The best In-N-Out Burger Spread copycat recipe for the famous creamy, tangy burger secret sauce. Perfect topping for burgers, fries, and more.
Whether you want to recreate the infamous In-N-Out Double Cheeseburgers and Animal Style Fries, or you just want to take Burgers and Sandwiches to the next level, this Copycat burger Sauce Recipe is sure to be a favorite!
If you’ve ever had the pleasure of sinking your teeth into a juicy In-N-Out burger, then you know that one of the keys to its irresistible flavor lies in the iconic In-N-Out Burger Spread. This creamy, tangy secret sauce adds a burst of flavor that takes their burgers, fries, and other menu items to a whole new level. Since they don’t sell their special sauce like other popular fast food chains, if you want to enjoy it without the long line, you need a copycat sauce recipe like this one.
While In-N-Out Burger may not disclose the exact recipe for their famous spread, fear not! This is a perfect copycat recipe that captures all the goodness of the tangy, signature sauce. The best part of making it at home means you can use that iconic spread on your favorite recipes! From slathering it on burgers to using it as a dip for Onion Rings and Chicken Fingers, to making insanely good Animal Style Sloppy Joes, this homemade In-N-Out sauce is exactly what your dinner dishes need.
The best part about this classic burger sauce recipe, besides the amazing flavor of course, is how easy it is to make with simple ingredients you already have in your pantry right now. All you need to recreate this Copycat In-N-Out Sauce is mayonnaise, ketchup, sugar, sweet relish, and white vinegar. It all gets whipped together, then you let it chill for a bit to really develop all that yummy flavor, then it’s ready to serve on all your burgers, sandwiches, fries, and more.
What is In-N-Out Burger Spread?
In-N-Out Burger Spread is a creamy and tangy sauce that brings a signature flavor to In-N-Out’s burgers. It’s a blend of mayonnaise, ketchup, and sweet pickle relish, with a hint of sugar to balance the flavors. This secret sauce is what sets In-N-Out burgers apart and keeps fans coming back for more.
What is the difference between In-N-Out Sauce and Thousand Island Dressing?
While In-N-Out Spread and Thousand Island Dressing share some similarities, there are notable differences. In-N-Out Spread has a creamier texture, with the tanginess of ketchup and the sweetness of sweet pickle relish shining through. In contrast, Thousand Island dressing often contains additional ingredients like finely chopped onions, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce, resulting in a more complex savory taste.
How to Make In-N-Out Burger Spread
- Mix: In a medium bowl, combine the mayonnaise, sugar, sweet pickle relish, ketchup and vinegar by hand until well mixed.
- Chill: Cover the bowl and let the secret sauce mixture chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.
Delicious Burger Recipes
FAQs for In-N-Out Burger Spread
The name “In-N-Out” reflects the fast-food chain’s commitment to providing quick service and fresh food. The term “In-N-Out” signifies the efficiency of their drive-thru system, where customers can order, receive their food, and be on their way in a short amount of time. Additionally, it reflects their emphasis on using fresh ingredients and preparing food made-to-order, which is what made them stand out and become a household name.
It is not recommended to freeze mayo-based sauces like this In-N-Out Spread as the texture and consistency may change upon thawing, resulting in a separation or grainy texture. It is best to store the sauce in the refrigerator for up to two weeks, or make it fresh.
No, the traditional In-N-Out Burger Spread does not contain mustard as an ingredient. The secret sauce recipe is of course secret, but the signature tangy flavor does not come from mustard, instead it’s from pickle and vinegar.
Yes, there are pickles in the In-N-Out spread. Sweet pickle relish, which is made from finely chopped sweet pickles, is one of the key ingredients in the sauce, providing a sweet and tangy flavor to enhance the taste.
If you don’t have sweet pickle relish on hand, you can substitute it with finely chopped sweet pickles or bread and butter pickles to achieve a similar sweet and tangy flavor in your In-N-Out Burger Spread.
Create a free account to Save Recipes
Key Ingredients
- Mayonnaise: Mayonnaise serves as the creamy base of the spread, lending richness and a smooth texture. It adds a luxurious mouthfeel to the sauce and helps bind the flavors together.
