This creamy homemade horseradish sauce is the perfect condiment with any roast beef or prime rib dinner. It’s also delicious on leftover roast beef sandwiches, on top of a baked potato, slathered on beef tenderloin, or as a dipping sauce for a French dip sandwich.

(Originally published on December 4th, 2013. Updated November 17th, 2024)

What is horseradish?

Horseradish is a plant that is cultivated mainly for its roots. This root vegetable is native to Central and Eastern Europe and has very little odor until it’s cut or grated.

Some love to use the fresh horseradish root or straight from a bottle. But not everyone loves the strong, hot flavor of straight horseradish. I think the best horseradish sauce for prime rib, or any roast beef, is traditional British style creamed horseradish with whipping cream.

This creamy horseradish sauce recipe is made with whipping cream, vinegar, and English mustard. It’s spicy, tangy, and creamy!

You may have seen many recipes for horseradish cream sauce made with sour cream, but those are not traditional British recipes. This is an old recipe from the 1960’s Time-Life Cooking Series, Recipes of the British Isles. My mom has been using this recipe for over 50 years.

Ingredients for this easy horseradish sauce

This recipe has just a few simple ingredients. Bottled horseradish can be found on the condiment aisle of your local supermarket.

You’ll need the following ingredients to make horseradish sauce. Use white pepper rather than black pepper which blends into the creamy sauce rather than black specks. Can’t find white wine vinegar? You can substitute white vinegar or champagne vinegar.

1/2 cup bottled horseradish (buy plain horseradish, not creamed or sauce)
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar (Swerve can be substituted for low carb)
1/2 teaspoon dry English mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 cup heavy cream chilled

How to make homemade horseradish sauce

Using a clean dish towel or cheese cloth, wring out as much liquid as possible from the horseradish.

Mix together the horseradish, vinegar, sugar, English mustard, salt and white pepper in a small bowl.

Beat the whipping cream until it forms stiff peaks. Gently fold the horseradish mixture into the whipped cream.

Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more horseradish if desired.

Here are some tips for best results:

Be sure to buy fresh, “prepared” horseradish, which is made with just grated horseradish root, vinegar, and salt. Do NOT use horseradish “sauce” which has added cream, sour cream, or mayonnaise.
It’s important to drain as much of the liquid out of the horseradish as possible before incorporating it into the other ingredients. Squeeze any liquid out in a clean, dry towel.
Use dry English mustard. Don’t substitute Dijon mustard as it won’t have the same flavor or consistency.

Can you make horseradish sauce ahead of time?

Because it’s made with whipped cream, I wouldn’t recommend making creamy horseradish sauce for prime rib the day before. I usually make it about 2-3 hours ahead of time and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

I think it tastes better if the flavors have a chance to meld. Mix all the ingredients together except the whipped cream, and refrigerate. Just before serving, whip the cream and finish the recipe.

Is horseradish sauce low-carb?

This recipe contains a mere 2 teaspoons of sugar for 8-10 servings. However, if you are very sensitive to sugar, you can easily substitute swerve or your favorite sugar substitute.

Planning a Christmas dinner?

The English restaurant I worked at in the 80s served a traditional prime rib dinner complete with all the trimmings. The prime rib was popular year round, but especially at Christmas time!

We served this creamed horseradish sauce with Prime Rib Roast Beef.

Creamed Spinach and Creamed Corn were also on menu, as well as mashed potatoes.

Dessert is always English Trifle or individual Trifles with Creme Anglaise.