How To Make The Best Barbecue Sauce

2 Cooks in the Kitchen has a great Barbecue Sauce recipe we call ‘Rockin’ Sauce’. This sauce incorporates tamarind, horseradish, chiles and molasses for a big sweet fruity flavor with lots of punch. We will make a big batch and can it so we always have it available without having to refrigerate it. In this recipe we will take you through the whole process from start to jar.

This recipe is naturally gluten free.

Watch a Video

Here is a video of 2 Cooks in the Kitchen making Rockin’ Sauce Barbecue Sauce.

Start With Tomato Sauce

We start this sauce with 2 large cans of tomato sauce. It seems as if we usually find 28 ounce cans but sometimes they are 29 ounces apparently. If you use a good quality canned tomato sauce this works out fine. One time we went to the expense and trouble of making this sauce with fresh tomatoes from the Farmers’ Market, blanching, peeling, seeding and cooking them down but when all was said and done we didn’t feel like it was worth the effort.

Add Dark Molasses

Next we will add a at least a cup of dark molasses. We have added more at the end if the sauce is too red because this sauce should be more reddish brown in color.

Add Dark Corn Syrup

Next we will put in some dark corn syrup. We use the Karo brand just because that is what our mothers used and we have never even considered using a more generic brand.

Add White Vinegar

Then we want to add some plain white vinegar. This will put some acid in our sweet and sour sauce which helps with the preservation as well as the flavor.

Add Brown Sugar

Next we will add some brown sugar. With the molasses, Karo Syrup and brown sugar it seems like a lot of sweetener but that it what makes a good barbecue sauce caramelize when you cook it on meat, and that is what we are after.

Add Tamarind Pulp

To begin to balance out all that sweet we will put in 50 grams of tamarind pulp. We buy tamarind pulp in cubes, use some for a recipe and freeze the rest to use later. Tamarind is a seed pod with a sour citrus-like flavor. This really gives our sauce some depth and a flavor that is unlike any store bought sauce we have found.

Squeeze In the Lemon Juice

Next we will squeeze in the juice of a whole lemon. Again we are adding a little more sour to all that sweet.

Add Dry Mustard and Salt

Then we will add just a little bit of dry mustard and some salt. A half teaspoon of each will do the trick, just adding a little bit to our bouquet of flavors.

Horseradish

Now we need to add some heat to our sauce. The main source of spice will be horseradish. We like to make this sauce when the horseradish in our garden is ready to harvest in late fall and winter. There is nothing quite like a freshly ground horseradish root for this job. Be sure to grind your horseradish outside as the fumes can be overpowering. If you don’t have access to fresh horseradish just try to find the hottest product you can. We like to add plenty because horseradish brings a great flavor to the sauce as well as the heat.

Add Chiles

For a little more heat of a different sort we like to add four Serrano peppers. You can experiment with chiles here. Some jabañeros would work nicely as well.

Add Dried Chiles

We will add a couple dried hot chiles at this point as well. Cut them up before adding so they will blend up better later on. We have some dried serranos that really pack a punch. We have added a morita or two as well. The dried chiles have a little something in their flavor that adds to our sauce.

Add Garlic

Our last ingredient is several cloves of garlic all chopped up. Garlic is one of those things where you just can’t have too much. Use a whole head if you want. Just peel it, chop it up and throw it in.

Cook For 3 Hours

Now we are going to cook all these ingredients together for about three hours. Put the pot on the stove over fairly high heat and bring it to a boil. You will want to cover this as it will splash all over as it heats up. We’ve had it splash on the ceiling before. Now we are careful to cover the pot! Once it boils, turn down the heat and let it simmer for 3 hours.

Blend the Cooked Barbecue Sauce

Once our sauce has cooked we will use the immersion blender to blend it smooth. You’ll want to take your time with this to get a really smooth sauce. If you don’t have an immersion blender you can do this in a regular blender but it will be messy.

Canning – Boil the Jars and Lids

Now we are ready to put our sauce in jars and seal them up. The first step of this process is to boil the jars for 10 minutes so they are sterile. Put the lids in a separate pot with simmering water and keep them warm until you are ready to use them. You want to wipe the rim of the jars before filling them, checking for chips or any unevenness that might prevent them from sealing properly.

Use a Canning Funnel To Fill the Jars

We use a canning funnel to help fill the jars without getting any sauce on the rims. Once the jars are full to the level indicated on the canning funnel, wipe any sauce off the rim and put the lid on.

Boil the Full Jars For 40 Minutes

Then we put the jars in boiling water for 40 minutes. We use a canning pot with a jar rack for this purpose. It really helps us to have the right equipment for this job.

Let the Jars Cool

When the jars have boiled we need to take them out of the water. There are some tools for this job but we normally use tongs. It is a bit tricky as the jars are hot and slippery. We set the jars on a cutting board to cool. You will want to listen for the lids to pop. This means they have sealed properly. If a jar doesn’t seal properly you can just keep it in the refrigerator and use that one first. The jars that seal can be kept in a cupboard until you are ready to use them.

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You can use this sauce to make the Best BBQ Beef Ribs With Pineapple Salsa

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