Homemade BBQ Sauce

Name: Homemade BBQ Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce; 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar; 1/4 cup brown sugar; 1/4 cup tomato paste; 3 tablespoons molasses; 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce; 2 teaspoons liquid smoke; 1 teaspoon garlic powder; 1 teaspoon onion powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

April 22, 2022 | Condiments

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This Homemade BBQ Sauce is sweet, tangy, and a little spicy. It will take your meat to a whole new level! With a handful of ingredients you can make a batch of barbecue sauce and tweak it to your liking.

Homemade BBQ sauce is so quick and easy to make! As always, made-from-scratch is always the best because it’s fresh and you can always make tweak to make it exactly how you like. Use it on Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken, Fall-Apart Slow Cooker Pulled Pork, and Beef Brisket in the Oven.

Barbecue Sauce

Whether you’re looking for a BBQ sauce without corn syrup or just want to have fresh homemade sauce, this recipe is for you! All it takes is dumping a bunch of ingredients in a pot and letting it simmer. It’s so flavorful and will be the star of your dish.

A bowl of bbq sauce with a spoon in the side.

Ingredients for BBQ Sauce:

Tomato Sauce & Paste– These are the base of the sauce. The paste adds more concentrated flavor.
Vinegar– This helps balance the sweet flavor in the barbecue sauce.
Brown Sugar– This adds sweetness as well as flavor.
Molasses– molasses as depth of flavor and helps thicken the sauce.
Worcestershire Sauce– This sauce has a umami flavor. It’s a bit sour, sweet, and salty.
Liquid Smoke– This is the key to making your meat taste like it was smoked but without the work.
Seasonings– Garlic powder, onion powder, salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper.

Ingredients on a marble surface- tomato paste, sauce, spices, sugar, soy sauce, and vinegar.

How to make BBQ Sauce:

Time needed: 20 minutes.

Mix & Simmer
Place all ingredient in a medium pot and bring to a simmer over med-high heat. Reduce heat to med-low and allow to simmer for 10-15 minutes until thickened.
Store
Use or store in an airtight container for up to a week.

FAQs

How to make the sauce thicker?

For any sauce, the key to making it thicker is to just let it simmer for longer. Simmering a sauce allows more water to evaporate and therefore thicken.

How to make barbecue sauce spicier?

Barbecue sauce can be made spicier by adding extra cayenne pepper and/or tabasco sauce.

Why use tomato sauce and paste instead of ketchup?

This recipe is made from scratch which allows one to control the sugar content in the barbecue sauce.

A close up shot of a pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw on it.

TOOLS USED TO MAKE THIS SAUCE:

Pot & Skillet Set– These are the skillets and pots I use. They have a heavy bottom making them sturdy and cook the food evenly. I use these multiple times a day.
Whisk– I prefer this narrow whisk when cooking sauces in a skillet compared to the balloon whisk I use when mixing batters in a bowl.
Stainless Steel Measuring Cups & Spoons– I love these measuring cups! They’re sturdy, pretty and it has every size measuring cup and spoon! I can’t stand sets that don’t come with 2/3 and 3/4 cups.