Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce Recipe that is ready in 15 minutes that makes the best Homemade Barbecue Sauce. Sweet and tangy and made from scratch!
BBQ sauce is one of those topics that people can become really, really passionate about. There are the regional camps of North Carolina style BBQ sauce, Kansas City style BBQ sauce, white Alabama BBQ sauce, and then the Memphis style with no sauce at all (well, maybe just a smidge). Everyone has their personal favorites.
And you know, I really love them all.
I’ve shared my Mama’s Coca Cola BBQ Sauce with you that is the one that I grew up with. I’ve also shared our Spicy Mustard BBQ Sauce that we use from time to time, as well as my Peach BBQ Sauce that is the perfect BBQ sauce with a fruity twist. And, I’ve also included our favorite molasses-based Sweet and Spicy BBQ Sauce in my cookbook which just takes ribs to a whole new level!
But today friends, I want to share with you this quick and easy, 15-minute BBQ sauce that takes just a handful of ingredients to make and comes out perfect every single time.
We’ve had friends who call this the best BBQ Sauce they’ve ever tasted and it’s pretty easy to see why!
How to Make Homemade BBQ Sauce
This BBQ Sauce comes together quickly with just a handful of ingredients that I generally have in my refrigerator or my pantry and is one that I think you all will fall in love with as well. I’ve had friends ask me to please make extra for them to take home and if I’d bottle it, they’d surely buy it. ♥️
Ingredients
To make this homemade BBQ Sauce, you’ll need:
- Ketchup – You’ll use 2 cups of your favorite ketchup as the base in this recipe. I prefer to use one with the fewest ingredients and one that does not include high-fructose corn syrup.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – the apple cider vinegar gives the sauce a delicious, tangy flavor that helps to balance it perfectly.
- Brown Sugar – just 1/4 cup of brown sugar not only helps sweeten the sauce but deepens the flavor adding just a hint of molasses flavor.
- Honey – use a couple of tablespoons of your favorite honey. If you can find a reliable local honey provider, I always recommend it!
- Worcestershire sauce – this balances the sweetness with savory flavor in the sauce. If you are gluten-free or sensitive to soy (like me!), you can use coconut aminos in place of the Worcestershire sauce.
- Stone House Seasoning – this is my favorite, go-to blend of seasonings that I have shared previously. It is a blend of kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic that tastes amazing on so many dishes and adds flavor in a snap! We named it Stone House Seasoning since we use it practically on everything except desserts!
- Lemon Juice – A tablespoon of fresh or bottled lemon juice adds just the perfect amount of acid to this sauce to make it perfect.
- Hot Sauce – We love to add just a splash of hot sauce to this BBQ Sauce recipe. It is entirely optional if you’d rather not include it.
Instructions
- Cook the BBQ Sauce. Whisk together all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Allow the sauce to bubble and then reduce the heat and allow it to simmer for 10 minutes. This helps to deepen the flavors and thicken the sauce.
- Serve. You can use this sauce immediately or see the Storage Tips below.
Storage Tips
To Store. Allow the sauce to cool and then pour it into a quart-size mason jar. Seal it with a tight-fitting lid and store it in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.
To Freeze. Transfer the cooled sauce to a freezer-safe container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before serving.
Favorite Ways to Use BBQ Sauce
- Chicken – Use on grilled chicken for a flavorful meal or drizzled over shredded chicken for a BBQ Chicken Sandwich.
- Pork – Delicious with BBQ pork chops, slow cooker ribs, and of course pulled pork sandwiches.
- Burgers – Delicious on hamburgers in place of ketchup for a tasty BBQ Burger.
- Pizza – Use in place of pizza sauce for a BBQ Chicken Pizza or a Pulled Pork Pizza. Yum!
- Dip – as a dip with Sweet Potato Fries and ranch dressing
Here’s my best Homemade BBQ Sauce recipe. I hope you love it as much as we do!
Homemade BBQ Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups ketchup
- 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, or coconut aminos
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon Stone House Seasoning
- 1/4 teaspoon hot sauce, optional
Instructions
- Whisk together all ingredients in a medium saucepan situated over medium heat. Allow to come to a bubble and then reduce the heat to low. Allow to simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Serve immediately or allow to cool slightly and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Notes
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
AMAZING, tastes so good and so easy. Where are the sausages.
Thanks, Isaac. So glad you like this sauce.
Great recipe! Was a little tangy, so my notes for next time are to cut back on the vinegar. This time we just tweaked it until it was “just right”!
How much of each seasoning for the stone house seasoning mix please?
For future reference, Terri, just click on the Stone House Seasoning link in the recipe. It will take you to that post and recipe. In this post, I give the measurements of each ingredient for a teaspoon of the seasoning – 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic. Hope you enjoy the BBQ sauce.
I love it but it is sweet
I don’t have honey. What can I use to sweeten it with. I have clear Caro syrup
Saundra, you can add more brown sugar or some people have said they used molasses as a substitute for the honey.
Just made a little to tangy – should I sweeten it up with more honey
Paulette, you can add more honey if the sauce is too tangy for you.
Is there a substitute recipe for the seasoning blend? I don’t own that product and would prefer to use my own spices. Thanks
Jen, the Stone House Seasoning is a blend I make. If you click on the blue title Stone House Seasoning in the recipe, it will take you to the recipe for the Stone House Seasoning. It is a blend of salt, pepper, and garlic.
Love it
Where can I find your seasoning I have a Boston butt I’m going to smoke in June I have everything else but the stone house seasoning
Robert, just click on the blue link Stone House Seasoning in the recipe and it will take you to my recipe. Hope you enjoy!
I was looking for something to put over my turkey meatloaf before baking so it wouldn’t dry out. All I had was ketchup. I found your BBQ sauce recipe and decided to give it a try. I didn’t have any brown sugar so I just left it out, along with the hot spice. I cut back on the vinegar by half. It actually came out pretty good. It had a slight tang from the vinegar, but was still sweet enough from the honey. Thanks for the recipe! Next time I will try it with the brown sugar.
Thanks, Kristy. I hope you do try the full recipe sometime.
Awesome recipe! The only thing I suggest adding is one cup of very strong black coffee. My mom always added coffee to her homemade barbecue sauce😉😉😉
Thanks, Mandy. I have never tried adding coffee to my BBQ sauce.