BBQ Sauce

[Whwoz]

Does anyone have a good BBQ sauce recipe (not overly chili hot - Kids don't like that) that they can share? Is a plum or tomato base best? Anyother comments/thoughts apricated

[worth1]

Thick or thin?
Sweet or more vingar based.
By the time you figure out the flavors you are looking for you will have came up with your own.
My mom's was thin and had cooked lemon rinds in it and loaded with black pepper.
I always ate the cooked lemon rinds.
Not for sure about where you live but naturally where I live we have a ton of dried chilies that are full of flavors and hardly if any heat.

[Whwoz]

Not a lot of dried chilles that are readily available here @worth1 and I have only limited knowledge of the varieties that are available for purchase as seed. Sante Fe Grande is one that I see mentioned on here and over at TV a fair bit that worked well with an acceptable level or heat rated by the kids. Trying pepperonici for the first time this year, although with the weather being what it was they went in a lot later than I would have liked and not sure if I will get anything off them. Just depends upon the first frost. Any other suggestions would be apricated.

Thick rather than thin, something good for ribs and pulled pork, so probably sweet rather than vinegar based. The black pepper would not be popular.

[bower]

You will need a little vinegar or citrus in it, essential for taste (and tenderizes), but you can counterbalance that with honey or brown sugar for the kids.
Use lots of paprika for the basic body if you don't have roasted sweet peppers to run through the blender.
As Worth said, sky's the limit on spices, you can choose what your kids like. Garlic of course!
I would start by cooking the spices in a little oil and then add your sweeteners and water, and cook until the flavors are smooth.

[worth1]

@Whwoz
As you know if you've followed any of my cooking I rarely give out measurements and or recipes.
Not because I'm selfish but I simply cook by sight texture and flavor.
If you want a thick tomato base sauce my suggestion would be to start with tomato paste or tomato puree cooking it down as you go for the latter.
Then start adding things such as vinegar for the sweet and sour flavors.
Any citrus juice you may use like lime or lemon should be put in after the cook down not during.
This will help maintain the brightness of these two things.
Orange it doesn't seem to matter.
Any citrus rind should never be cooked in a sweet sugary liquid because it simply will not soften and it will just get hard and leathery.

Also any sugar used should be at the end not beginning because you can't take it back out once it's in.
Sweet paprika is always welcome as well as Worcestershire sauce and other options of your tastes.
The sweet paprika powder I often use as a thickener.
In reality there are only a few ingredients that can change one sauce into another.
Like a tomato based pasta sauce into a BBQ sauce.
Or a chilie based Mexican sauce into a BBQ sauce.
Simple guidelines to help from experience and failures.

[Sue_CT]

I don't make my own, but I have seen a lot of recipes and many start with a base of ketchup with added sweateners like honey or brown sugar (two of the more common ones), a vinegar, often apple cider or white vinegar, spices like paprika and peppers. You don't have to have dried peppers you can add ancho or other powders. Some smoked sweet paprika instead of hot, mild chili powders, etc .If you don't get a good recipe here I would start in the grocery store isle and see what appeals to you on labels for flavors, like apple, chipotle, honey BBQ sauces, etc. and then do as search for that type of recipe online. There are sooo many possible combinations.

[Whwoz]

Thanks @Sue_CT , it is that variation in possible bases that's been confusing me when I look at recipes online

[karstopography]

Barbecue sauce can be nutsville with all the variations.

[karstopography]

The supermarket here has a crazy amount of barbecue sauces, I should take a photo, although it might be three or four photos to get them all.

[Whwoz]

Certainly sounds very different to the situation here, where each company that makes it has one recipe, so not much variation

[GoDawgs]

Here's a recipe I found in a book by Steve Raichlin, author of bbq cookbooks and have been using it a long time. Appropriately the recipe is called Australian Beer Barbecued Chicken Wings and it makes dynamite wings. I know you're looking for something for pork but this works for that too. It's a bit on the sweet side but not that much. Will add it to the recipe Section.

Otherwise, I like to combine various commercial sauces. You probably don't have these brands where you are but I like a combo of Stubb's for some heat and Sweet Baby Ray to balance that to taste. It's probably my favorite commercial combo but just mentioned to illustrate a combo for those here on this side of the Pond.

