It was a lazy Sunday afternoon when the craving hit—that unmistakable desire for a Chick-fil-A sandwich slathered in their iconic sauce. As any fan knows, Sunday is the one day when all Chick-fil-A restaurants are closed, leaving me with no way to satisfy my craving. Determined not to wait until Monday, I raided my refrigerator and started experimenting. After several attempts (and numerous taste tests from willing family members), I created this copycat sauce that we all agreed was practically indistinguishable from the original—maybe even better!
Table of Contents
Why This Copycat Chick-fil-A Sauce Works
Chick-fil-A Sauce has achieved cult status for its perfect blend of sweet honey, tangy mustards, creamy mayonnaise, and smoky barbecue sauce. This homemade version captures every signature flavor note while using simple pantry ingredients. The key lies in the precise ratios that balance the sweetness of honey, the tang of two types of mustard, the richness of mayonnaise, and the smokiness of quality barbecue sauce. This homemade Chick-fil-A sauce is perfect on a chicken sandwich or to dunk french fries into.
- Stays fresh in your refrigerator for up to 10 days
- Combines all the signature flavor notes of the original
- Uses simple pantry ingredients you likely already have
- Contains no artificial preservatives or corn syrup
- Can be adjusted to your exact taste preference
- Takes just 5 minutes to prepare
Chick-fil-A Sauce Ingredients – What Chick-fil-A Sauce is made of
Here’s a list of what you need:
- Honey – Make sure you use one that is real honey; you want the natural flavor of the honey for this recipe
- Yellow mustard – Use Heinz brand
- Dijon mustard – this will give your sauce some zip to it, the distilled vinegar in this helps the flavor come through.
- Mayonnaise – I personally like Duke’s or Hellman’s; you can use the mayo that you have on hand.
- Barbecue Sauce – I recommend Heinz BBQ Sauce. If you can’t find this, choose a BBQ sauce with hickory flavoring. If you can not find Heinz, use something that has a natural hickory smoke flavor.
- Lemon juice – If you don’t have fresh, you could use 1/2 of the recommended amount if you want to substitute lemon juice concentrate
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Chill: Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld (though it can be used immediately if necessary).
- Gather your ingredients: Measure out two tablespoons of honey, 1 tablespoon of yellow mustard, 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard, 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, 2 tablespoons of barbecue sauce, and 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice.
- Combine: Place all ingredients in a small mixing bowl.
- Whisk thoroughly: Blend until completely smooth and no streaks remain, about 30-60 seconds of whisking.
- Taste and adjust: Sample your sauce and adjust the ingredients if needed—add more honey for sweetness, BBQ sauce for smokiness, or mustard for tanginess.
- Transfer: Pour the finished sauce into an airtight container or squeeze bottle.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
- Refrigerator Storage: Store in airtight containers for up to 10 days in the refrigerator, stirring before each use
- Room Temperature: Can sit out for up to 2 hours safely due to the mayonnaise content
- Freezing: Not recommended as mayonnaise-based sauces separate when frozen and thawed
Love Chick-fil-A? Try these copycat recipes!
- Avocado Lime Ranch Dressing
- Chick-fil-A Chicken Sandwich
- Chick-fil-A Mac and Cheese
- Frosted Coffee
- Frosted Lemonade
Best Dipping Sauces
- Burger King Zesty Sauce
- Cocktail Sauce
- Cane Sauce Recipe
- Garlic Butter Sauce
- Red Lobster Coconut Shrimp Sauce
- Red Robin Campfire Sauce
- Thai Peanut Sauce
- Yum Yum Sauce
Be sure to check out more of my copycat restaurant recipes and the best dips and sauces.
Chick-fil-A Sauce – Easy Copycat Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon yellow prepared mustard
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons Barbecue Sauce Heinz Classic Original Barbecue Sauce is recommended
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
Instructions
- Place all ingredients in a small bowl.
- Stir to combine.
- Refrigerate the sauce when not serving.
Delicious!
Thank you! I loved this sauce.
I think a smokybbq sauce works best here.
I agree with you. You need that smoke to help carry the sauce.
I purchased the sauce at Walmart. Just FYI for those who have asked.
How did it taste?
Loved this! I put this on grilled chicken and I used a little of it in potato salad. Yum!
In a bid to save calories, do you think it would still taste good using plain yogurt instead of mayo?
I think it would taste ok, I don’t think it would taste exactly the same though.
Just letting you know there’s one more key ingredient in their sauce you’re missing: liquid smoke! They’re sauce has a pretty prominent Hickory profile from a few dashes from liquid smoke
Great call, I think that should be covered in the BBQ sauce.
What type of BBQ sauce? Sweet or tangy? SO MANY VARIABLES!
I would use Heinz Classic Original Barbecue Sauce.
Do you have a recipe for Chik-Fil-A Polynesian sauce? That’s my fav. Thank you. PJ
I am sorry I do not have this recipe.
I need their honey mustard sauce recipe.
This was perfect! But I used honey mustard instead of regular mustard. Absolutely perfect!
Tastes exactly like the real thing! So happy to be able to make it at home now.
This is a really great recipe! Pinpoint ON!
It doesn’t really taste like chickfila sauce but it’s just as good and much fresher tasting without all the chemicals. The kids go through it like crazy.
Tastes very similar but better. I added some cayenne pepper and a few dashes of Tabasco sauce to spice it up. For the kids I left it plain and they loved it too.
very good
Very nice taste, but not exactly like Chick fil A. I used Sweet Baby Ray’s and Kroger brand mustards.
What flavor BBQ sauce?
I would use the plain version of Heinz.
Great!!! Taste just like chick fil a sauce. My teenage daughter doesn’t like chick fil a sauce and thinks this one is better actually. I only had light mayo on hand.
I used Sweet Baby Ray’s Hickory and Brown Sugar. Really good!
Really good. All my favorite flavors. Thanks for this.
SO good! Pairs REALLY well with the red bag chicken from Aldi’s you have one near you! They taste suspiciously like Chick Fil A!