Wendy's Chili Sauce

chili sauce in a small bowl with a spoon scooping out a little.

Unlock the secret to making your favorite Wendy's chili sauce at home with this easy-to-follow recipe. This homemade version of Wendy's iconic Hot Chili Seasoning sauce captures the perfect blend of heat and flavor, bringing a zesty kick to any dish.

Prep Time: 10

Total Time: 10

Servings: 12

Ingredients

Sauce Ingredients

½ cup water
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper to taste

Cornstarch Slurry

1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot
1 tablespoon water cold

Instructions

Combine all sauce ingredients in a medium pan, and bring to a boil over high heat. Allow the mixture to simmer for 3-5 minutes, while stirring occasionally.
Make a slurry by combining 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of cold water. Whisk together until no lumps remain.
Slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the simmering sauce on the stove. Stir and allow to simmer for 5 more minutes.
Taste and add more cayenne, as desired. Remove and allow to cool before serving. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Heather's Helpful Hints

Also known as Wendy's Hot Chili Seasoning.
Ingredients include: water, corn syrup, salt, distilled vinegar, natural flavors, xanthan gum, extratives of paprika.
You can put this sauce on several Wendys menu items: burgers, fries, chili, chicken, mixed with ketchup.
The original ingredient list uses xanthan gum, but we substitute this with cornstarch in this recipe.
In 2015, Wendy's updated their recipe to remove caramel color from the list, and replace it with extratives of paprika. Originally the packets were gold, but now they come in red and black.

Nutrition

This recipe was found on My Sweet Precision. Thank you for visiting!