- Ketchup: The tangy tomato base and subtle sweetness of ketchup contribute to the signature flavor profile of In-N-Out Burger Spread. The tomato flavor also adds depth to the sauce without overpowering it.
- Sweet Pickle Relish: Sweet pickle relish brings another unique and delightful combination of sweetness and tang to the sauce. It consists of finely chopped sweet pickles that have been preserved in vinegar, and adds a fresh, sour note.
- Sugar: A little bit of whie sugar is added to balance the tanginess of the ketchup, pickle relish, and vinegar. It helps round out the flavors for a delicious, burger spread with lots of depth.
- White Vinegar: The extra white vinegar really brings home the tangy, tartness of this delicious hamburger sauce recipe. You could also use apple cider vinegar to add some more sweet, floral notes, but stick to light vinegar so you don’t drown out the other flavors.
Can you make In-N-Out Burger Spread ahead of time?
Yes, you can make In-N-Out Burger Spread ahead of time! In fact, it’s even better when the flavors have had time to develop. Prepare the spread as instructed, cover it tightly, and refrigerate it for a few hours or overnight. This will allow the ingredients to meld together, enhancing the taste and ensuring a consistent texture. Making it ahead of time also saves you valuable minutes when you’re ready to assemble your burgers or enjoy it with fries.
Variations
- Spicy Kick: Add a dash of hot sauce, pinch of cayenne pepper, or some red pepper flakes to the special sauce recipe to give this burger spread a fiery kick.
- Smoky: Incorporate a teaspoon of liquid smoke to infuse the sauce with a delightful smoky flavor, reminiscent of grilled burgers. You could also add some paprika to add a sweeter smoky flavor.
- Garlic: Enhance the flavor of this creamy, tangy sauce with the boldness of garlic by adding a clove of finely minced garlic or a teaspoon of garlic powder.
- Savory: Make this sauce more like thousand island dressing by adding some Worcestershire sauce to the mix and replacing the sweet pickle relish with regular relish or chopped up pickles. Mustard would taste yummy too!
How to Serve In-N-Out Burger Spread
- Dipping: This burger spread can (and should!) be used as a dipping sauce for French Fries, onion rings, veggies, Chicken Tenders and more!
- Kebabs: During the summer, use this sauce as a marinade and glaze for chicken kebabs. Marinate the chicken pieces in the sauce for an hour or two. Make skewers with chicken, red bell peppers, tomatoes and onions. Brush more sauce over the kebabs during the last minutes of cooking and serve with even more sauce.
- Beef Dishes: Stir some of this delicious sauce into your favorite Sloppy Joe mixture or smother your Meatloaf with it instead of the normal tomato sauce mixture.
- Topping: Of course you can slather this on your burgers, but what about hot dogs?! YUM! Or try this sauce on a Reuben Sandwich instead of 1000 Island Dressing.
More Copycat Sauce Recipes
How to Store
- Serve: You want to let the sauce chill for at least an hour in the fridge, but ideally 3-4 hours (or overnight) so that it has time to blend all the flavors. Don’t leave it at room temperature for more than 2 hours though.
- Store: To store In-N-Out Burger Spread, transfer it to an airtight container and refrigerate. It can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- Freeze: Since this sauce has mayonnaise in it, you do not want to freeze it. The mayo will separate and the texture won’t be creamy when thawed.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 2 tablespoons sweet pickle relish
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients into a bowl and stir.
- Let cool in a refrigerator (covered) for an hour before serving for best flavor.
Nutrition
Want to save this recipe? Create a free account to easily save your favorite recipes
Fantastic copy cat! Followed exactly and wasn’t disappointed. ??
Glad you enjoyed the sauce Mika!
Good burger sauce for the trying to trying in Ft Worth
This is ok- but definitely missing something. I tasted a packet of In N Out spread at the same time and it was very different. Still yummy!
I don’t live anywhere near In N Out (think 2 states over), so I was excited to find this recipe. It makes a lot, and there was plenty of leftovers after a dinner of burger and fries.
