Simple Cranberry BBQ Sauce Recipe with Orange
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This simple cranberry BBQ sauce recipe is a super quick stovetop recipe featuring fresh cranberries & oranges - brightly tart, slightly sweet, and ready in about 20 minutes! Great for smoked turkey, holiday brisket, bison meatballs, chipotle-orange smoked pork sirloin, and more!
Recipe at a Glance: Orange-Cranberry BBQ Sauce
⏱️ Prep Time: 5 minutes
🔥 Cook Time: 15 minutes
🕒 Total Time: 20 minutes
🍽️ Servings: 12 (about 1 pint of sauce, 2 tablespoons per serving)
👍 Difficulty: Easy
😋 Recipe Highlights: Real, natural ingredients and festive holiday flavors!
🛒 Featured Ingredients: Fresh cranberries, oranges, apple cider vinegar, honey, tomato paste, ketchup
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My family decided we were going to serve picnic foods for Christmas one year, and my mom asked if we could bring the main dish.
As I was digging through my freezer, I found three briskets (we had a subscription to Butcher Box–led to a great meat collection!) I knew that a Christmas brisket recipe would be a great choice.
As I was thinking about how to make a brisket feel Christmas-y, I knew it had to be with a festive barbecue sauce. What’s more festive than cranberry?
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This delicious sauce incorporates fresh cranberries & oranges with the rich sweetness of honey and brown sugar. It’s the perfect condiment for your main dish meats this holiday season.
You can even enjoy it as a dipping sauce for homemade appetizers like my Traeger pork belly burnt ends, roast beef and cheddar sliders & homemade healthy chicken nuggets.
Key Ingredients
To make this tangy cranberry BBQ sauce recipe, here are some of the key ingredients. Please visit the recipe card for a full list of ingredients.
Fresh cranberries – Whole cranberries bring brightness and natural pectin, which helps the sauce thicken without added thickeners. As they cook down, they burst and release their juices, giving the BBQ sauce its signature tartness and vibrant ruby color.
Oranges – Using both the zest and the juice layers in beautiful notes of citrus. The zest adds fragrant oils, while the juice brings fresh, natural sweetness.
Honey – Honey is the perfect BBQ sauce sweetener if you ask me. It rounds out the cranberries' sharpness without overpowering the fruit. We also add a bit of brown sugar for a touch of molasses flavor.
Apple Cider Vinegar – ACV gives the sauce a clean, fruity tang that pairs incredibly well with cranberries. It also cuts through the richness when the sauce is paired with smoked or roasted meats, keeping the overall flavor bright and lively.
Tomato Paste & Ketchup – It’s the tomato paste and ketchup keep this sauce from becoming a typical cranberry sauce and transform it into a true barbecue sauce! These ingredients add savory depth, tang, and acidity to the sauce.
Flavor Variations
- If you would like your sauce less sweet, you can omit the brown sugar.
- To bring out even more tang, add an additional tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.
- For a bit of heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of chili powder would also add a delightful smoky flavor.
- Use hot honey for another added kick!
How to Make Cranberry BBQ Sauce
To make this deliciously festive condiment, follow the steps below:
1. Boil Fruit.
Rinse the cranberries and oranges. Add the cranberries to a medium saucepan. Zest two oranges and add the orange zest to the saucepan. Quarter the oranges and squeeze the orange juice into the pot. Add the honey. Turn on the stove to medium heat and bring to a low boil to start cooking down the cranberries.
2. Add Remaining Ingredients.
After the cranberries are soft enough to mush, turn the heat to low while you add the rest of the ingredients. Stir and bring the heat back up to medium. Cook on the stovetop until the sauce is reduced to the thickness you desire.
3. Blend Sauce.
Once the sauce has reached the desired thickness, turn off the heat. Use an immersion blender to blend it until smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you could use a regular blender or food processor, but be careful pouring the hot sauce.
4. Chill & Store.
Pour the cranberry BBQ sauce into an airtight container, such as a pint jar with a lid. Store in the refrigerator. This sauce is good for up to two weeks with proper refrigeration.
Expert Tips
- Stir frequently when boiling to prevent burning or scorching.
- For an even thicker sauce, reduce an additional minute or two, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
- This sauce tastes even better the next day! Store in the fridge overnight to let the spices and citrus meld together.
- Frozen cranberries work great–no need to thaw. Add them straight to the pot and cook just like fresh.
Cranberry BBQ Sauce Recipe FAQs
This homemade cranberry BBQ sauce will keep up to two weeks with proper refrigeration. The vinegar and natural sugars give this preservative-free sauce a decent lifespan!
Vinegar is the acid that gives barbecue sauce its classic tang! It also tenderizes the meat and adds depth of flavor.
If you don’t like things too tart or tangy, you can adjust the amount of vinegar to your preferences, but I wouldn’t leave it out completely.
Yes, you can use frozen cranberries in homemade sauce! Simply expect that it may take an additional minute or two to cook, but it will work just fine.
Favorite Winter Recipes
Try some of these other favorite winter recipes for the holiday season!
If you make the cranberry orange BBQ sauce, please come back to leave a comment and review! It helps my website out so much & means the world!
📖 Recipe
Cranberry BBQ Sauce with Orange
Equipment
- Saucepan medium
Ingredients
- 1 cup Fresh Whole Cranberries
- 2 medium Oranges
- 1/2 cup Honey
- 2 tablespoon Tomato Paste
- 3 tablespoon Ketchup
- 1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
- 2 tablespoon Brown Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
Instructions
- Start by rinsing the cranberries and oranges. Add the cranberries to a medium saucepan. Zest the outside of two oranges and add the orange zest to the saucepan. Quarter the oranges and squeeze the orange juice into the pot.1 cup Fresh Whole Cranberries, 2 medium Oranges
- Add the honey to the pot of fruit. Turn on the stove to medium heat and bring to a low boil to start cooking down the cranberries.1/2 cup Honey
- After the cranberries are soft enough to mush, turn the heat to low while you add the rest of the ingredients. Stir and bring the heat back up to medium. Cook on the stovetop, stirring frequently to prevent scorching, until the sauce is reduced to the thickness you desire.2 tablespoon Tomato Paste, 3 tablespoon Ketchup, 1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar, 2 tablespoon Brown Sugar, 1/2 teaspoon Salt, 1/2 teaspoon Pepper, 1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon
- Once the sauce has reached the desired thickness, turn off the heat. Proceed carefully to avoid burning yourself–use an immersion blender to blend it until smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender, you could use a regular blender or food processor, but be careful pouring the hot sauce.
- Pour the cranberry BBQ sauce into an airtight container, such as a pint jar with a lid. Store in the refrigerator. This sauce is good for up to two weeks with proper refrigeration.
Video
Notes
- Stir frequently when boiling to prevent burning or scorching.
- If you would like your sauce less sweet, you can omit the brown sugar.
- To bring out even more tang, add an additional tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.
- For a bit of heat, add a pinch of cayenne pepper. 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of chili powder would also add a delightful smoky flavor.
- Use hot honey for another added kick!
- For an even thicker sauce, reduce an additional minute or two, stirring frequently to prevent burning.
- This sauce tastes even better the next day! Store in the fridge overnight to let the spices and citrus meld together.
- Frozen cranberries work great–no need to thaw. Add them straight to the pot and cook just like fresh.
Nutrition
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This was super yummy! Loved serving this with the turkey and brisket at Christmas
Yay! I’m glad you enjoyed it!