Ken’s Boom Boom Sauce Recipe (Culver’s Copycat)

If you’ve had the Boom Boom Sauce at Culver’s and gone looking for a copycat recipe, you’ve probably found the same thing I did: mayo, ketchup, sriracha, and Thai sweet chili sauce. That’s bang bang sauce. It’s good. It is not Boom Boom sauce.

Ken’s Boom Boom Sauce doesn’t have ketchup in it. It doesn’t have Thai sweet chili sauce in it. Read the label on the bottle and you’ll find something completely different: aged cayenne pepper, roasted red bell pepper, Dijon-style mustard, shallots, rice vinegar, garlic, and smoky paprika. It’s tangy and savory with real heat — not sweet and pink.

This recipe is built from that actual ingredient list. It’s the closest you’ll get at home.

What Ken’s Boom Boom Sauce Actually Tastes Like

Bright orange, not pink. Medium-thick — it clings to a fry but you can still drizzle it. You can see little flecks of red pepper and shallot in it.

The flavor runs savory and tangy first, with a slow build of chili heat and a smoky finish from the paprika. There’s a whisper of sweetness in there, but it’s a background note, not the point.

If your homemade version comes out pale pink and sweet, you’ve made a different sauce.

For reference, this sits at the opposite end of the spectrum from Culver’s Signature Sauce, which is creamy, mild, and built on buttermilk and Parmesan. Boom Boom is the sharp, hot one.

Ingredients

For the base

• Mayonnaise: Full fat base that gives the sauce body
• Frank’s RedHot: Aged cayenne heat that defines the real Boom Boom
• Dijon mustard: Sharp tang and depth balancing the creamy mayonnaise base
• Rice vinegar: Bright acidity that thins and lifts the sauce

For the flavor

• Roasted red bell pepper: Sweet smoky flecks visible throughout the finished sauce
• Shallot: Mild savory onion bite without the raw sharpness
• Garlic powder: Even garlic flavor that blends into cold sauce
• Plum jam: Fruity depth that keeps the heat from overpowering
• Smoked paprika: Deep smoky warmth that lingers after the heat
• Sweet paprika: Mild pepper flavor rounding out the smoky notes
• Ground turmeric: Color only, giving the sauce its bright orange
• Kosher salt: Sharpens every flavor and ties the sauce together
• Chile de árbol or cayenne: Adjustable heat you can dial up or down

A few notes on the ingredients

• Aged cayenne pepper sauce is the one that matters most. It appears high on the Ken’s label, right after the egg yolk, which tells you it’s doing serious work. Frank’s RedHot is aged cayenne and it’s what I’d reach for. Don’t substitute sriracha — sriracha is garlicky and sweet, and it pushes the sauce in the bang bang direction.
• Plum is the strangest thing on Ken’s ingredient list and the thing nobody else accounts for. Two teaspoons of plum jam gives you that fruity depth without making the sauce sweet. If you don’t have it, apricot preserves get you close.
• Turmeric is purely for color. Ken’s uses annatto and turmeric to get that signature orange. An eighth of a teaspoon does it — go heavier and it’ll taste like turmeric.
• Roasted red pepper and shallot should be minced, not blended. The real thing has visible pieces in it.

How to Make It

Step 1: Prep the aromatics. Mince the roasted red pepper and shallot as finely as you can without turning them to paste. You want texture, but no piece should be big enough to slide off a fry.

Step 2: Whisk the base. In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, hot sauce, Dijon, and rice vinegar. Whisk until it’s fully smooth and the color turns pale orange.

Step 3: Add the dry seasonings. Sprinkle in the garlic powder, both paprikas, turmeric, and salt. Whisk again. The turmeric will bloom the color noticeably — this is where it starts looking right.

Step 4: Fold in the rest. Stir in the minced pepper, shallot, and plum jam. Switch from whisking to folding with a spatula so you don’t break down the pepper pieces.

Step 5: Taste and adjust heat. Add ground chile de árbol or cayenne a pinch at a time. Ken’s version has real heat but isn’t punishing — aim for a warmth that builds after the second bite.

6. Chill. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours, ideally overnight. This is not optional. Fresh out of the bowl it tastes disjointed; after a rest the vinegar mellows and the paprika comes forward.

Troubleshooting

Too thin? You over-drained the peppers, or your hot sauce is thinner than Frank’s. Add a tablespoon of mayo.

Too thick? A teaspoon of rice vinegar at a time until it drizzles.

Not orange enough? A pinch more turmeric, or a few drops of oleoresin paprika if you have it.

Too sharp? More plum jam, a quarter teaspoon at a time.

Not enough heat? Ground chile de árbol is the authentic route. Cayenne works.

Where to Buy It Instead

Fair question, and you’ll see it asked constantly. Ken’s sells Boom Boom Sauce through their own site and it turns up at some grocery stores, but distribution is spotty — it’s primarily a foodservice product, which is why Culver’s has it and your local store might not. Amazon and Walmart carry gallon jugs and single-serve cup packs, which is a lot of sauce for a home kitchen.

Making it is genuinely easier than tracking it down, and you can dial the heat where you want it.

What to Serve It With

At Culver’s it’s a dipping sauce for cheese curds, chicken tenders, and crinkle cut fries. At home it goes further than that:

• Air fryer copycat Culver’s cheese curds — the classic pairing, and the salt in the batter is a good foil for the vinegar in the sauce
• Copycat Culver’s chicken tenders, or the buffalo version if you want the heat doubled up
• Spread on a Culver’s fish sandwich in place of tartar sauce for a spicier take
• Fried shrimp or calamari
• Onion rings
• Spread on a burger instead of mayo
• Fish tacos
• Roasted broccoli or cauliflower
• Thinned with a splash of vinegar and stirred into coleslaw for a spicy slaw

Storage

Keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. It’s mayonnaise-based, so don’t leave it out for more than two hours.

Don’t freeze it. Mayo separates when thawed and there’s no fixing it.

It tastes better on day two than day one, so making it ahead is a feature, not a compromise.

FAQ

Is Boom Boom sauce the same as bang bang sauce?

No, and this is the mistake almost every recipe online makes. Bang bang sauce is mayo, sweet chili sauce, and sriracha — sweet, pink, mild. Boom Boom sauce is built on aged cayenne pepper, Dijon, roasted red pepper, and shallots — tangy, orange, and noticeably hotter. They’re different sauces that happen to have similar names.

How spicy is it?

Medium. There’s real heat, but it builds rather than hits. Cut the cayenne and the hot sauce in half for a milder version that still tastes right.

Can I make it without mayo?

Not really, if you want it accurate. Ken’s version is an oil-and-egg-yolk emulsion — mayo in everything but name. Greek yogurt makes a decent tangy dip, but it isn’t the same sauce.

Can I use fresh garlic?

Garlic powder distributes better in a cold emulsion. If you use fresh, grate one small clove and let it sit in the vinegar for ten minutes first to take the raw edge off.

Does Culver’s use the bottled Ken’s sauce?

Yes — it’s on their sauce menu as Ken’s Boom Boom Sauce, supplied by Ken’s Foods. It isn’t a Culver’s in-house recipe, which is why it turns up at other restaurants too. Their tartar sauce and signature sauce are the two that feel more distinctly theirs.

How long does it keep?

Seven days refrigerated. Give it a stir before serving.