Tips For The Best Bbq Sauce
- Add a blend of various ingredients to build lots of flavor. Here we use a fair amount that all come together and pair perfectly.
- Dont omit all the sweeteners or sauce will be very sour and unbalanced.
- Let it simmer and reduce to thicken. The simmering not only helps meld the flavors but it thickens the sauce since some of the liquid evaporates.
- Wait to add bbq sauce to chicken or ribs until the last 5 10 minutes of grilling or baking so it doesnt burn excessively and dont cook over high heat once added, use a medium heat.
- If its been in the fridge dont forget to let it rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes so you arent serving it cold with warm food .
Our Final Thoughts On How To Make Bbq Sauce
Whether you end up going for the classic sweet and smoky sauce or prefer a bit more a tang or spice, barbecue sauce is a delight either way. Dont be afraid to be a little experimental. You can even add stone fruits such as peaches or plums to bring out their naturally sweet flavor and tartness in the sauce. This is also a great way of reducing the number of processed sugars you use in the mix. Whatever you choose, BBQ sauce can be very forgiving. Cover up any mistakes by adding in more of the tomato base and rebuilding the flavors in your sauce.
This versatile sauce can be paired with anything, whether its a slab of red meat or even a spruced up Caesar salad. You can bottle it up and store it to use any time youre craving something salty, sticky and delicious. If youre not in the mood to cook anything, just use the BBQ sauce as a dip for some chips or even nachos. Either way, it always tastes great.
Homemade Bbq Sauce Ingredients:
To make this homemade bbq sauce recipe, you will need the following ingredients :
- Tomato sauce: One can of plain tomato sauce .
- Apple cider vinegar: To add some tang to the sauce.
- Honey: I really prefer the taste of honey as the natural sweetener in this bbq sauce. But you could also sub in brown sugar or maple syrup.
- Tomato paste: To intensify the rich tomato flavor in this sauce.
- Molasses: A must in Kansas City bbq sauce!
- Worcestershire: If making this sauce vegan, be sure to use a vegan brand of Worcestershire.
- Liquid smoke: To give the sauce those important smoky notes.
- Spices: A combo of smoked paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, onion powder and salt. Plus a few optional pinches of cayenne, if you would like to give the sauce some heat.
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How To Make Easy Bbq Sauce From Scratch
This Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce Recipe is bold, tangy, sweet, and smoky! Its great for brushing onto chicken, steak, or even using as a dipping sauce!
I will tell you, as the summer has gone on, I have used my fair share of bottled BBQ sauces. I feel like I go through them so fast! AND turns out, even when I buy them in bulk, I tend to run out and not realize itwhich is where todays Homemade BBQ Sauce recipe comes in. I have been making this sauce for years, but I will be the first to admit I am lazy a lot for the time and purchase the pre-made kind more often than not.
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But in my defense, there are some really great bottled BBQ sauces out there these days, so absolutely no shade to store bought. However, making your own BBQ sauce is seriously simple, plus, you can easily play around with flavors and ingredients to come up with your own special blend!
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How To Make The Best Bbq Sauce
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How To Use Homemade Barbecue Sauce
The beauty of this easy sauce is that it can be used in any recipe that calls for premade barbecue sauce, or you can use it to spice up your favorite protein or even salad.
- Ribs. You can use this homemade BBQ sauce for pulled pork and for ribs .
- Salad. I love using this sauce to make my favorite BBQ Chicken Salad.
- Chicken. This is a delicious BBQ sauce recipe for chicken recipes like these Maple Bourbon Crock Pot BBQ Chicken Sandwiches. Or this Crock Pot BBQ Chicken. It would also be yummy brushed over grilled chicken breasts.
- Meatballs. Brush it over these Baked Turkey Meatballs for a different flavor spin.
The Best Bbq Sauce From Scratch
July 14, 2019 This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
It’s a favorite and a staple in our house. It’s the Best BBQ Sauce From Scratch! It’s the reason we stopped using store bought bbq sauce!
Happy Summer, friends! Phew, what a summer it’s been already! If your house is like ours then the only thing busier than our schedules is our grill and our smoker! Which means we’ve been making a ton of one of our favorites. One of our go-tos. One of the all-stars in our condiment round up: The Best BBQ Sauce From Scratch!
We’re far from new to homemade BBQ sauces ’round here. Our Whiskey BBQ Sauce From Scratch makes a pretty killer Pulled Pork Sandwich. But that requires having some whiskey on hand, and at least 45 minutes. Whereas this, The Best BBQ Sauce From Scratch, you can probably have everything you need to make in right now in just 15! minutes!
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Here’s How Easy It Is To Make Your Own Bbq Sauce
We meant what we said about how you should experiment and play until you find your perfect barbecue sauce ingredients. But what if youre cooking this weekend? Heres a baseline recipe you can start with that works pretty well every time.
