BBQ Sauce
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This homemade whiskey BBQ Sauce will have you saying yee haw! Smoky, bold, tangy, sweet; this sauce has it all. Toss the ingredients in a saucepan, let them get to know each other and voila. You have a homemade BBQ sauce with practically no effort!
Living out in the wild west of Canada, I feel it’s only appropriate to offer up my own rendition of a good whiskey BBQ sauce. I actually tried a variation of this recipe with my Instant Pot BBQ Pork Ribs. It was such a hit! I swear it became our favorite part of the entire meal.
Since then I’ve whipped up this sauce time and time again to serve with all my BBQ creations. It’s been a hit with everyone who has tried it! From tender ribs, brisket, pulled pork; you name it. These recipes simply become vessels to carry this smoky, sweet, and savory BBQ sauce.
Ingredients
- Ketchup – Any type you like best.
- Apple cider vinegar – Regular white vinegar will work instead.
- Whiskey – Use your favorite type! You can use a less expensive variety for this recipe.
- Brown sugar – You can use regular white sugar mixed with molasses instead.
- Worcestershire sauce – Or soy sauce.
- Liquid smoke – If you can’t find this ingredient anywhere, grab some smoked paprika instead.
- Dry mustard – Or regular white mustard.
- Garlic powder – Use more or less as you like.
- Pepper – Freshly cracked.
How to make BBQ sauce
- Stir: Add all the ingredients to a saucepan and stir well to combine. Bring the mixture to a bubble over medium heat, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Simmer: Let the sauce cook for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
What type of whiskey should I use?
Different types of whiskey have varying flavors that will add some lovely nuances to your sauce. Bourbon carries notes of vanilla and caramel, scotch has smoke, and plain whisky gives you malt.
When it comes to a BBQ sauce so full of rich flavor, don’t worry too much about the variety of whiskey you choose if it’s not overly important to you. You can go for the cheapest bottle at the store and this sauce will still taste incredible!
How to use
Okay, you’ve made this incredible sauce, now what do you do with it? It has to be put to good use! Here are some of my favorite recipes to slather in sauce:
- Instant Pot BBQ Pulled Pork
- Easy Meatloaf Recipe
- Maple BBQ Glazed Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
- Instant Pot Pulled Chicken
- The Best Baby Back Pork Ribs
Storing
Keep your BBQ sauce in an airtight container or jar for 7-10 days. Make sure the BBQ sauce has fully cooled down to room temperature before storing. You can use this sauce in place of regular BBQ sauce in any recipes, for dipping, or brushed over meats when grilling.
Check out these fantastic homemade staples:
- Homemade Mayonnaise
- Balsamic Glaze
- Pizza Sauce Recipe
- Easy Homemade Pesto
- Thousand Island Dressing
- Sweet and Sour Sauce
- Enchilada Sauce
- Homemade Tzatziki Sauce
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup ketchup
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup whiskey
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon dry mustard
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Stir: Add all the ingredients to a saucepan and stir well to combine. Bring the mixture to a bubble over medium heat, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Simmer: Let the sauce cook for 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
Notes
- Keep your BBQ sauce in an airtight container or jar for 7-10 days. Make sure the BBQ sauce has fully cooled down to room temperature before storing. You can use this sauce in place of regular BBQ sauce in any recipes, for dipping, or brushed over meats when grilling.
- Nutritional information is per 1/4 cup.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Hi Joanna, I made your barbecue sauce and it was to die for!!! In fact, I am making it again tonight to top my meatloaf again as well……because that is my new go to recipe for meat loaf as well! My husband has never liked meat loaf of any kind and he loved yours, and loved the barbecue sauce too. I did leave out the whiskey, and the liquid smoke, because we dont drink and I live in Mexico so cant find liquid smoke here and I used wet yellow mustard instead of dry mustard but it was THE BEST BARBECUE SAUCE EVER!! Oh…and I added 1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika and shook some crushed red peppers into it too…..THE BOMB! Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, and the meatloaf too, it is a good one!
Can this be frozen ?
For sure! Might need a little mixing after thawing out.
Can you substitue the whiskey with wine?
You can try! We haven’t done that before.