Easy Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Why is it so hard to find barbecue sauce that doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup listed in the ingredient? It’s kind of funny, because it’s one of those naturally gluten free recipes, but we still can’t have it.
As much as we love barbecue sauce, that’s one ingredient we don’t tolerate on our table.
This easy homemade barbecue sauce recipe not only nixes the HFCS, it’s super easy to make. Can I be honest with you though? It’s not made completely from scratch.
Ketchup is one of the few things left in our life that we don’t make from scratch. It’s not that I’m opposed to it, it’s just that it’s fairly low on the priority list, and frankly, I enjoy having a few things left in my life that are ready to put on the table without me having to plan ahead. Call me lazy.
But the real reason this is made with ketchup instead of tomato sauce with added spices is because ketchup is one of the very tomato products that my husband likes, and so, one of the few I keep on hand.
With all that said, the list of spices to add to your homemade barbecue sauce is a mile long when you’re making with plain tomato sauce, so the usage of ketchup seriously simplifies my kitchen life, and that’s something I bet you appreciate as much as I do. 🙂
This sauce is appropriately tangy, with a nice smoky flavor which My husband loved. That made me super happy, because he’s a little picky about his barbecue sauce. My toddler apparently did too. I turned my back for one second, and came back to find her dipping the spatula in the bowl and eating it.
Oh heck, we all loved it! Except Garrett, who had just come back from his grandmother’s and was full. He’ll like when he finally tries it though – but that doesn’t mean anything, he likes all sauces.
Try this tasty recipe below
PrintEasy Homemade Barbecue Sauce
If you love barbecue sauce, this easy and simple recipe will be a huge hit.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cups ketchup
- ½ cup brown sugar*
- 2 T. apple cider vinegar
- 1 T. Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 t. ground mustard
- 1 t. paprika
- ¾ t. salt
- ½ t. pepper
- 1 t. liquid smoke (hickory is my favorite!)
Instructions
Note: we like our barbecue sauce tangy! If you like it sweeter, add an extra ¼ cup of brown sugar.
Instructions:
- Measure out ingredients, and mix them together until the sugar is dissolved.
- Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
- How easy is that?!
- Enjoy!
Get Your Garden Cheat Sheets!
Want to know exactly when, where, and how to plant your vegetables? Sign up to get our FREE companion planting guide, and garden planting cheat sheet printable.
Can yu tell me the shelf life of this in the refigerator?
Not officially, but I’ve kept mine for up to three weeks.
This sounds great… can you tell me what ingred. makes this tangy.. is it the mustard ? is this spicy or hot ?
my hubby can’t eat anything that is.
Love this site and your thoughts on things…
Thanks
It’s not hot tangy, just a tad vinegary because of the reduced sugar.
Can I use something other than brown sugar? Syrup or honey, maybe?
Yes, I would just use honey to taste.
Oh, this sounds like a great recipe! I love making my own homemade version of store bought items, but only tried BBQ sauce once and wasn’t that impressed with it. Your recipe sounds a lot more appealing though and I’d want to give it a try!
Thank Lydia! You’ll love it!
my dad loved! “wow that’s killer!” is what he said. thx so much for this recipe!
Yay! So glad!