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Reuben Sauce – Better than Russian Dressing!

February 14, 2019 by Jennifer 9 Comments

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Last updated on February 10th, 2020 at 10:56 am

reuben sauce closeup with text "reuben sauce"

Reuben sauce is a creamy condiment full sauerkraut, onions, horseradish, and pickled mustard seeds. All the flavors of a Reuben sandwich and perfect for sliders, burgers, and hot dogs!

Serve this easy condiment on Corn Dog Bites, Bacon Wrapped Hot Dog Bites, and Mini Crescent Dogs!

Reuben Sauce on a toast with corned beef and swiss cheese

What’s on a Reuben?

Aside from the corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, the dressing is what completes it! But what dressing?

The sauce debate rages on between 1000 island and Russian dressing with the only difference between the two is a little sweet or a little spicy!

What is the difference between Russian and Thousand Island dressing?

Russian dressing is made with chili sauce, horseradish, hot sauce, Worcestershire, and mayo. Thousand Island dressing is made with ketchup, sweet pickle relish, onion, and a little garlic.

They look the same but the 1000 island dressing is sweeter because of the sweet pickle relish and the ketchup. Russian dressing starts with chili sauce as a base instead of ketchup and also includes more spicy ingredients.

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Sauerkraut and Swiss or Reuben Sauce in a bowl

If you’d rather skip my (very helpful, I think) tips and tricks, essential cooking info, and similar recipe ideas – and get straight to this delicious easy Sauce for a Reuben Sandwich recipe – simply scroll to the bottom of the page where you can find the printable recipe card.

Reuben Sandwich Sauce

Imagine a Reuben sandwich but in a sauce! Ok, not a full Reuben because the sauce doesn’t actually contain corned beef, but all the flavors that remind you of it.

The Reuben sandwich is layers of corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and sauce. There is a lot of debate as to whether it is 1000 island dressing or Russian dressing.

For my Reuben Sauce, I decided to combine the two, along with some sauerkraut and onions to make a sauce that is delicious enough to stand on its own!

Feel free to spread it on a Reuben sandwich, hamburgers, hot, dogs, grilled cheese, and these fun little corned beef and Swiss appetizer toasts.

  • sauteed onion in a pan
    sweat the onions
  • sauce ingredients in a bowl
    mix with dressing ingredients
  • dressing sauce in a bowl
    stir and chill

How to make Reuben Sauce

Step One: Sweat some onions with toasted caraway seeds and sauerkraut until tender.

Step Two: Mix this with the rest of the dressing ingredients to create this unique condiment that you can use on so many things.

Step Three: Enjoy this! The Swiss cheese in the dressing adds some thickness to it and another layer of tanginess! Imagine this Reuben Sauce in your scrambled eggs!!

Can I make this ahead of time?

You can make the Reuben Sauce up to a week in advance! Just keep it stored in the fridge.

Do I have to add the horseradish?

Feel free to leave out the prepared horseradish and/or hot sauce if you want to keep the heat down.

Reuben sauce is best on corned beef toasts

Can I make this with cabbage or coleslaw?

I guess you could, just make sure the cabbage is fully cooked. You can use coleslaw or pickled cabbage. But you might miss the tangy flavor from the kraut.

How long does Reuben Sauce last?

If you keep it stored in the fridge in an air tight container, it will last for 1 week. It doesn’t freeze well either.

Once I made this Reuben Sauce I just had to try it out on something. I didn’t have a burger or hot dog lying around but I did have some small cocktail toasts and corned beef.

I toasted small pumpernickel and whole wheat toasts, topped with sliced corned beef and some shredded Swiss cheese. Once they were all warm and the cheese was all melty, I topped them with this cool Reuben Sauce!

Brooks came home and ate all these mini, open-faced, Reuben sliders. Good thing I already took all the photos.

