05/05/2014
Every once in awhile we get a call from someone asking why the bottle of Al's Gourmet Shrimp Sauce they just bought from the store has turned into a gel-like substance. We honestly didn't know, and our best guess is that the horseradish would come in dry at times and would suck up all the moisture causing it to gel.
This was wrong.
After getting another call about it this past Friday, we decided to take a more in-depth look into it. It turns out that its a reaction between the ketchup and the horseradish. Horseradish is high in acid and ketchup is high in pectin, together the two ingredients in cocktail sauce makes a gel when chilled.
There are two simple ways to getting the sauce back to normal. First, and the way we recommend, is to simply let the sauce come to room temperature before serving. Secondly, if you're in a hurry you can add a little bit of lemon juice to the sauce, stir it in, and it should return the sauce to its normal state...though adding lemon juice may affect the flavor.
