Even though some meats are fine as they are, straight from the smoker, some just taste better with a little sauce. This collection of barbecue sauce recipes provides a range of flavors that pair well with a variety of smoked meats.
Having the ability to make a delicious sauce is critical in high-class cookery. Making a great tasting barbecue sauce for your smoked ribs might not have the same importance, but a good tasting sauce can sure make a difference.
Many store-bought sauces are fine to use, but you might have to try several mediocre bbq sauces before finding a few that please your discriminating palate. Another option is to make your own homemade barbecue sauce.
If you'd like to sample something a little different than store-bought sauces, give one or two of these sauce recipes a try. Serving a great tasting sauce that you made with your own two hands with your smoked meats makes the meal all the better!
This East Texas style sauce can be used on any type of smoked meat, including ribs, brisket and sausages. This sauce is sweeter than those common in Central Texas.
One of my favorite non-tomato based sauces, the tangy flavors of mustard
and vinegar are balanced with a bit of sugar. Red cayenne pepper adds warmth.
Give me this one for my smoked spare ribs. I love this sweet, thick tomato based KC bbq sauce on brisket, too. It's sweetened with molasses and made with love.
Kansas
City's favorite, Gates Bar-B-Q sauce, can be whipped up at home. This
is a no-cook recipe, but I find that a bit of simmering makes it better.
This bbq sauce sauce recipe is similar to Coca Cola bbq sauce, but with the unique flavor of Dr. Pepper soda pop, famous for its 10-2-4 slogan.
Unknown to many, this sauce is mayonnaise
based, with added black pepper, vinegar and sugar. It's smooth and
sweet, with a touch of tang.
A
kindly gentleman that loved both Jim Beam bourbon and barbecue was generous enough
to share this recipe with me. And now, I will share his special gift
with you.
This sweet and tangy red sauce includes
just a touch of spiced Captain Morgan Private Stock rum, which adds
great flavor. Don't worry about the alcohol. It cooks away as the
sauce is simmered.
Use it as a topping, a side dish or a dip for chips. This bright cheery fruit salsa recipe goes well with most of your smoked meats
When I first made cherry lime ham glaze it was love at first taste! I found that it's great on any type of pork. It's even good on my morning toast!
Most anything you smoke can be basted with a mop sauce, which adds flavor and help build up a nice bark. The vinegar sauce can also be used to baste meats, and is most often used on pork shoulders.
Use this sweet and tangy ham glaze to add flavor to your double smoked hams, and make enough to use at the table, too. A drizzle of this cherry-lime nectar makes your smoky ham slices taste incredible!
This
thin consistency basting liquid adds flavor to the smoking meat while helping
preserve the moistness. With just a bit of sugar, there's little
chance of it scorching.
This
very basic sauce gets back to the roots of bbq. Seasoned vinegar was the
original flavoring way back when. This one has some sugar and spice
added and is a favorite in the Carolinas.
Although it's not technically a barbecue sauce, the cherry sauce I whipped up was the perfect match to the pasilla chile pepper pork loin I smoked yesterday.
Here's the recipe ingredients and instructions.
Combine the cherries, lime zest and juice, ginger, pepper and sugar in a large sauce pan. Bring it all to a gentle boil over medium heat. Continue cooking until it has reduced by half.
Chill it, bottle it, and use it. The cherry sauce (or jam, or preserves... whatever you wanna call it) tasted great on my pork loin slices. The black pepper gave it both flavor and heat, and the ginger was subtle in the background.
It might have been a little too limey, but the extra tartness worked well with the spicy pork. I might cut the amount of lime juice and zest in half next time I make it.
I even tried a spoonful of the sauce in my evening bowl of plain yogurt with walnuts. Pretty tasty!
Make a barbecue sauce recipe "by the book" the first time, and consider the taste. You might decide it needs a little something more (or less) in the flavor department.
Too sweet? Cut back on the sugar.
Lacking that celery taste that the sauce you grew up using had? Add a
little celery salt. Not spicy enough? Boost the amount of black pepper
or add a pinch of ground cayenne pepper.
And when you've perfected your recipe, put some up in half-pint or pint sized canning jars. A bottle of your special sauce would be a greatly appreciated gift for a birthday or at Christmas time!
If you brush sauce onto the meat as it's smoking, do so only during the last half-hour. Sweet sauces can burn rather easily. And in this part of the world, letting sauce burn on the ribs is considered rib abuse!
Mopping sauce is included with these barbecue sauce recipes, but is not so much a sauce as it is a basting liquid. It's a lot thinner in consistency and has very little sugar. Mopping it on during the smoking session will keep your smoking brisket nice and moist. It'll add some flavor, too.