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Yum Yum Sauce, the name says it all! This Japanese steak house mayo-based sauce can be made easily at home! This popular sauce is light, sweet and tangy!
Popular sauces that are made from scratch are so easy and so much better. Think homemade Famous Fry Sauce, Tzatziki Sauce and Homemade Cheese Sauce.
Homemade Yum Yum Sauce Recipe
Yum Yum Sauce is a staple at Japanese Hibachi restaurants and is so delicious! Hibachi is a method of cooking meat, vegetables, and seafood on a high-heat metal cooking plate, and at Japanese restaurants in North America, this sauce is almost always on the table with your meal!
This is so easy and simple that you’ll wonder why you’ve waited so long to try it. You can find this sauce sold at stores, but this is much easier to make from home. Try serving it with some shrimp, drizzling it on this sushi bake, or even dipping your fries in it!
Yum Yum Sauce Ingredients
These ingredients are so simple, but they pack a punch when it comes to flavor! Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all of the exact measurements.
- Mayo: The mayonnaise acts as a creamy base for the sauce.
- Rice Vinegar: Adds a zing of deliciousness but is a MUST for yum yum sauce.
- Tomato Paste: Do not substitute this with ketchup.
- Paprika: I use sweet paprika in this recipe (NOT smokey)
- Garlic Powder: The garlic flavor complements the other flavors so well.
- Sugar: The sugar counteracts the acid in the tomato paste and binds everything together.
- Butter: I use unsalted butter in this recipe.
- Salt and Pepper: These enhance all of the flavors in the sauce.
- Water: The water thins the sauce to the right consistency.
How to Make Yum Yum Sauce
This must-have sauce is so simple to make at home; you won’t have to go to a Japanese steakhouse to get it!
- Mix: Whisk all the ingredients except the water together in a small bowl. Then, thin with the water to the desired consistency.
Make it Spicy
This yum yum sauce is so delicious, but you can definitely change it up by cranking up the heat! Try adding in some cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes to make this nice and hot.
Storing Leftovers
- In the Refrigerator: This yum yum sauce is best stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 10 days. However, this is so easy to make; you can make small batches and make it fresh every time you need it.
- Make it Ahead of Time: The longer the sauce sits before you use it, the better. It gives time for the flavors to meld.
What to Serve with Yum Yum Sauce
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Yum Yum Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 2 Tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Melted Butter
- salt and pepper
- 2-3 Tablespoons water
Instructions
- In a small bowl whisk the mayonnaise, rice vinegar, tomato paste, paprika, garlic powder, sugar, butter and salt and pepper.
- Add water as needed to get the desired consistency.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
DO NOT MAKE THIS. It’s a literal waste of ingredients
Wasn’t even CLOSE to yum yum sauce
I followed the recipe and eyeball everything lol and I added a lil cayenne pepper and Cajun seasonings just a lil and I must say that this was a hit. The type of mayo makes a difference too… I would not recommend Kraft at all Dukes or McCormick… anyway thanks for this recipe
Make this recipe then add 1 teaspoon lemon juice and 1 tablespoon mirin. You’re welcome
Thanks for the tip!
All i taste is tomato paste. wasted all my mayonnaise on this
Love the recipe! Tried it out with just 1 tablespoon of water and it was a big hit. I’m curious though, many recipes include onion powder while yours doesn’t – is there a reason for that?
Made it the way it supposed to turn out…doesn’t look right and tastes really weird. Would not recommend again.
No, the yum-yum has egg yolks in it, this recipe is no good.
Mayonnaise has egg in it, silly.
So I understand a bit of what you were going for with the tomatoes paste, sugar, and vinegar, to try and get a bit deeper tomatoes flavor than just ketchup, but I ended up starting over and using ketchup, adding ginger powder and mirin, and I felt like that got me a lot closer. Keep trying, keep experimenting. You’ll get there!
Thanks for sharing this recipe. It’s very yummy 👍😍
Love this recipe. Didn’t change a thing. Could eat it with a spoon (just saying) We have it with shrimp, it’s the best. Am anxious to put it in my burger. In a salad? why not!
I agree!!
I made it to for pork tenderloin sandwiches, crispy rolls pickled veggies, its excellent. Can see how we can add different spices. This was fine. Thank you!
Delicious!! I love that it doesn’t have as much sodium as the store bought sauce but is still super yummy…. Thank you 😊
what other vinegar could I use
You could try white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar.
This recipe is delicious! Missing a little bit of spice so I added Korean chili powder and it was perfect! I also fry shrimp in butter, then add this sauce in at the end so it’s hot and it tastes fantastic!
very easy,tasty abd veŕsital
didn’t change a thing.gracias.
This recipe was everything! Leaving it overnight in the fridge for my chicken, rice and broccoli tomorrow 😋. Thanks for sharing!
It is delicious! Gets better after cooled in fridge. Great for plating techniques, art spooning, splatting, dots….
Can you freeze it ?
This sauce is best stored in the refrigerator.
When I was in Japan, this sauce was everywhere, on everything 🙂 Starting on the plane ride there and ending with the plane ride back.
Hi, will unseasoned rice vinegar work? I don’t do sugar.
Yes, that should work too!