An absolute classic in the UK, salad cream has been a UK sauce favourite for many years.
However, it’s come to my attention that it’s actually pretty difficult to buy outside of the UK. So I wanted to share my homemade version – perfect to use as part of my creamy potato salad!
I’ll share some of my other favourite uses for it below too!

Overhead image of a small black bowl filled with salad cream next to carrot and cucumber pieces.

Jump to:

What is salad cream?

Salad cream is a UK condiment with a creamy-yet-tangy taste. The tangyness comes from vinegar. It works particularly well with crunchy salads and meat, cheese or tuna sandwiches.
It was first created by Heinz over 100 years ago (in 1914).

I’ve loved salad cream since I was a kid (corned beef and salad cream butties are the best!!). The original recipe is vegetarian, but I use Worcestershire sauce and anchovy in my version to give a real depth of tangy flavour.

📋 What do we need?

Salad cream ingredients on a wooden table

Simple store-cupboard ingredients. We don’t need to make emulsions from eggs, vinegar and oil for this salad dressing – as we’re including mayonnaise in the ingredients (which is an emulsion).

🔪 How to make it

Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card at the end of this post.

  1. First we mash one or two anchovies in a bowl. I like to use two as I like the slightly stronger taste, but if I’m making it ahead, I’ll just use one, as the anchovy taste gets stronger over the course of a day or so.
  2. Add mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, white wine vinegar and a good pinch of salt.
  3. Stir together and serve!
Piece of celery being dipped into a bowl of salad cream

🍽️ What to serve it with

  • Use as part of my easy potato salad
  • As a sauce for dipping vegetable crudités into (I love slathering it onto celery)
  • To dip that tuna cheese toastie into!
  • As a sauce for any number of sandwiches (for example: cheese, corned beef or ham and beetroot).
  • Drizzled on a hard boiled egg 😋

📺 Watch how to make it

🍲 More fantastic Sauce recipes

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Small black bowl of salad cream with a piece of celery being dipped into it.
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5 from 1 vote

Easy Salad Cream Recipe

By Nicky Corbishley
My easy recipe for homemade salad cream, using store cupboard ingredients. Less than 5 minutes to make, no cooking/heating required!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: Sauces
Cuisine: British

Ingredients

  • 1-2 anchovy fillets (use the ones in a jar in oil)
  • 45 g (3 tbsp) mayonnaise
  • 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • ½ tsp Dijon mustard
  • ½ tsp white wine vinegar
  • ⅛ tsp salt

Instructions 

  • Place the anchovies in bowl and mash them up with the back of a fork until they completely break apart.
    1-2 anchovy fillets
  • Add in the rest of the ingredients.
    45 g (3 tbsp) mayonnaise, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar, 1/8 tsp salt
  • Stir together until combined, then serve.
  • If making ahead, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Give it a stir before serving.

Video

Notes

Can I make it ahead?
Yes, you can make the salad cream ahead, but it’s worth noting that the taste of the anchovies gets stronger over the course of a couple of days. So if making ahead, I’d recommend only using 1 anchovy fillet.
Make the salad cream, cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. Give it a stir before serving.
Nutritional information is per serving (serves 4).

Nutrition

Calories: 80kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 167mg | Potassium: 19mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 9IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this recipe? Leave a comment below!

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Comments

  1. Salad creme wasn’t invented by Heinz – they did make trhe forst commercial version. Mr Beaton had a reciie for it in Mrs Beatons Book of Household Management published in 1861

    Reply

  2. Hi there 👋 Can I ask why you use anchovies? They’re never used in the bottle salad creams and I’ve never seen them in any homemade recipes before.

    As a side note, your potato salad was amazing! I tried it yesterday but used a different recipe for salad cream as we are vegetarian. Curious to know why you used anchovies rather than traditional ingredients.

    Reply

    1. Hi Emma,
      I did lots of testing and was looking for something that gave the flavour a real boost. The anchovies add an extra salty, tangy and a bit of umami to the sauce. You can leave the anchovies out and add a bit of extra Worcestershire sauce if you prefer – although you’d need to use a vegetarian Worcestershire sauce. Hope that helps 🙂

      Reply

  5. 5 stars
    Love trying homemade versions of popular sauces and this one didn’t disappoint, it had a delicious tang.

    Reply