Cherry Barbecue Sauce
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A deliciously flavorful and fruity cherry barbecue sauce you can enjoy on your grilled meats, chicken, burgers, pulled pork sandwiches, and used in any recipe that calls for barbecue sauce!
What would you do with 75 pounds of cherries?
That’s what I picked up this past weekend: Three 25 lb boxes of plump, luscious bing cherries. I’ve been busy pitting and canning cherries in light syrup, making jam, making cherry sauce, cherry crisp, fruit leather, and baking Cherry Almond Streusel Cake.
With still more cherries left I wanted to try something savory. How about a cherry barbecue sauce? It sound great to me so I got to work experimenting with small quantities to get the ingredients and ratios right.
The end result: A deliciously flavorful and fruity barbecue sauce you can enjoy on your grilled meats, chicken, burgers, pulled pork sandwiches, and used in any recipe that calls for barbecue sauce!
The flavor of this cherry barbecue sauce gets better with time, so I recommend waiting at least 3 days before using it to allow the flavors some time to meld.
I’ve also included instructions for canning if you want to make a larger batch for long-term storage, which is what I’m doing (I still have 25 pounds of cherries left to process!)
Cherry Barbecue Sauce Recipe
Let’s get started!
Heat the oil in a medium-sized heavy-bottomed pan and cook the onions and garlic until soft and translucent, 5-7 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients and bring it to a boil.
NOTE: Alternatively, at this point you can place everything in a slow cooker and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours. Once pureed in the blender, return the sauce to the slow cooker and continue to cook uncovered if the sauce needs thickening.
Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.
Transfer the sauce to a blender and puree until smooth.
Pour into airtight jars and store in the refrigerator. Wait at least 3 days before using to allow the flavors to meld. Will keep in the fridge for up to a month.
How to Can Barbecue Sauce
If canning, pour the hot sauce into sterilized jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace.
Process in a water bath for 15 minutes then carefully remove and let the cans sit undisturbed for 24 hours before moving them to a cool place to store for up to a year.
Enjoy!
For more delicious homemade condiments try my:
- BBQ Sauce
- Big Mac Sauce
- Tartar Sauce
- Yum Yum Sauce
- Sweet Chili Sauce
- Homemade Ketchup
- Curry Ketchup
- Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Jerk Sauce
- Hoisin Sauce
- Plum Sauce
- Sriracha Mayo
- Romesco Sauce
- Teriyaki Sauce
- Aji Verde
- Ponzu Sauce
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Cherry Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1 medium yellow onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 3 cups pitted cherries fresh or frozen/thawed
- 1 cup plain tomato sauce
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 cup granulated sugar , for low sugar alternative use sugar substitute, e.g. Swerve Sweetener, though if canning you'll need to confirm if it's suitable for that purpose)
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons molasses
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dry ground mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1-2 teaspoons liquid smoke optional
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a medium-sized heavy-bottomed pot and cook the onions and garlic until soft and translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes. Transfer the sauce to a blender and puree until smooth.Pour the sauce into non-reactive air-tight containers and store in the refrigerator. Wait at least 3 days before using to allow the flavors to meld. Will keep for up to a month.
- If canning for long-term storage, pour the hot barbecue sauce into sterilized half pint or pint sized jars leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Process in a water bath for 15 minutes. Remove and let the jars sit undisturbed for 24 hours before moving them to a cool place. Will keep for up to a year.Makes about 4 half pint jars.
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet June 27, 2017
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
I have not tried the recipe yet. Can tart cherries be used?
Hi Mary Lou, yes they can!
What size jars are you processing for 15 minutes? And how much does this recipe make? Can’t wait to try it!
Hi Meemaw, I use both half pint and pint sized jars – processing time is the same for both.
Can you use brown sugar instead of white sugar? And tomato paste instead of tomato sauce? safe for canning?
Hi Genna, yes you can use brown instead of white. Tomato paste is concentrated so if you use that use 1/2 cup tomato paste and 1/2 cup water in place of 1 cup tomato sauce. Yes, you can water bath can this.
This is a three star rating because it is only the beginning of a great BBQ sauce. Something is missing that could or would send it over the top. This is where personal preference enters into finishing the sauce. My wife and I found it just OK for chicken but quite good on burgers, brats and smoked Boston Butt (without altering the recipe.) It needs your tweaking to achieve five star level.
What about swapping apple cider vinegar for balsamic?
Hi Kat, yes that’s no problem. Happy cooking!
Did you use sweet or sour cherry’s for this BBQ sauce?
Hi Lori, I used sweet cherries.
Just finished canning 14 quarts of this with about 35 lbs of cherries. I omitted the salt and added a BBQ rub that I love. It’s perfect! Thanks for the recipe.
Wonderful, Vikki, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you!
OMG.
Best BBQ sauce ever! Thanks for sharing this recipe, Kimberly! The only change I made was I eliminated the sugar. Probably not something everyone would eat, but I encourage you to try it. It’s a very different experience.
Awesome recipe!
Thank you again.
Awesome, Eric, I’m so happy to hear that, thank you! Next time I make a batch I’ll set some aside without the sugar.