Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce. Rich smoky, sweet, tangy & thick with molasses, brown sugar, tomato sauce & more! This homemade BBQ sauce is healthier too because there’s no ketchup. So good, you’ll slather it on everything!
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If you read my blog, you already know that we are moving to Kansas for a year. We were originally going to rent a place but then we decided to buy a house instead and rent it out to a military family when our time is up. Yup, just one of our first rental properties. More to come too. So exciting!
I can’t wait to get the move over. I also can’t wait to finally savor some Kansas City BBQ for once! If you don’t know about Kansas City BBQ sauce, well it’s pretty famous and a big thing. Once I get a taste of some good Kansas City BBQ, I’m going to attempt to recreate it. Summer is going to be so much fun! BBQ time! In the meantime, I’ll stick to my easy homemade BBQ inspired by our move and Kansas City BBQ.
HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE BBQ SAUCE
- Basically, to make homemade BBQ sauce add the tomato sauce, molasses, vinegar, dark brown sugar, liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, honey and the rest of the BBQ sauce ingredients into a medium saucepan.
- Let the BBQ sauce come to a boil then simmer for 25 minutes. Stir every now and then.
- The longer you simmer the sauce, the darker and flavorsome the BBQ sauce will become.
- Simmer for 25 minutes then set the stove to medium and let the sauce boil for five-seven minutes.
Quick tips:
- Remember to simmer the BBQ sauce for about 25 minutes then set the stove to medium and let the sauce cook for 5-7 minutes.
- Slather this homemade BBQ sauce on, BBQ chicken sliders, pulled pork, pulled beef, drumsticks or wings, burgers, pork chops or ribs!
- Let your sauce hang out in the fridge for a day. It will help all the flavors meld resulting in a more flavorful smoother sauce.
- Make sure you use a really good quality honey and molasses. I like this brand of honey since it had a bunch of great reviews. I’m a sucker for great reviews.
- Liquid smoke helps mimic the flavor of smoked meats without having to smoke anything at all. I like to add liquid smoke to my BBQ sauce. I encourage you to try adding it to your BBQ sauce. I used 1 tsp since a little goes a long way. If you are new to liquid smoke, add less than 1/2 tsp just to see if you like the taste. If you like it then add a bit more. Read the directions on the bottle and please don’t go overboard with the liquid smoke. Remember, a little goes a long way. I don’t want anyone telling me the sauce was toooo smoky haha.
- Store BBQ sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
So there you have it, my easy homemade BBQ sauce recipe. I hope you can give it a try. I love BBQ sauce and love trying out new ways to make it so look out for more future BBQ sauce recipes.
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Easy and Homemade BBQ Sauce made without ketchup - rich, sweet, tangy, thick and rich thanks to the molasses, vinegar and the rest of the tasty ingredients. This BBQ sauce is much healthier too because it's tomato based. So good, you'll slather it on everything!
- 2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
- 3 tbsp plus 2 tsp molasses
- 3 1/2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp liquid smoke
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/8 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp red pepper **optional**
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Add the tomato sauce, molasses, Worcestershire sauce, apple cider vinegar, liquid smoke honey, brown sugar and the rest of the bbq sauce ingredients to a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil then set stove to low, Cook the bbq sauce for 25 minutes stirring occasionally.
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Set stove-top to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. The BBQ sauce will thicken up quickly. Remove from heat and serve with chicken, beef or pork.
Makes 1 1/2 cups of BBQ sauce.
I love everything about this! All those ingredients sound amazing together! I will have to make this soon!
I love barbecue sauce and making it at home sounds like a great way to avoid extra junk in the ingredients!
Homemade sauces are so much better and I’d always customize it as per my taste and preference. With summer upon us and loads of BBQ and grilling to happen this sauce is a keeper! Droolicious it is
Homemade sauces are the best as one can control the kind of ingredients that go into it. I like that you’ve used tomato sauce and not ketchup.
Exactly and so much healthier. Thank you Mayuri!
I love an easy bbq sauce recipe! I’ve got some chicken thighs that I planned on making for dinner, this will go great with it! Happy Moving, I hope it goes smoothly.
I hope you can try it out, Tanya! I seriously can’t wait for the move to be over! Thanks!
I absolutely adore BBQ Sauce, and I have a go to recipe, but I am definitely looking forward to trying your version! Thinking I am going to make some BBQ Cauliflower Wings!
Oooh cauliflower wings sound interesting but good! Try it and let me know what you think!
Good luck on your move to Kansas City! I love that this recipe has no ketchup, one of my bffs hates ketchup and refuses to eat BBQ. Maybe if I use this recipe she will give it a try.
I made homemade bbq sauce with ketchup and it no matter what I added to it, the sauce still tasted like ketchup lol. I like the tomato based ones way better. Thank you so much Sondria!
This is awesome! I love making my barbecue from scratch and I’m always looking for good recipes for it!
Thank you so much Camila!