Bang Bang sauce is a creamy, sweet and slightly spicy sauce perfect for dipping or drizzling! Thai sweet chili sauce, sriracha and mayonnaise are whisked together to create this tasty sauce. It’s ready quickly and really adds a kick to your meal.
The first time I made this at home it was because I wanted something to really make our shrimp dish stand out. One taste of this copy-cat style recipe and my family was hooked. Now we keep it in a squeeze bottle in our refrigerator and use it any time we need to kick up the flavor!
Bang Bang sauce is an American-style restaurant sauce that is most famous for the creamy coating on Bonefish Grill’s Bang Bang Shrimp. While most people know this as bang bang shrimp sauce, this condiment goes beyond just seafood! Drizzle it over grilled chicken, crispy fries, sushi rolls, or even tacos for an instant burst of flavor. Plus, it takes just a few minutes to mix up, so you can enjoy restaurant-quality sauce anytime-right at home!
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Why We Love This Bang Bang Sauce Recipe
- The flavor is easily adjustable.
You can easily increase or decrease the spiciness and sweetness according to your taste preferences. - You can put it on anything!
We use it for dipping, as a sandwich spread, and even to add extra flavor to our fried rice recipe. - This recipe doesn’t require any fancy ingredients or special tools!
All you need is a small bowl, a whisk, and just four ingredients.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Mayonnaise: In addition to regular mayonnaise, mayo with olive oil, light mayonnaise or avocado oil work just as well, but do anticipate a change in flavor. If you don’t love mayo, use plain Greek yogurt instead.
- Thai chili sauce: This sweet, savory, and spicy ingredient is used often in Asian cuisine. One recipe of ours that makes a good substitute is mango dipping sauce.
- Sriracha: For adding bursts of spicy heat, sriracha is the most popular choice, but you can also use your favorite hot sauce. Just try to avoid thin, runny sauces that will alter the consistency.
- Honey: This sweetener helps thicken up the sauce as well as add sweetness.
Recipe Variations
- Extra spicy: If you love a bold spicy kick, add more sriracha, hot sauce, or red pepper flakes to amp up the heat.
- Milder & kid-friendly version: Reduce the spice by using less sriracha or swapping it for a dash of paprika for a milder but still flavorful sauce.
- Garlic Lovers: Stir in minced garlic or garlic powder for an extra depth of flavor that enhances everything from shrimp to burgers.
- Dairy-free or vegan: Use vegan mayo or a blend of cashew cream and olive oil to keep this sauce completely plant-based while maintaining its creamy texture.
Equipment Used in this Recipe
- Medium-sized mixing bowl
- Airtight container
- Balloon whisk
How to Make Bang Bang Sauce
- Add all ingredients to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Whisk ingredients well to thoroughly combine. Taste for seasoning and add salt or pepper if needed.
- Serve immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve. Store the sauce in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
🎯 TFN Pro Tip
Bang Bang sauce has a nice balance of sweet and spicy flavors. For a less sweet alternative, consider using regular tomato-based chili sauces or chili paste instead of Thai chili sauce. However, keep in mind that if using paste, you’ll need to add a bit more liquid to thin the consistency.
Chili paste makes for a spicier dip, whereas chili sauces add a ketchup-y flavor.
Too spicy? Add vinegar or lemon juice.
It can be easy to overdo the heat when you’re making a shotgun sauce or other creamy, spicy sauces like this one.
To make it sweeter, just add a teaspoon or two of honey!
Try making our yum yum sauce recipe, which is creamy and delicious- without any spiciness!
Serving Suggestions
Our recipe is incredibly versatile, making it the perfect dipping sauce, topping, or drizzle for so many dishes! Crispy and tempura-fried recipes are even better when tossed in the sauce right after frying, giving them a sweet and spicy glaze with a creamy texture. We love tossing our Chick Fil A Copycat chicken in this sauce!
