Once you learn how to make homemade barbecue sauce from scratch in the comfort of your own home, it will be a staple recipe you reach for again and again.
When learning to cook from scratch, a great place to start is by making simple pantry staples. Making your own condiments like avocado mayo, honey mustard, and homemade salad dressings can elevate your recipes and be a healthier and cheaper alternative to something you would buy pre-made at the store.
This barbecue sauce is a great condiment to have on hand and makes any dish you add it to so much more flavorful and delicious! Use it when making country style ribs or as a marinade for grill night. It is divine when mixed with some shredded roast chicken and piled high on a sourdough hamburger bun with a side of homemade coleslaw.
No matter how you choose to enjoy it, I guarantee this sweet and smoky sauce will be a very much requested family staple!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Better ingredients – Making your own homemade BBQ sauce is incredibly easy to make with simple ingredients. It also avoids the not-so-good high sugar content, questionable ingredients, and additives that are found in store-bought BBQ sauce.
Versatile and customizable – Use this sauce for anything you cam dream up in the kitchen. It’s perfect for all of your favorite BBQ recipes, as a dipping sauce, marinade, and so much more! Get creative with adding different elements to this sauce to make it your own. Add a dash of spice or a little more sweetness to create your personalized flavor profile.
Elevated flavor – There is just no comparison between the store-bought stuff and this delicious made from scratch condiment.
Ingredients
Ketchup – This is a great way to use up homemade fermented ketchup and add the health benefits of fermentation to this classic BBQ sauce.
Brown sugar – Honey or maple syrup can be used as a substitute if you would prefer to use a more natural sugar in your sauce. It is also a good way to switch up the flavor a little bit.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How to Make Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Step 1: Combine all ingredients into a medium-sized saucepan over medium-low heat and stir.
Step 2: Bring the mixture to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and simmer and reduce for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning.
Step 3: Remove from the heat and let cool for about 30 minutes. Store in an air-tight jar or container in the refrigerator.
Tips
- Aim for a balance of tangy, sweet, smoky and spicy. Taste your sauce as you go, and feel free to add more of each element to find your own preferences.
- Customize your sauce by adding elements like liquid smoke for a smoky flavor, or hot sauce for a spicy BBQ sauce.
- The longer you simmer your sauce, the deeper your flavor will become.
Recipe FAQs
Common ingredients include Worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, yellow mustard, a handful of seasonings, and water.
The secret is a variety of key components that add to the depth of flavor in the sauce. Some of these key components are an acidic element, sweetness, salt, and a bit of heat and seasonings to add a boost of flavor.
Homemade barbecue sauce will last for about 1-2 weeks in the fridge. Keep it in an airtight container, or a sealed mason jar. You can also freeze barbecue sauce in freezer safe containers or bags for longer storage, up to 3-6 months.
More From-Scratch Staples from the Farmhouse
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love it if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone.
How To Make Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup ketchup
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
- ½ tablespoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon water
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients into a medium-sized saucepan over medium-low heat and stir.
- Bring the mixture to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and simmer and reduce for 30 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning.
- Remove from the heat and let cool for about 30 minutes or so before storing in an air-tight jar or container in the refrigerator.
Notes
- This recipe makes approximately 2 cups of barbecue sauce. Nutrition facts are calculated based on one serving as 2 tablespoons.
- Aim for a balance of tangy, sweet, smoky and spicy. Taste your sauce as you go, and feel free to add more of each element to find your own preferences.
- Customize your sauce by adding elements like liquid smoke for a smoky flavor, or hot sauce or cayenne for a spicy BBQ sauce.
- The longer you simmer your sauce, the deeper your flavor will become.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I’m excited to try this! How long will this last in the fridge? Same as store bought?
Yes, it should!
Our family dubbed this “Boone Sauce” and declare it’s better than Sweet Baby Ray’s so consider this recipe a huge win!!!
I love your recipes, especially the sourdough bread. You have inspired me to begin making sourdough bread. I love sourdough bread so much, I can eat it all day. I used to buy them when I go to the supermarket. Now I make my own and I am enjoying it so much. Thank you for sharing your recipes. God bless you and your family.
How will this store in the refrigerator?
It stores well.