Editor's note:The recipe and introductory text below are fromThe Barbecue! Bible 10th Anniversary Edition, by Steven Raichlen. To read more about Raichlen and barbecue, go to our featureThe Best Barbecue in the U.S.A.
A good barbecue sauce is a study in contrasts: sweet versus sour, fruity versus smoky, spicy versus mellow. Here's a great all-purpose sauce that's loaded with flavor but not too sweet. It goes well with all manner of poultry, pork, or beef. The minced vegetables give you a coarse-textured sauce, which I happen to like. If you prefer a smooth sauce, puree it in a blender.
Ingredients
Makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups
Step 1
1. Heat the oil in a large nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and bell pepper and cook until softened but not brown, about 4 minutes.
Step 2
2. Stir in the ketchup, tomato sauce, cider vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, pineapple juice (if using), hot sauce, liquid smoke, molasses, brown sugar, prepared and dry mustards, black pepper, and 1 cup of water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and let the sauce simmer, uncovered, until thickened, about 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent scorching. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little more water.
Step 3
3. Remove the barbecue sauce from the heat and taste for seasoning, adding salt to taste and more cider vinegar, hot sauce, and/or brown sugar as necessary; the sauce should be highly seasoned.
Step 4
4. Transfer the barbecue sauce to a serving bowl and serve warm or at room temperature. The sauce will keep, tightly covered in the refrigerator, for several weeks.
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Reviews (12)
Back to TopGreat sauce! I didn't have the green pepper, it was fine without. Only used 3/4 cup water based on other reviews and I thought consistency great, but I don't need mine too thick. It was just a bit looser than ketchup. Subbed fresh oj for the pineapple juice.
ellenspirer
1/19/2014
surprisingly easy...and surprisingly I had all of the ingredients except for molasses so I subbed with honey, and no bell pepper so used a fresh jalapeño instead. really nice layers of flavor.
bdoug101
New York, NY
1/1/2013
A good basic recipe with the added benefit of fresh veggies (every little bit helps!). It doesn't make much so I might double it next time to have leftovers. I accidentally added a ton of hot sauce but it still wasn't too spicy for me. With a bit more vinegar it would be perfect for ribs.
texbel
Texas
8/1/2012
Good recipe. Used for pulled pork. Not very thick. Substituted some ingredients but mostly kept the same. I doubled the recipe
sheryl63
Elk Grove, CA
9/5/2011
This is a great recipe. My guests absolutely loved the chicken.
Anonymous
VA
9/25/2010
This is the so yummy! I made it twice within a couple of days. I will probably make it all summer. Super easy!
cookindenver
5/31/2010
Delicious. I made this sauce for a BBQ seitan recipe and used a bit more onion than called for (vidalia). Once I mixed it all, I added a bit more liquid smoke and sugar to add additional flavor to the seitan. More fun than buying a bottle of Kraft, for certain.
LeoMulv
Philly, PA.
5/19/2010
Tasted excellent. Had to reduce it for about 30 minutes to get the consistency I wanted (thick, to put it on pizza) ... would decrease the water next time if that's what I'm using it for. Otherwise perfect!
Anonymous
3/22/2010
Love it. So easy to adapt with other ingredients or just perfect as it is. Thanks epicurious.
mobroliu
Toronto ON Canada
2/17/2010
A very tangy, basic sauce that is quick to make and easily adaptable. I used a yellow pepper, Heinz chili sauce in place of the tomato sauce, and used a smidge of leftover bacon fat. It's simmering now and I will likely puree it a bit as suggested by a previous reviewer. This will be a great sauce for our pulled chicken sandwiches tonight.
Anonymous
Toronto, ON
11/3/2009
Excellent recipe tht lends itself to adaptation I didn't have tomato sauce - used cocktail sauce with lots of horseradish and some tomato paste - nice zing Didn't have garlic - used shallot Didn't have brown sugar - used turbinado sucar and a little more molassas Will definitely make this again but still feel free to adapt
safarilady1
Ashland, MA
6/28/2009
This was great, especially for a first attempt at making BBQ sauce :) I was pleasantly surprised by the results. I actually ran the sauce through the blender just before the simmering stage to remove all chunks of onions (I like a smooth sauce). I used quite a bit of smoky chipotle sauce and used real bacon grease. The only reason I didn't give this 4 stars is that I prefer a sweeter, thicker sauce, like KC Masterpiece. I think it needs more brown sugar ;)
outdoorchica
Falls Church, VA
12/29/2008
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