Use it as a substitute for the sriracha mixture in our sriracha meatballs, or pair it with Bang Bang shrimp sauce favorites like fried fish, scallops, and wings. It’s also a great way to add flavor to cast iron chicken or drizzled over French fries and roasted vegetables.
Looking for a fun way to dress up your rice dishes? Try adding it to Blackstone chicken fried rice– you won’t be disappointed! And if you need a cooler, milder condiment to balance out the heat, serve it alongside our yogurt-based shawarma recipe sauce for a delicious contrast. However you use it, this sauce brings bold, creamy flavor to any meal!
Recipe FAQs
Our bang bang sauce is made from 4 ingredients: mayonnaise, Thai sweet chili sauce, sriracha and honey. The mayo gives it a creamy base, the chili sauce brings that sweet chili kick and the sriracha adds heat.
Bang bang sauce is creamy, sweet and mildly spicy all at the same time. You can adjust sweetness or the spice.
Bang bang shrimp sauce is best known as a crispy coating on shrimp but it tastes great on chicken, french fries, tacos, salmon, rice bowls and roasted vegetables.
Yum yum sauce is a mild, mayonnaise based sauce served at Japanese hibachi restaurants. It doesn’t have heat. They look similar but taste different!
Both are creamy and mayo based, but boom boom sauce is more tangy and savory with the garlic and ketchup while bang bang sauce is sweeter and spicier.
More Condiments To Try…
- Easy Corned Beef Seasoning
- Quick Pork Chop Marinade
- Recipe for Vanilla Sauce for Bread Pudding
- Jalapeno Salsa Recipe
If you tried this Bang Bang sauce recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Bang Bang Sauce
Equipment
- airtight container
Ingredients
- ½ cup mayonnaise or full fat plain Greek yogurt
- ⅓ cup Thai chili sauce
- 1 tablespoon sriracha or other hot sauce of choice
- 2 teaspoons honey optional (for a sweeter flavor)
optional
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt or to your preference
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper or to your preference
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Whisk ingredients well to thoroughly combine.
- Taste for seasoning, then add more salt and/or pepper if needed.
- Serve immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve. Store Bang Bang sauce in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Extra spicy: If you love a bold spicy kick, add more sriracha, hot sauce, or red pepper flakes to amp up the heat.
- Milder & kid-friendly version: Reduce the spice by using less sriracha or swapping it for a dash of paprika for a milder but still flavorful sauce.
- Garlic Lovers: Stir in minced garlic or garlic powder for an extra depth of flavor that enhances everything from shrimp to burgers.
- Bang Bang sauce has a nice balance of sweet and spicy flavors. For a less sweet alternative, consider using regular tomato-based chili sauces or chili paste instead of Thai chili sauce. However, keep in mind that if using paste, you’ll need to add a bit more liquid to thin the consistency. Chili paste makes for a spicier dip, whereas chili sauces add a ketchup-y flavor. To make it sweeter, just add a teaspoon or two of honey!
- Store your Asian condiments in the refrigerator, and keep it in a squeeze bottle or other airtight container. The recipe is enough for 8 servings, so it’s likely to be devoured pretty quickly, but it does keep for up to 2 weeks.
- It can be frozen for up to 3 months as well, but should be thawed overnight in the refrigerator before using it again.
- Whether it’s from the fridge or freezer, we advise shaking the bottle well before serving. This will recombine any ingredients that may have separated.
Nutrition
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Toni says
I love how quick and easy this is to make! Thanks for the recipe!
Ned says
Wow, awesome! This sauce was incredible on chicken. Thank you so much!
Kathleen says
This is one fantastic, sweet and spicy sauce. I can’t wait to dip my chicken and veggies in it.
Caroline says
I love how incredibly easy this is, but also great with so many things. Appreciate the tips about chili paste/sauce.
dana says
I love love love this bang bang sauce! We use it for tacos, burgers, and grain bowls! It’s hard not to just dive in with a spoon, honestly haha.