Get Ready For BBQ Season — Low Sugar BBQ Sauce

BBQ season has arrived here in the south where I live and it will be in your area very soon. While you are waiting, you can make homemade BBQ sauce that will keep you in stock for the coming season. For me, homemade is best because I can control the ingredients in the sauce and flavor it to my taste. Store bought sauce often contains preservatives to give it a long shelf life and lots of sugar or even worse high fructose corn syrup.

I buy freezer jars made by the Ball Canning Company and freeze the sauce in one-cup measures to use during the grilling season. Having the sauce available from the freezer will give you the same convenience as having store-bought bottled sauce. Try this low sugar BBQ sauce recipe and compare. You may never want bottled BBQ sauce again.

Low Sugar BBQ Sauce

Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients:

One 26-28 oz container strained or crushed tomatoes
1 cup water
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup pure maple syrup or a sugar substitute of choice
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons ground yellow mustard
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons butter

Directions:

Combine all of the ingredients, except the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.

Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, until thick about 1 ½ hours. Taste and adjust seasonings.

With a whisk, blend in the butter cubes, a few cubes at a time, until incorporated. Pour the sauce into four freezer containers.

Store one container of low sugar BBQ sauce in the refrigerator for now and put the rest in the freezer to use during the summer months.