Were going to assume you have a basic kitchen with the normal basic supplies in there, and walk you through this step by step. Keep in mind as you do this that sauce is not an exact science. Play by ear, make adjustments on the fly, and see what happens. Substitute ruthlessly. Give in to inspiration. Its pretty hard to screw up.
For sweet, lets use cola. Not diet, but you can try cherry if you have some lying around. Pour about 1/2 cup of that into a saucepan. Dont drink the rest. We might need it later.
For tangy, well use a combination of balsamic vinegar and yellow mustard, 1/8 cup of each. Pour them in the saucepan.
For tomato, grab that ketchup in the door of your fridge. Give the pot 1/4 cup. Thats nine good squeezes if you dont feel like measuring.
Well skip the fluid because the cola is wet enough on its own. But keep the can nearby just in case.
For hot and spice, well keep it simple. Give it four good shakes of salt, and four good shakes of Tabasco, or Valentina, or Sriracha, or whatever you have in your fridge. If you happen to have liquid smoke, pour in a tablespoon, but dont panic if you dont. Real barbecue people consider this cheating, but for beginners it can be a serious help.
- Cookie Settings
How Do You Store Homemade Bbq Sauce
We store our BBQ sauce in a pint size mason jar and keep it in the fridge. I like this set because it comes with different sizes and labels.
This is perfect if you plan to make different types- sweet, vinegar etc. It is also great for gifts.
The smaller size is perfect to pop into gift baskets and such. You can also use these to take a hostess gift.
I also like to put some in a squeeze bottle for the kids. It makes it very convenient and mess free.
This option is also really good for cookouts. You can order a set of squeeze bottles that also includes a funnel to easily fill the bottles, labels and marker.
I love this set and its very frugal buying it together.
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What I Love About This Bbq Sauce Recipe:
- The perfect flavor combo. It has a little tang and sweetness, and a little smokey flavor that I cant get enough of. Liquid smoke helps to add that amazing smokey flavor.
- Made with pantry staples. Basic ingredients including tomato sauce, ketchup, sugar, molasses, red wine vinegar, and spices. The only thing you may not have on hand is liquid smoke, which is inexpensive and easy to find. Use liquid smoke in fajitas, baked beans, and Instant Pot Ribs.
Adaptable Homemade Barbecue Sauce
The beauty of this sauce base is that you can change it if youre in the mood. You can use brown sugar or molasses instead of honey, you can use Dijon mustard instead of the regular yellow mustard, you can use tomato sauce for some of the ketchup, there are lots of ways to vary the base. And then you get to add other ingredients to deepen it more, things like Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, garlic powder, or smoked paprika, or all of the above! Really the options are endless. Soooo good. Youre going to love making this easy staple and doctoring it up in new ways.
The reason this simple sauce works is because of the flavor balance. You have salty and sweet flavors in the ketchup, more sweet from the honey and then a good tang from the mustard. Its also great because the sugar content in the sauce makes it caramelize on food when its cooking.
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How To Make Your Own Bbq Sauce
Making BBQ sauce is as easy as blending a few ingredients in a pan and letting the sauce simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until it thickens. Once you get the basics down, you can put your own twist on it with different ingredients and combinations. Create your own signature sauce, tweaking the flavor profile to your personal preference. In fact, when you see just how easy it is to make your own barbecue sauce, you may never buy bottled sauce again.
There’s something special about homemade BBQ sauce and theres a sauce for every occasion and palate. Seriously, the variety of available BBQ sauce recipes is endless. Whether its sweet, smoky or spicy, this flavorful condiment can be used in so many ways. Serve it as a dip, spread it on a sandwich or drizzle it over pizza. Slather it on ribs, chicken, beef and all your grilled dishes.
How Do You Make Bbq Sauce From Scratch
Making BBQ Sauce from scratch is as simple as mixing some ingredients together and simmering it on the stove for 15 minutes. All the sweet, tangy, smokey and spicy flavors meld together to make a sauce perfect for dipping, topping, grilling and more. The ingredients for BBQ sauce are easy to find, and you probably have most of them in your pantry right now!
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How To Make Homemade Bbq Sauce Step By Step Photos
This sauce is so ridiculously easy to make. Simply combine all of the ingredients, minus the salt, in a small sauce pot: 8 oz. tomato sauce, 2 Tbsp tomato paste, 2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar, 2 Tbsp brown sugar, 2 Tbsp molasses, 1/2 Tbsp Dijon mustard, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp onion powder, 1/8 tsp cayenne, and some about ten cranks of a pepper mill.
Stir and heat the ingredients in the pot over medium heat. Allow the sauce to come up to a slight simmer, then continue to stir and cook for about five minutes. Make sure to stir often. After simmering for about five minutes, give it a taste and add salt if needed . And thats it! The sauce is ready to use.
