Cajun Butter Sauce for Seafood

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This delicious cajun butter sauce for seafood is easy to pull together and bursting with rich, spicy flavors.

It's perfect for dipping lobster tails, snow crab legs, shrimp, and sweet corn. You can also toss it with seafood and use it for a seafood boil as well.

This sauce is fantastic for seafood lovers!

This cajun garlic butter sauce recipe has fantastic smoky, spicy, and peppery. The sauce has two spice blends - Old Bay Seasoning and Cajun Seasoning.

Old Bay has red pepper flakes, celery seed, mustard, paprika, ginger, black pepper, and several other aromatics. Cajun seasoning is typically a blend of cayenne pepper, paprika, garlic powder, pepper, onion powder, and oregano. These rich blends pack in so much flavor!

I love to use this garlic butter sauce as a dip. It's an easy sauce to make for a party and goes great with a plate of shrimp.

Want more great seafood sauce recipes? Try our Remoulade for Crab Cakes, Easy Homemade Tartar Sauce Recipe, or Cocktail Sauce for Shrimp.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• How to Use this Sauce
• Variations
• Storage
• Cooking Tips
• Cajun Butter Sauce for Seafood

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need to make this delicious cajun butter garlic sauce.

• Unsalted Butter
• Yellow Onion
• Garlic Cloves
• Cajun Seasoning 
• Honey 
• Lemon Juice
• Old Bay Seasoning

See the recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Melt the butter over medium-high heat in a small saucepan.

Add the onion to the melted butter and sauté for 3 minutes. Then add the garlic and sauté for an additional 30 seconds. 

Add in the cajun seasoning, honey, lemon juice, and Old Bay seasoning.

Sauté for 30 seconds. Stir the sauce till it’s combined. If it's bubbling too much, reduce to medium heat.

Remove the sauce from the heat and serve immediately or freeze for up to 6 months or save in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. 

Use to pour over seafood boil, cooked shrimp, or as a dipping sauce. 

How to Use this Sauce

This cajun sauce is versatile and can be used in all sorts of ways!

• Dipping Sauce - the easiest way to use this sauce is to serve it with grilled or cooked shrimp, cooked crab, or any other seafood and use it as a dipping sauce or drizzle.
• Marinade - you can use this sauce as a marinade for shrimp, lobster tails, or even chicken. Reserve a few tablespoons of sauce, then allow your protein to marinate in the remaining sauce for 30 minutes, and then bake or grill it. Top with reserved sauce and serve.
• Seafood Boil Sauce - use this sauce as part of a seafood boil or crawfish boil. Place your seafood in a large stockpot, cover it with water, and boil for recommended cook time. Reserve some of the boiling water and mix with the butter sauce. Drain the seafood and toss with the butter sauce.

Variations

Here are some optional add-ins and substitution ideas.

• Lemon - if you'd like some citrus flavor, add a tablespoon of fresh-squeezed lemon juice or a teaspoon of lemon zest.
• Creole Seasoning - you can substitute this for the cajun seasoning. A popular blend is Tony Chachere Creole Seasoning.
• Cajun Seasoning - you can make your own homemade cajun seasoning. Tweak the heat by adding additional cayenne pepper if you'd like a spicier sauce.

Storage

If you'd like to save this sauce, you can freeze it for up to 6 months or save in the refrigerator, in an airtight container, for up to 5 days.

Cooking Tips

Share something here that you think is key to making this recipe well, such as: Don't overcook the burgers! Sear the outside and cook to a minimum internal temperature, but they should still be juicy for best results.