I added the leftover sauce to a big pot of spaghetti sauce. It was worth it!
No need to add the sugar! It’s just way too sweet. Ketchup has enough sweetness as does the sweet pickle relish.
I had to add some dill pickle relish and a bit of salt to try to balance the sweetness.
I made this!!! DELICIOUS ? 10/10 <>
i replaced the relish with cooked onions and added some musterd and garlic pouder
no viniger
Adding chopped carmelized onions is a must and a dash of salt
Threw in a little salt to offset the sugar. Tastes amazing
The only thing I did differently was add extra mayo, and then added some salt. For me it was just a little too sweet. Either way it’s a great! Like I said if needed add some salt and after that it was PERFECT.
Love this recipe it comes out great every time!!!
Made burgers for dinner tonight and hesitantly thought I’d attempt this sauce because we love in an out so much… followed the ingredients and measurements to a T and wow!!!! My husband and I were so impressed! (I even sautéed the patties in mustard and caramelized onions the way they do with their animal style burger) so perfect thank you!!!
Yay! So glad you decided to give this recipe a try, Zaina.
Zaina, can you tell me how exactly you sautés the patties? Do you fry them first and then put them in a hot pan with just mustard in it? Or how do you do it? Sound delicious, but I’m not sure how to do this.
Brush both sides of the patty with a dash of mustard before putting it in the pan, high heat for 2 minutes on each side. You want super thin patties, and a flat weight if you have one to keep those patties down while they’re cooking. Enjoy!
In-N-Out secret sauce uses Walker Foods mustard in the recipe.
Great recipe! I use this every time I prepare hamburgers. This never fails to add that extra tasty kick.
I’m glad you enjoy it so much, Nicole.
I love this sauce great recipe and simple to make. I’ve never had in and out but either way this sauce is bomb thanks for a great go to burger and fries sauce
Thanks a lot!! Do you know for how long can i keep it on the fridge ?
Thanks
It should last up to a week, maybe more if kept in an air tight container in the refrigerator.
I have to be honest I haven’t tried this exactly, but sauce with sugar in it definitely didn’t sound good To me paired with sweet relish. I’m a tart person. (Extra raw onions on the burger). So I add dill pickle, and actually a little extra including the juices. Keep the vinegar, and if I feel like taking the time I will finely dice some onion, because after this has had time to marinate it tastes great, even with onions on the burger it’s a must.
My kids pretty much require this sauce on hand at all times, thought I would drop this comment as I prepare some more for tonight’s potato wedges.
I’m glad you were able to tweak it. Thanks for coming back and letting me know what you used.
Real Good 🙂
My son made it. It was delicious! Thank u for the recipe.
My family loved this on burgers! I left the sugar out because we thought it was sweet enough with the relish alone. Thank you for sharing your recipe!
You’re welcome, Nica.
Perfect! Spot on taste to make at home. Thank you, my family enjoys this often.
Thanks for the 5 stars!
So taste ? thank you
Like having In-N-Out all the way in the Midwest, thanks!
Glad you don’t have to miss out anymore, Anthony. Thanks for the 5 stars.
Tastes like the In N Out sauce!
brings me right back to Cali 🙂 thanks for the recipe!
Yum! Tastes just like In-N-Out’s spread!
It’s missing the caramelized onions which are crucial!!! I didn’t use sugar since I used sweet relish.
The onions are a separate topping from the sauce.
It’s okay, but definitely NOT the same as In-N-Out Burger’s sauce. To get closer to In-N-Out’s sauce, skip the sweet pickle relish and the white vinegar, and use finely diced Dill Pickle Relish and juice instead. Also drop the sugar to maybe a 1/4 teaspoon. I brought several packets of In-N-Out sauce home and did several taste tests, and the sauce is not sweet and had a hint of dry mustard as well. After rinsing the sauce through a colander and a coffee filter, it was definitely minced dill pickle that was left behind.
I’ll have to try this too..thanks!
agree, I added mustard and it tasted much closer
Damn, this is pretty much spot on.
