keep two bottles in the fridge, spicy for me and mild for him (:
Jackie Garvin says
Chrisin,
I’ve don’t know about Siracha chili sauce. I hope your husband recovered! 🙂
Janice says
It’s so similar to my homemade Thousand Island dressing..
alexandra hall says
i read halfway down..and i just have to ask.. so if dukes is so good then wouldnt making your own mayo (since we’re talkin bout real mayonaise) be best? and i truly cant stand mayo..anyone try it with miracle whip?? please don’t shoot me..just cant stand mayo.. =^.^= thanks..hugs (thanks pinterest!!)
Marla Lee says
Just found this site via Pinterest! Love it! Trying to decide whether to order some Duke’s mayo online or just use our regular Best Foods. Same thing as Hellman’s but on the west coast it’s Best Foods. Either way I’m sure this sauce will be delicious! Thanks!
Jackie Garvin says
Marla Lee,
If you have a mayo that you use a lot and like, just use that one. I have a taste preference for Duke’s, as do a lot of our readers. But, you will do fine just using your favorite. 🙂