Homemade Japanese spicy mayo is a creamy, tangy, umami sauce that you’ll want to put on everything from sushi to poke bowls to tacos, and beyond.

Ingredient Notes

Traditionally, spicy mayo uses kewpie, which is a Japanese mayonnaise made of egg yolks (instead of whole eggs like American mayo). This gives kewpie a deeper yellow color and a thicker/richer mouthfeel. It’s also tangier and has more umami flavor due to the addition of MSG.

Because Kewpie is only available in select places, we’re instead using easy-to-find ingredients to mimic those traditional flavors. Here’s what you’ll need:

Mayonnaise – a condiment you likely already have in the fridge.
Sriracha – this is what adds the spicy element and makes it that beautiful orange color when mixed with the mayonnaise.
Tamari or soy sauce – adds umami and saltiness. Use reduced sodium so the spicy mayo isn’t overly salty.
Rice vinegar – the acidity adds a nice tanginess to the mayo to taste closer to kewpie mayo.
Cane sugar – Kewpie is a little sweeter than American mayonnaise, so adding a little adds a-just-barely-noticeable sweetness as well as balancing out the flavors.

Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations

Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.

How can you make this Japanese spicy mayo recipe using what you already have? Here are some ideas…

No sriracha? – sub another hot sauce, just know that the flavor will be slightly different.
No rice vinegar? – you can also use lime juice or mirin. If you use mirin, leave out the sugar.
Make it soy-free – use coconut aminos for the soy sauce and omit the sugar since it’s sweeter than soy sauce. Also, make sure your mayonnaise isn’t made with soybean oil.
Make it vegan – use vegan mayonnaise.

Helpful Tips

To make an extra spicy mayo, increase the amount of sriracha, to taste. The more sriracha used, the deeper the orange color will be.
If the sauce seems a little runny at first, chill it until ready to use to thicken it up a bit.

Serving Ideas

Spicy mayo is a great condiment to have in the fridge because of its versatility.

It’s great with Japanese-inspired dishes that use instant pot sushi rice like salmon rice bowls, shrimp sushi bowls with avocado, spicy tuna crispy rice, sushi burritos, and sushi salad.

But, it’s also delicious served as a dipping sauce for crispy air fryer chicken bites, crispy roasted potato and onions, savory zucchini pancakes, or ebi tempura (shrimp tempura).

Serve it over shrimp poke, smoked salmon poke, or cooked salmon poke bowls. Or other bowls such as crispy tofu bowl, sheet pan salmon buddha bowls, deconstructed burger bowls, or teriyaki beef bowls to add some heat.

Add a smear to corn, flour, or plantain tortillas when assembling Asian shrimp tacos, crispy cod tacos, or breakfast tostadas, or to a hamburger bun when making spicy chicken burgers or quinoa veggie burgers.

Drizzle over the top of kimchi pizza or a crispy chicken wrap, or spread onto a BLT or turkey club sandwich, etc.

The options are endless!

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Did you try this Japanese spicy mayo? If so, please leave a comment & a star rating below. Thank you!