Try this in your Reuben Deviled Eggs and Reuben Skewers. It’s gluten free and vegetarian too!

reuben sauce served on pumpernickel and what toasts

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reuben sauce closeup with text "reuben sauce"

Other tangy condiments:

  • Pickled Cabbage
  • Pickled Red Onions
  • Whole Grain Mustard
  • Olive Salad
Sauerkraut and Swiss or Reuben Sauce in a bowl

Reuben Sauce

Yield: 2 cups
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Total Time: 13 minutes

This Reuben Sauce is a spicy condiment of sauerkraut, onions, horseradish, and pickled mustard seeds for any sandwich, burger, or hot dog!

Ingredients

Reuben Sauce

  • 1/2 cup onion (chopped fine)
  • 1/2 cup sauerkraut
  • 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 2 teaspoons pickle relish (dill)
  • dash of Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese
  • 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
  • 1/2 teaspoon pickled mustard seeds

For Serving

  • sliced corned beef
  • Swiss cheese
  • pumpernickel and wheat toasts for serving

Instructions

  1. In a medium-sized skillet, combine the olive oil and caraway seeds.
  2. Heat over medium high heat, cook the caraway seeds for 2 minutes until fragrant.
  3. Add the sauerkraut and onion to the pan.
  4. Cook until onions are tender and golden brown.  Appr 8 mins.
  5. When cooked, remove to a mixing bowl.
  6. Add in the remaining ingredients stir to completely combine.
  7. You can serve this Reuben Sauce warm or cold.
  8. I recommend serving it on small cocktail toasts with some sliced corned beef and Swiss cheese.

Notes

*If you like this recipe, please leave me a comment and rate it with some stars.  Thank you!

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1009Total Fat: 58gSaturated Fat: 21gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 32gCholesterol: 123mgSodium: 1151mgCarbohydrates: 82gFiber: 14gSugar: 9gProtein: 46g

This nutrition information was generated via a third party, Nutritionix, and can not be held liable for any discrepancies in the information provided.

Did you make this recipe?

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© Jennifer
Cuisine: American / Category: Condiments and Sauces

@TakeTwoTapas.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encourages and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

Filed Under: Condiments and Sauces Tagged With: holiday, Reuben, sauerkraut, St. Patrick's Day

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Comments

  1. Kathy says

    February 28, 2019 at 10:47 AM

    Wow! This is such a creative and delicious recipe. Love it and I can see how I can use the sauce in so many things.

    Reply
  2. Julie Menghini says

    February 25, 2019 at 2:26 PM

    Oh please, I have to have a couple of those sliders. W love Reubens and I’ll be putting this sauce on all kinds of sammies.

    Reply
  3. Angela says

    February 25, 2019 at 7:53 AM

    Oh wow, whats not to LOVE about this recipe! I need to give these sliders a try asap!

    Reply
  4. Amy Nash says

    February 24, 2019 at 11:02 PM

    This was AMAZING! We had it on hamburgers but next time I want to use it to top hot dogs! It is so good!

    Reply
  5. Deb says

    February 24, 2019 at 9:30 PM

    My fav sandwich is a sauce? I’m hooked on this!

    Reply
    • Karen says

      March 22, 2020 at 6:11 PM

      Delicious and easy. Didn’t have horseradish which would have added another dimension of flavor.

      Reply
  6. Michaela Kenkel says

    February 24, 2019 at 7:59 PM

    We tried this with our leftover corned beef today at lunch — I smeared it on a pumpernickel bagel — SO GOOD!

    Reply
  7. Sandra Shaffer says

    February 24, 2019 at 9:33 PM

    This is making my mouth water just looking at that delicious sauce. Great idea to use as an appetizer, but I think I’m adding this to a corned beef sandwich!

    Reply
  8. Brandi Burgess says

    February 23, 2019 at 8:24 PM

    This Reuben sauce looks and sounds AMAZING!!!! I want to eat it on ALL THE THINGS!

    Reply

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