P.S. This is the molasses I use. Its a light unsulfured molasses. For more info on different types of molasses, check out Everything You Need to Know About Molasses, from The Kitchn.
What Ingredients Do I Need To Make Homemade Bbq Sauce
Homemade BBQ sauce is made from these pantry staples:
- Ketchup
- Vinegar
- Honey
- Various spices
- Liquid smoke
Keep in mind that the ingredients are somewhat customizable. Dont have honey? Leave it out or substitute a bit more brown sugar. Dont have soy sauce? No worries.
Taste as you go and make adjustments as necessary.
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What Ingredients Are In Barbecue Sauce
If you live in the South, specifically North Carolina, you probably prefer a more vinegar based sauce known as Carolina Style BBQ. This recipe is easy to adjust by adding a bit more vinegar.
Whatever you prefer, this recipe is so versatile and a really great base recipe that includes ketchup, apple cider vinegar, honey and more!
Best Way To Store Homemade Sauces
I prefer old fashioned Mason jars for storing sauces. However, I dont like the metal lids since they rust and therefore arent super reusable so I buy special lids that are dishwasher friendly and are easy to put on and take off.
You can buy reusable lids in plastic or glass. The plastic lids arent always 100% leak proof but work great if youre storing things upright. Wek brand jars use a glass lid that seals well. So depending on your use, you may want to check into that brand. You can shop everything on Amazon of course. Here are some links to get you started:
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First The Basics Of Bbq Sauce
You can make pretty much any sauce using one of two methods. Method one involves taking something thick — like a premade powder or the burnt stuff at the bottom of the pan — and add fluids to it until its thin enough. The other method involves taking something thin and cooking it to reduce out the water until its thick enough to call a sauce.
You can, technically make barbecue sauce using method one, but if you do that the barbecue police will come to your house and beat you with Texas and Louisiana state flags. Dont do that. Use method two.
Now that we’ve got that sorted, it’s time to think about how you want your soon-to-be-famous sauce to taste. Keep in mind this is for a classic red barbecue sauce. If you want to get fancy, there are other options, but well start here. Its what most people think when they think barbecue.
A solid barbecue sauce is made up of six parts.
1. Something sweet. This can be honey, cola, molasses, preserves, brown sugar, or syrup. This caramelizes as you cook, brining those smoky, sugary flavors. This will make up about 1/2 of your core ingredients, depending on what you use.
2. Something tangy. Think vinegar, mustard, citrus, or citrus preserves. This is what brings the zing to your sauce, and makes up about 1/4 of your core ingredients.
One last thing: While its cooking, keep about 1/2 cup of brown sugar and your salt shaker nearby. Taste-test every 10 minutes or so , and add some pinches of one or the other if it tastes off.
Is Bbq Sauce Easy To Make
BBQ sauce is sooo easy to make. I didnt start making my own sauces until a few years ago because I just assumed it was super complicated. The fact is, its about the easiest thing you can make. You can use either a medium saucepan or a slow cooker. I prefer the slow cooking method because its less work, but either way the sauce is delicious.
Just like my Kansas City style sauce, I recommend making this sauce a day before youll need it. I find the flavors come together better after sitting for a day or so, but you can certainly use it the same day. When you store it, be sure to keep it in a glass container because it will stain plastic.
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How To Combine Ingredients: 2 Ways
Super Quick:
Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix it until everything is all nice and stirred up.
The preferred way:
First, mix the ketchup and the brown sugar together. Make sure it’s stirred well so that everything is combined.
Next, add the mustard powder and paprika and stir until it’s all combined. The last part would be to add the Worchestershire sauce, stir, then add the vinegar. Add any salt or pepper to fit your taste.
If you happen to try it both ways, please let me know if you like it better one way or another. It’s something I really need to know!
What Is The Best Barbecue Sauce Lets Discuss
Yep, I am going there. BBQ sauce is both regional and personal, and I do have a favorite.
I grew up on Kansas City barbecue, and every time Ben and I visit, grabbing a meal at a local BBQ joint isnt an optional activity we try to squeeze inits one of the first stops we make the moment we land at the airport.
Ive had the pleasure of munching barbecue in different regions of the country, and while I respect and enjoy the different flavors and characteristics of each, Kansas Citystyle barbecue sauce is my forever favorite.
If youve had Sweet Baby Rays or KC Masterpiece brand BBQ sauce, youve experienced a hint of just how good Kansas City BBQ sauce can be. That said, as Ive started reading more labels in recent years, the bottled barbecue sauce brands are LOADED with sugar .
Craving some barbecue but not wanting to rely on the the sugary stuff, I decided to see if I could make my own homemade barbecue sauce for ribs, pulled pork, and, as I quickly discovered while making and tasting this sauce, for licking right off the spoon!
Skip the bottled stuff. By using real, unprocessed ingredients, youll have an award winning barbecue sauce recipe that tastes, well, homemade.
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