Barbeque Sauces

All, Sauces

Of course there are many excellent barbeque sauces in the store, and you might already have your favorite. So why make your own? Well, for one thing, you might not have enough and don’t want to make a trip to the store. Or you might want to experiment to see if you can make a recipe you like better. Then bottle your own and get rich and famous.

There must be a million recipes out there, and if you just keep your eyes open you can collect as many as you want. But to me, they all fall into one of four categories: sweet and sticky, red, clear, and white. I’ll give you an example of each.

In addition to the recipes shown below, another great BBQ sauce recipe is the one that goes with the Indoor Country Ribs. After tasting that sauce, most of us decided it was worth making for other barbeque dishes.

You often find the sticky and sweet variety with ribs, and they are finger-lickin’ good, to steal the Colonel’s phrase. These sauces will include brown sugar and usually molasses in the recipe.

Red BBQ sauce, which is generally my favorite, is what you find at most BBQ joints that serve more barbequed beef than pork. It’s based on tomato sauce and vinegar, and is one of the simplest you can make at home.

The clear vinegar-based sauce is what you find with North Carolina BBQ, and is typically mixed into shredded or pulled pork. This makes fantastic sandwiches for a crowd.

The white sauce is based on mayonnaise, and I strongly suggest you try it on grilled pork chops.

Here are some recipes. With all of these, you just combine the ingredients and (except for the White sauce) heat in a sauce pan.

Sweet and Sticky BBQ Sauce

1 cup catsup
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 cup minced green pepper
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon Tabasco
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon basil
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Red BBQ Sauce

(Here’s the easiest to make on the spur of the moment)

1 cup catsup
1/2 cup water or beef broth
1 tablespoon A1 sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
garlic salt and pepper to taste

North Carolina BBQ Sauce

Vinegar BBQ Sauce (This is enough for a 5-7 pound Boston Butt pork roast, shredded)

3 cups vinegar
1 cup yellow mustard
1/2 cup catsup
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 garlic cloves, smashed
salt and pepper to taste

White BBQ Sauce

(Use this both as a marinade and a cooking/serving sauce)

1 cup mayonnaise (Best Foods or Hellman’s preferably)
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder

Oh, wait, we need one more. A mop sauce. This is to baste (mop) ribs as they smoke on the BBQ.

BBQ Mop Sauce

(Mop this sauce frequently on the smoking ribs to keep them moist as they cook)

1 cup distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons dry rub (such as Emeril’s Southwestern rub) or make your own.

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