Easy BBQ for You!

Who doesn't love a good plate of barbecue?  I know in our house we love it.  I love it my kids love it and my husband Rick loves it too.  BBQ is one of those very satisfying meals.  No matter what it is, pull pork, shredded beef or chicken, on a bun or on a plate, we all love BBQ.  

There is quite a variety of barbecue, everything from sweet to tangy, vinegar base, tomato base, even mustard base.  Depending on where you hail from, you have your personal favorite.  BBQ is as personal as some other unmentionable things!  People get very defensive about their particular favorite types of sauce and flavors.  In the end, no matter what is your favorite, is what you should enjoy.

We have a favorite commercial sauce in our house but we try very hard to avoid high fructose corn syrup as well as other artificial flavors and preservatives.  The answer is to make your own.  A friend of mine shared her version of our favorite commercial sauce on her YouTube channel and I wanted to give it a try.  I did and with a few tweaks here and there to make the sauce my own and to make it friendly for my family's tastes, we were left with an amazing sauce that we are so excited to have in our fridge!  

The sauce is awesome and starts with things you already may have on hand.  Ketchup, molasses, Worcestershire, dry mustard, paprika, salt, pepper, brown sugar and some liquid smoke.  The other amazing ingredient is pineapple juice!  Of course apple cider vinegar can be subbed out for the juice, but I am telling you, when you try this you are never going to want to go back down the vinegar road again!  I can tell you, I have tried to make my own barbecue sauce for a long time and every time I came up short, too salty, too tangy, too flat, too sharp.  I gave up, but now I have an amazing recipe that I want to share with you!  

Give this a try the next time you want to have an amazing sauce for your cookout or slow cooked pulled meat sandwich!  You are going to love this.  

Almost Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce

Noreen's Kitchen

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups ketchup 1 cup dark brown sugar 1/4 cup molasses 1/2 cup pineapple juice or apple cider vinegar 1/4 cup water 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 1 tablespoon ground mustard 1 tablespoon paprika 1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Chipoltle pepper Tabasco sauce 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper 2 teaspoons liquid smoke Optional for a Thicker Sauce 1 tablespoon corn or Tapioca starch 2 tablespoons water

Step by Step Instructions

Combine ingredients in a saucepan.

Stir well to combine.

Allow to come to a simmer over medium heat stirring occasionally to avoid scorching.

If you would prefer a thicker sauce, mix corn or tapioca starch with additional water and add to the mixture, stirring constantly until the sauce has reached the desired thickness.

Remove from heat and allow to cool.

Store in a jar in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.

I used this in a quick and simple baked BBQ chicken dinner and simply marinated some chicken breasts in 2 cups of sauce then tossed everything in a baking dish covered with foil for about an hour on 350 degrees.  The results were amazing, tender, falling apart chicken, that could have easily been shredded and served on a bun or on a plate and rounded out with some mac and cheese or baked beans and some steamed broccoli or a tossed salad.

I hope beyond hope that you will give this amazing BBQ sauce a try because I know it is going to knock your socks off!

Happy Eating!

If you would like to see how I made the sauce, check out this video!

Here is how I made the Baked BBQ Chicken