Creamy Sriracha Mayo (2-Minute Spicy Mayo)

❓ What is Sriracha?

Sriracha is a type of hot sauce originating from Thailand, known for its bold, mildly spicy, and slightly sweet flavor. Made from a paste of chili peppers, distilled vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt, it delivers a tangy kick with a bit of heat.

This bright red condiment has gained immense popularity worldwide, becoming a staple in many kitchens and home, and even restaurants. It's versatile and can be used to enhance the flavor of soups, noodles, and marinades, with a special nod to sriracha-flavored sauces like this homemade sriracha mayo.

Sriracha's distinctive taste - and its iconic bottle with a green cap and rooster logo - have cemented its status as a beloved addition to a wide array of dishes. It's also what makes this spicy mayo different from yum yum sauce, as the flavorful heat from sriracha adds a bolder, stronger flavor to the condiment than you'd ever get from yum yum sauce.

Mayonnaise: while you could use any brand, I prefer making this spicy mayo with Kewpie mayonnaise, a brand of Japanese mayo which is particularly creamy thanks to its base of pure egg yolks. I find that it buffers the heat from the sriracha while also adding a creamy heft, creating a perfect base, only lightly sweetened by the honey.

Sriracha: one of the most important ingredients in sriracha mayo, this spicy, umami, complex sauce offers the perfect contrast to the mayo base. A surprisingly perfect substitute for sriracha is an equal amount of chili garlic sauce, though level 1 gochujang or harissa are also passable swaps.

Honey: this helps add a mildly sweet undertone to the sauce, though you could also substitute the same amount of agave, maple syrup, or condensed milk.

Lemon Juice: the squeeze of fresh lemon juice adds a sour tang and balance to this homemade spicy mayo.

Minced Garlic: the garlic powder imparts a funky umami flavor that brings the sauce together, but you could also use a garlic-flavored mayo or just omit it altogether.

See recipe card for quantities.

📝 Substitutions and variations

I make homemade sriracha mayonnaise all the time,and have tried several substitutions, depending on what's available at the house I'm cooking in (especially important when you're visiting family, but you just gotta have that sauce!).

Mayonnaise: this is the only ingredient you really cannot substitute. You can use any brand of mayo you enjoy; I've also made it with Great Value and Market Select (Target brand mayo), though my favorite remains the Kewpie brand (American version).

The only type of mayo I would not make sriracha mayo with ever again is an avocado oil-based mayo, as the base flavor was so strong I could taste it even through the sriracha and all the other accoutrement.

Sriracha Swap: if you're out of sriracha, chili garlic sauce is by far the best swap that I've tried. If you're a fellow sriracha lover, you'll undoubtedly have discovered how disappointing most alternatives are, so if you find another decent substitute, please leave a comment. Note that Trader Joe's brand sriracha is *NOT* as hot as the original, so if that's all you can find, use a bit extra.

No Honey: my favorite swap for honey is sweetened condensed milk, which really keeps the sauce thick. If you're in a pinch, your second best bet is agave nectar or maple syrup, though both will thin out the mayo even more.

Lemon Juice: you can omit this or swap it for one teaspoon rice wine vinegar, though I find that it brightens the sauce considerably (in a past life I made a similar fry sauce without it, but now I can't omit the lemon juice without the mayo tasting unbalanced).

No Garlic: if you don't like garlic, you can omit this, but there is garlic in sriracha sauce, so regardless there will be some garlic in the sauce. A good alternative is onion powder, though it will be much milder.

• Simplified - for an even more straightforward sriracha mayo recipe, you could leave out the lemon juice and garlic to make it with just the sriracha, mayo, and honey or condensed milk (this is the fry sauce recipe I've used for years and build off of to develop this spicy mayo recipe).
• More Spicy - you can add up to one more tablespoon of sriracha and/or ½ teaspoon chili pepper powder to imbue extra heat into the sauce.
• Less Spicy - to make the sauce less spicy, use as little as one tablespoon of sriracha to weaken the heat in the sauce.

🥣 Storage and Sriracha Mayo Uses

Keep homemade spicy mayo in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 weeks, though if the mayo you used was pretty old, try to use it within 10 days. Spicy mayo is a versatile enough condiment that it can be used on and in a wide variety of dishes:

• As a dip for fries or tater tots.
• Spread on burgers for an extra kick.
• Drizzled over sushi rolls, like tuna maki.
• Mixed into tuna salad or chicken salad for sandwiches.
• Used as a topping for fried fish tacos.
• Dotted atop frittatas for a spicy flavor.
• As a condiment for hot dogs or bratwurst.
• To spice up your favorite egg salad recipe.
• As a creamy dressing for slaws or vegetable salads.
• Combined with mashed avocado for a zesty guacamole.
• As a sauce for grilled or fried chicken.
• Spread on sandwiches or wraps for an extra zing.