Classic Southern Comeback Sauce

By
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Diana Rattray
Southern-cuisine expert and cookbook author Diana Rattray has created more than 5,000 recipes and articles in her 20 years as a food writer.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 04/13/23
Tested by
Diana Andrews
Headshot of Diana Andrews
Tested by Diana Andrews
Diana earned her B.A. in Fine Art at Queens College and her culinary certification from the Institute of Culinary Education. Diana has served as head recipe developer and editor for Emmy-nominated PBS series Moveable Feast, food editor and test kitchen manager at Fine Cooking Magazine, and recipe developer, and product tester at Food Network.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Classic southern comeback sauce in a glass jar

The Spruce

Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 10 mins
Servings: 6 to 8 servings
Yield: 1 2/3 cups

Comeback sauce is a classic Southern sauce that originated in Jackson, Mississippi. Originally, it was the house dressing served at the Greek restaurant, The Rotisserie, and today you'll find it on many Mississippi restaurant menus. The name comes from the traditional goodbye in Mississippi. Anytime you leave a place, people don't say "goodbye" or "see you later." Instead, they say, "y'all come back." This tasty sauce is definitely a good way to seal the deal.

This Mississippi creation is a versatile Southern-style sauce. It is similar in flavor to a Louisiana rémoulade or Thousand Island salad dressing, but the latter is sweeter than comeback sauce. There's no cooking required. Simply mix common pantry ingredients such as mayonnaise, chile sauce, ketchup, mustard, oil, and Worcestershire sauce with minced onion and garlic, and you're done. For the best flavor, try to make the sauce a day ahead of time and refrigerate it overnight.

Easy to make and delicious, once you experience the taste for yourself, you'll find countless ways to enjoy comeback sauce. Serve it instead of tartar sauce with fried seafood, including popcorn shrimp. It makes an excellent salad dressing and sandwich or burger spread, and you can even drizzle it over fish tacos. It's also a good dipping sauce for everything from french fries and chips to chicken nuggets and wings.

"This sauce is so versatile! Tangy, with a subtle sweet note from the ketchup, it goes well with just about anything from a burger to a sandwich or a dip for veggies. I served this as a dipping sauce for steamed artichokes. It was great!" —Diana Andrews

Classic Southern Comeback Sauce
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 1 cup mayonnaise

  • 1/4 cup chile sauce

  • 1/4 cup ketchup

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil

  • 2 tablespoons minced onion

  • 1 teaspoon spicy brown, or Creole mustard

  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 2 medium garlic cloves, finely minced

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Ingredients for classic Southern comeback sauce
    The Spruce 

  2. Add the mayonnaise, chili sauce, ketchup, oil, onion, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, pepper, and garlic to a jar with a screw cap lid. Shake the jar until the ingredients are well combined. Refrigerate, preferably overnight, before serving.

    Put comeback sauce ingredients into a jar and mix
    The Spruce 

  3. Serve in individual portions for dipping or spread the sauce from the jar and enjoy.

    Southern comeback sauce served over tacos
    The Spruce

Tips

  • The chile sauce used in the recipe is a condiment similar to ketchup and not to be confused with Asian chile paste. It's found near ketchup in most grocery stores.
  • Add up to 1/2 cup of vegetable oil to make a thinner dressing for salads.

Recipe Variations

  • Add heat to the sauce with a few teaspoons of Sriracha sauce, some Tabasco or cayenne, or 1 or 2 teaspoons of sambal (Asian chile paste).
  • If you don't care for the raw garlic taste, use 1 teaspoon of garlic powder. The sauce will keep for up to six days with garlic powder.
  • The minced onion can be replaced with about 1/2 teaspoon of onion powder.

How to Store Comeback Sauce

Refrigerate any leftover sauce and use it within two days when it's made with fresh garlic.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
267 Calories
27g Fat
5g Carbs
1g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6 to 8
Amount per serving
Calories 267
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 27g 35%
Saturated Fat 4g 19%
Cholesterol 12mg 4%
Sodium 371mg 16%
Total Carbohydrate 5g 2%
Dietary Fiber 0g 1%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 1g
Vitamin C 2mg 11%
Calcium 9mg 1%
Iron 0mg 1%
Potassium 77mg 2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)