I made homemade barbecue sauce one day out of necessity because I needed barbecue sauce and didn’t have any. A quick mix of basic pantry ingredients that simmer for a few minutes and I had homemade barbecue sauce.
We are huge fans of Sweet Baby Ray’s barbecue sauce. I love it so much that I’ve never bothered trying to make my own sauce. I figured it was probably pretty easy, but I was happy with Ray. Then I ran out of Ray and forgot to get more. I was making pulled chicken sandwiches and I had to have barbecue sauce for them. My friend Gina from Pinch This Stretch That kindly gave me her recipe for homemade barbecue sauce and saved the day.
I have a gigantic bottle of liquid smoke for making slow cooker barbecue ribs that I’m always looking for another use for. This recipe is yummy on it’s own, but it’s really a jumping off point. You can add honey, garlic, more liquid smoke, more brown sugar, Tabasco – whatever flavors you love in your barbecue sauce.
I would suggest doubling or tripling this recipe if you want any leftover for next time. I ended up using one entire recipe in the pulled chicken sandwiches.
Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 1 1/2 cups ketchup
- 1 Tablespoon liquid smoke
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- Splash of white vinegar
Instructions
Melt butter in a small sauce pan over medium heat.
Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.