We just recently moved from AZ to OH and I have been CRAVING this sauce for a while now. Just decided to make it out of the blue. Instead of using the sweet relish, I chopped up some pickle spears and we don’t have sugar so I had to do without. It still tastes amazing! Thanks!
Glad this helped to satisfy a craving. It’s tough when you move away from your favorites.
Hi Sabrina,
could you please tell me what is sweet pickle relish, I from South Africa.
Sweet pickle relish is mix of minced cucumbers, sweet red and green peppers brined in vinegar and a LOT of sugar. It is a popular condiment in the States, and has a tangy sweet taste.
I love this recipe and use it all the time now! I was wondering though, how long will it last in the fridge?
If stored in an air tight container, it should last up to a week maybe more. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This is the exact recipe that the old Hydee Ho burgers had on them in the 60s
This was awesome! Thank you for sharing!
Made this tonight and this tastes nothing like in n out. Too much mayo, not enough vinegar or pickles.
I made it! Wow… tastes just like In-N-Out dressing. I should know. I am a regular at that burger place…LOL
Thank you so much for sharing. This recipe will now be part of my “go-to” recipes collection…
Awesome! Thanks for the 5 stars!
Exactly as advertised!
Made it tonight. Awesome and just like the In N Out sauce.0
I made this spread tonight and it was incredible. The flavor is 100% identical to In N Out’s spread. It really is quite awesome. Spot on recreation! Thanks!
Yay!! so glad you enjoyed it!
Loved it. Glad a friend shared this with me.
I grew up eating in n out and now live in a state that doesn’t have in n out.
So this is awesome 🙂
Thank you !
You’re welcome!
SO GOOD! I grew up having In & Out so close to home and we love this sauce. We honestly couldn’t taste a difference from the original thing! Thanks for sharing!
I grew up on these burgers. This recipe is close but try fine chopped dill pickles instead of sweet pickle relish and the dill pickle juice instead of white vinegar to get a closer taste.
I was hesitant in how this would turn out, however I was shocked at how amazing it was! The ratio is perfect. Highly recommend this recipe. I would always get extra packs of spread when going to N-N-Out so that I could use it on my own hamburgers. The taste of 1000 island dressing and N-N-Out spread are different for the record.
So glad you decided to try it!
Great composition. I have made a similar mock In’n’out sauce except that one had mustard. I could taste the mustard and didn’t think it should be there and, sure enough, same recipe without it and it was good. I prefer dill to sweet pickles personally.
So glad you enjoyed it!
I’ve made this sauce all my life, we call it thousand island dressing, and can be found in any old cookbook under salad dressings. Or in a bottle in you local grocery store.
Not quite, there is a difference in some of the ratios, there are many people who say innout is just 1000 island dressing but there is a very unique taste that theirs has. Yes, similar, but still something different. This recipe is the copycat for the flavor of their sauce.
How great it is that you have so much spare time that you can pause and leave a rude and nasty note. Do you act this way every time you visit someone else’s home? If so, you probably don’t get invited over very often.
For cripe’s sake, it wasn’t rude. He simply said it wasn’t exactly the same.
This sauce sounds delicious. I think for me w/ fries would be really perfect. So easy to make too…
That looks amazing!! I will definitely try it! Yumm!!
My kid is always looking for a new sauce for fries. This will be perfect!
I have never been to In-N-Out but I would love to try this sauce!
Now you don’t have to miss out on all the amazingness!
I love this stuff! I love the idea of putting it on a meatloaf! Very creative!
Thanks! After one taste, you’ll want to put it on almost everything, haha!
I’m so sad that we don’t have In-N-Out Burgers here in Ohio… but now I can make the goodness at home!
Definitely!!
Yum! This sounds delicious! I will be making this sauce next time we have fries!
This was fantastic. I have an egg intolerance and often will put the side effects out of my mind to have spread, and not like one serving of spread, about three. I went to IN-N-OUT this afternoon bought fries and made this spread with vegan Mayo. So happy to have found this recipe. Will use a little less vinegar next time but super excited.
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed it! Having gone to college away from innout copycats became an emotional connection to home for me. I’m glad this brought In n Out home to you!