Chick-fil-A Polynesian Sauce is one of the most popular sauces sold in the food chain and is great on chicken, pork, and beef! Now you can make it at home!
Chick-Fil-A Polynesian Sauce is one of my favorite sauces that they carry. I’ve loved it from the first time I ever tried it when I was in college and I’ve often told my husband how much it tastes like “tangy Catalina dressing.” I went looking for the ingredients and found it conveniently listed on their website. Compared to a bottle of Catalina dressing, it looks quite convincing that we can make this sauce similar to that of Chick-Fil-A so I can enjoy it at home — in mass quantities!
Other recipes say they are copycat but use honey and apple cider vinegar and I’ve tried them. To me, they just do not taste like the original Chick-Fil-A Polynesian Sauce at all. Strong in honey flavor, the original list of ingredients does not list honey at all. So I’ve made my version with a little bit of lite corn syrup but you can use any sweetener you prefer.
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Homemade Carrabba’s Marinara Sauce
Chick-Fil-A Polynesian Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Catalina salad dressing
- 4 tsp Cider vinegar
- 8 Tbsp Corn syrup (1/2 cup) [See Note 1, 2]
- 1/4 tsp Ground Mustard
- 1/4 tsp Paprika
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Whisk [paid link] together all the ingredients. Store any unused portion in a jar or airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
Notes
- lightly spray the measuring cup with cooking oil and the corn syrup will come out easily.
- If you prefer to use honey instead of corn syrup, substitute it at a 1:1 ratio.
Not quite the same but a solid recipe for a quick sauce in a pinch.
I added cayenne pepper to it, now it’s a close match to Outback’s tangy tomato salad dressing
I’ve never tried that dressing. I will have to make a note of that the next time I stop in. Thanks for sharing!
I was disappointed by this recipe. There’s way to much Vinegar and Catalina dressing.
Love it! Is there a way to make a much healthier version? Before, I bought a pint of the brand version and it was gone in a week and a half with just me. I feel like it’s better than cocaine. But I’m trying to eat healthier and regardless, desperately need a healthier version. Thanks for reading!
I’ve seen some recipes which use honey instead of corn syrup, but this changes the flavor a lot.
I didn’t have corn syrup so I substitute it for maple syrup. It wasn’t tasting as good as I hoped so I added tons of cinnamon and IT’S AMAZING. Tastes super similar but it’s thinner than actual Polynesian Sauce.
This does NOT taste like Polynesian at all! I just made it and it simply tastes the doctored Catalina!
Hi Angela,
Sorry this didn’t turn out the way you had hoped.
I followed another user’s comment and added dashes of garlic, paprika, onion powder and ground mustard. It was good. Not exact but will do in a pinch.
Hi Mary Ellen,
I’ve been meaning to update the post with those optional additions.
Or you can just go to Chick Fil A and buy the 8 oz. Tub for 2 bucks.
True — except not everyone has a Chick-Fil-A local to them. So making it at home is a viable alternative for some people who do not live near Chick-Fil-A.
Or you could have kept that comment to yourself but you still chose to bring others down, Karen. Way to keep up your namesake.
#Agreed. Scroll on, Karen.
I was so excited to try this but it tastes nothing like original. Good but not to be compared at all.
Well, they do have an awful lot of artificial flavors, colors, stabilizers and preservatives which adds to and alters the flavors. So, no, it could never be an exact recipe without adding citric acid and other stabilizers.
Great recipe! Thank you!
Based on another reviewer I added a little more garlic and this was a great dipping sauce
Tweaked this a little with the additional of extra spices for my tastes but still a keeper.
Thanks, Daryl! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it.
Yummy – glad to be able to make it at home from ingredients I have in the fridge and pantry.
Love me some Polynesian sauce. Thanks for sharing.
Great looking site. I presume you did a lot of your very own html coding?
I love their sauce. I cant wait to make it at home.
I hope you enjoy it.
I used the reader modifications and this was spot on!
Thanks, Jenny! I have not yet had the chance to try it out.
I love Chic-fil-A sauces!
I know, me too!
I’ve been to chick-fil-a several times, but I’ve never had their Polynesian sauce. Sounds delicious and intersting. I can’t wait to make some for our next batch of chicken nuggets/fingers/wings.
Hi,
I made the sauce recipe and we tasted it side by side with the real thing, and its really close we checked the ingredient list and added dried mustard powder 1/4 teaspoon, 1/4 paprika and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and onion powder and made it even closer, I used Honey since I always sub honey for corn syrup but it was really good; better with the spices we thought:)
Sounds good, Becky. I’ll have to try your version.
We cheat and use this on sweet and sour chicken I make. Not the same as the Chinese sauce but my daughter likes it.