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This sweet and tangy homemade barbecue sauce tastes way better than store-bought! It’s easy to make with ingredients you already have in the fridge and pantry. You’ll want to use it on all your summer grilling recipes!
My easy homemade barbecue sauce is one of my favorite things to make in grilling season. This recipe has a sweet and tangy base, rounded out with some flavorful pantry spices like smoky paprika and cayenne for heat. If you’ve never made BBQ sauce at home, or if you’re looking for a new favorite recipe, you need to try this one!
This barbecue sauce takes 20 minutes on the stovetop and stays fresh in the fridge for a while. It’s delicious on everything from grilled pork chops to chicken wings, perfect for summertime cookouts.
What You’ll Need
My recipe is more of a smokier, sweeter, tomato-based Kansas City-style barbecue sauce. Here’s what you’ll need to make it. Scroll to the recipe card for a printable list of ingredients with the amounts.
- Ketchup – This can be substituted with tomato sauce or tomato paste. I’ll also use homemade ketchup whenever I have a batch handy in the fridge.
- Brown Sugar – I use light brown sugar, but regular brown sugar or granulated sugar works, too.
- Apple Cider Vinegar – You can substitute this with red or white wine vinegar if you’d like.
- Molasses – Be sure to use light or dark molasses. I don’t recommend blackstrap molasses as the taste is very bitter.
- Worcestershire Sauce – Soy sauce can also work here.
- Seasonings – Chili powder (mild or spicy), sweet or smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper.
How to Make Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Making this BBQ sauce from scratch is as easy as combining the ingredients in a pot on the stovetop, and letting them cook down into a sticky-sweet, smoky reduction. Follow the short steps below. Scroll down to the recipe card for printable instructions.
- Combine the ingredients. First, add all of your barbecue sauce ingredients to a saucepan. Give everything a whisk until smooth.
- Bring to a boil. Next, let the pot come to a boil over medium heat. Keep whisking!
- Simmer. Lower the heat to a simmer. Cook the sauce for 20 minutes while it reduces and thickens. Afterward, take the pan off the stove and let the barbecue sauce cool.
Recipe Tips
- Don’t overheat. Keep in mind that your barbecue sauce will continue to thicken up as it cools. Watch the sauce while it simmers and stir it every so often, making sure that it’s not reducing too quickly.
- Add more heat. For a spicier barbecue sauce, feel free to add more cayenne pepper to taste. You can also add a dash of hot sauce or a spoonful of adobo sauce (crack open a can of chipotles in adobo and then make chipotle bacon ranch dip to get your BBQ started!)
- Double the recipe. This recipe makes about 2 cups, but you can easily double it to make a bigger batch.
- More homemade recipes. For another tasty barbecue sauce recipe, try my BBQ sauce with Coca-Cola.
Ways to Use Homemade BBQ Sauce
You can use this homemade barbecue sauce the old-fashioned way, on meats like chicken wings, ribs, and pulled pork. But why stop there? I love barbecue sauce on a grilled chicken sandwich, as a dressing for burgers, or I’ll use it as a dip for chicken tenders. It’s also great as a basting sauce for smoked chicken legs and brushing over grilled steak and pork.
If you’re looking to get creative with your BBQ sauce, try these BBQ chicken nachos, or swap out the buffalo sauce on this buffalo chicken pizza.
Storage
- Refrigerate. This homemade barbecue sauce lasts in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. Store it in a jar or airtight container.
- Freeze. Yes, you can freeze barbecue sauce! Store this sauce airtight and freeze it for up to 3 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight and give it a stir before using.
More Easy Sauce Recipes
- Homemade Enchilada Sauce
- Homemade Garlic Aioli
- Spicy Cajun Dipping Sauce
- Raising Cane’s Sauce
- Easy Homemade Mayo
Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup ketchup
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ½ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup molasses
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 1 Tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons coarse black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Instructions
- In a saucepan whisk together all of the ingredients until well combined and smooth.1 cup ketchup, 1 cup light brown sugar, ½ cup apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup molasses, 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 Tablespoon chili powder, 1 Tablespoon kosher salt, 2 teaspoons paprika, 2 teaspoons coarse black pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Heat over medium heat to a boil, whisking frequently.
- Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 20 minutes, stirring every once in a while, until the mixture has thickened and is smooth.
- Remove from the heat and let cool. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I used this with a slow cooker pulled pork recipe I have, and it made the best sandwiches EVER! I love this stuff.
I used this with pulled pork, and it was outstanding. It is really SO much better than store bought.
I made the Homemade Barbecue Sauce for our cookout, and everyone loved it! It was so much better than store-bought, with a rich and bold flavor.
This homemade barbecue sauce is a staple at my house now! So much better than store bought!
BBQ sauce is my all time favorite condiment – I would swim in it if I could. This one is fantastic, and super easy to make!
This BBQ is amazing! The perfect addition to your fridge must haves~
I made this recipe today and poured it on pulled chicken sandwiches. I is delicious, not too sweet and not too spicy. I got tired of opening a bottle of barbecue sauce to make sandwiches for the two of us and ending up throwing half the bottle of sauce away because it spoiled before we could use it. I made one half of this recipe to alleviate that issue and this tastes much better than the store bought brands.