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Honey mustard sauce is sweet, tangy, and creamy, and it takes five ingredients and about five minutes. No more asking for extra cups at the drive-thru. Use it as a dip, a sandwich spread, or a salad dressing.
Crispy Chicken for Dipping: Baked Chicken Tenders | Air Fryer Chicken Tenders | Copycat Chick-Fil-A Chicken Nuggets
Before You Get Started
This one is hard to mess up, but a few choices decide whether it tastes homemade or just like sweetened mustard.
- Use two mustards — Equal parts Dijon and yellow gives you the sharpness of one and the tang of the other. A single mustard tastes flatter.
- Whisk, don’t stir — Whisking pulls the mayo and honey into the mustard so the sauce turns thick and creamy instead of streaky.
- Add the honey to taste — Start with a little less than the recipe calls for, then taste and add more. Mustard brands vary a lot in how sharp they are.
Which Mustard to Use
Equal parts Dijon and yellow mustard is what makes this taste fuller than most homemade honey mustard. The Dijon brings the sharp bite and the yellow brings the tang, and neither one takes over.
If you’d rather only open one jar, here’s what changes:
- All Dijon: Sharper and a little spicy, with a smoother texture. Add an extra tablespoon of honey to balance it out.
- All yellow: Milder, tangier, and brighter in color. This is the kid-friendly version. Pull the honey back by about a tablespoon.
- Spicy brown: Works if it’s what you have, but it pushes the sauce noticeably hotter. Treat it like Dijon and sweeten to taste.
RECIPE OVERVIEW
How to Make Honey Mustard Sauce
See the recipe card below for full, detailed instructions
There’s no cooking here. It’s one bowl and about a minute of whisking.
1. Combine Everything in One Bowl
Add both mustards, the mayonnaise, honey, lemon juice, and a pinch of black pepper to a small bowl.
Order doesn’t matter, since it all gets whisked together anyway.
2. Whisk Until Smooth
Whisk for about 30 seconds. You’re looking for one even color with no streaks of yellow or white running through it.
A fork will get you most of the way there, but a small whisk gets it thicker and creamier.
3. Taste and Adjust
Taste it before you serve it. Add more honey if it’s sharper than you want, or another spoonful of Dijon if it’s too sweet. A pinch of cayenne is nice here if you like a little heat.
Thin it out for salad dressing. Whisk in water or lemon juice a teaspoon at a time until it pours off a spoon instead of clinging to it. It’s especially good over my Crispy Chicken Salad.
Want the same flavor as dinner? My Honey Mustard Chicken bakes with a glaze built on the same sweet and tangy combination.
Ways to Use It
Dipping is what this sauce is really for. Chicken tenders are the obvious choice and the best one, since it’s thick enough to cling instead of sliding off the way bottled honey mustard does. It’s worth setting out on a veggie tray too, right next to the ranch.
Great for Dipping: Crispy Baked Chicken Wings | Homemade Pretzels | Beer Battered Onion Rings | Air Fryer Frozen French Fries
Past dipping, it doubles as a spread. Use it in place of ketchup on Grilled Hamburgers, or spoon it over my Brown Sugar Baked Pork Chops and sliced ham. A splash of lemon juice thins it into a salad dressing too.
Making a batch for a party? My Game Day Recipes round-up is full of wings, dips, and snacks to serve it with.
Storage Tips
Storage
Store the sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. The flavor actually improves after a few hours, so making it the night before a party is a good idea.
Give it a quick stir before serving, since it can separate slightly as it sits. Freezing isn’t recommended. The mayo breaks when it thaws and the texture never comes back.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is my honey mustard thin or runny?
Usually it’s the mayo. Light or low-fat mayonnaise has more water in it and won’t thicken the sauce the way full-fat does, and the same goes for swapping in thin yogurt. A short whisk can also leave it looser than it should be, so give it a full 30 seconds.
If it’s still thin, whisk in another tablespoon of mayo, or just chill it for 20 minutes, since it firms up noticeably in the fridge.
Can I use this as a marinade?
Yes, but it works better brushed on at the end than used as a long soak. The mayo and honey mostly coat the surface rather than soaking in, and the honey scorches if it sits on the meat for the whole cook time. Brush it onto chicken or pork during the last 10 minutes instead, where it caramelizes into a glaze. Set aside a separate portion for dipping rather than reusing anything that touched raw meat.
More Homemade Sauces and Dressings
- Carolina Gold BBQ Sauce
- Big Mac Sauce
- Homemade BBQ Sauce
- Homemade Remoulade Sauce
- Jalapeño Ranch Dressing
Honey Mustard Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup yellow mustard
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup honey more or less to taste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Pinch black pepper
Instructions
- Combine the ingredients: Add the Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, mayonnaise, honey, lemon juice, and black pepper to a small bowl.
- Whisk until smooth: Whisk for about 30 seconds, until the sauce is thick, creamy, and one even color with no streaks.
- Taste and adjust: Add more honey for sweetness or more Dijon for a sharper bite. Serve right away, or chill until you're ready.
Notes
- Yield: Makes about 1 cup of sauce.
- Storage: Keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Stir before serving. Freezing is not recommended.
- Make it a dressing: Whisk in water or lemon juice 1 teaspoon at a time until it’s pourable.
- Mustard swaps: All Dijon makes a sharper sauce. All yellow makes a milder, tangier one. Adjust the honey by a tablespoon either way.
- No mayo: Plain Greek yogurt or sour cream both work. The sauce will be tangier and slightly thinner.
- Add heat: A pinch of cayenne or a teaspoon of sriracha gives it a gentle kick without changing the texture.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.