Australian Beer-Barbecued Wings

For 12 whole chicken wings (tips removed), about 2.5-3 lbs

Marinade:
¼ c. peanut oil
¼ c. fresh lemon juice
¼ c. Worcestershire sauce
¼ c. Foster’s Lager beer
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper

BBQ Sauce:
2 TBS peanut oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
1 c ketchup
1/3 c. Foster’s Lager beer
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
2 TBS red wine vinegar
1 TBS brown sugar, packed
1 TBS honey
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp dried mustard
½ tsp fresh ground black pepper

- Rinse wings, blot dry. Make 2 or 3 deep slashes through the meaty parts of each piece.
- Mix marinade, pour into zip lock bag and add chicken wings. Refrigerate at least 4 hours. Overnight is better.
- For sauce, heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and cayenne and sauté until the onion and garlic are slightly brown (about 5 minutes).
- Add everything else, reduce heat to low and simmer gently about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until thick and richly flavored.
- Can be made way ahead and frozen. I usually make a double batch of sauce and freeze in several containers.

Remove wings from refrigerator about an hour before grilling to get the chill off. Grill wings about 30-40 minutes, turning occasionally, until done. That’s for fat wings. Skinny little wings will finish in maybe 25-30 minutes. You might have to turn them about every five minutes if the fire’s real hot. Brush wings with sauce or dip them in bowl of sauce (the easy way) during the last five minutes of cooking.

- recipe from “The Barbecue Bible” by Steve Raichlen

[Whwoz]

Thank you @GoDawgs, definitely one to try with a little bit of substitution of rice bran oil for the peanut oil (nutty enough/nut intolerance) and leaving out the beer due to my gluten intolerance. There have been gluten free beers available here in the past, don't know if they are still available or not, rarely drink alcohol. Need to get one or two other ingredients but kids will eat all in the list.

Will have to look for that book I think

[Shule]

While I haven't officially made BBQ sauce, lately, I've made sauces that taste a lot like it (so take this with a grain of salt).

I agree with others about adding vinegar; that seems to be a key to the BBQ-type flavor (personally, I wouldn't go with just any acid there, though; I'd use vinegar, since tomatoes already have other acids like citric acid, malic acid, and ascorbic acid to one degree or another, so adding them wouldn't add something new to the flavor so much as it would change the proportions of existing flavor). I haven't tried any other vinegar besides distilled white, though, but I like that, as it's pretty focused in what it does.

Salt is important, I think. A good pink sea salt seems great if you like a sharper salt flavor. You can have some really nice flavors without sugar. I think it's harder to get the BBQ flavor when adding sugar that isn't natural to the tomatoes (at least with how I've done things).

I don't feel like garlic is necessary, but that's me. It probably depends on your recipe. Garlic flavor is kind of volatile, so you have to be careful with how you cook it if you want a specific kind of garlic flavor. Onion powder is something I could easily get behind, though; it adds a much different flavor than blended up fresh onions do.

Black pepper would seem to be important.

Tomato variety and growing conditions seem to make a difference. I'd go for flavorful all-purpose tomatoes that taste good cooked.

[Shule]

Well, maybe garlic is more important to it than I remembered. I'm going to have to make some sauce to figure it out.

[Lemonboy]

Because it's a sauce you want to consider consistancy first. Thick like ketchup is a sweeter sauce that's sugar forward but still has vinegar for tang. South Carolina style is more vinegar and thin like soy sauce but still has a touch of sweetness. Rather than look for a recipe you can try developing your own. This has two advantages. Working with the ingredients gives you a better feel for how they work together. Also, if you're inventing it you're sure to have the ingredients you like and need on hand.

Sugar, honey, molasses, brown sugar, and anything else that will make a syrup can be used either individually or in combination. Keep in mind that cooking the sugars will develop more caramel flavor so something like maple syrup or a fruit syrup might not work as well as you thought.

The vinegar can also be whatever type you like, but I wouldn't combine lots of them. White vinegar can be used to dilute infused vinegar 1 to 1. Avoid strong or thick vinegars like balsamic or black vinegar unless you're making a small amount of sauce for a strongly flavored meat like lamb or game. Apple cider vinegar is what I typically use. But I've use rice vinegar with good results too.

If you want to develop your own recipe do a test batch first. Start with 1/3 cup vinegar and 1/3 cup sugars. Then add another 1/3 cup of sugars for a thick sauce OR 1/3 cup of vinegar for a thin sauce OR 1/3 cup of a mixture of sugars and vinegar. (if using a mixture use tablespoons so you know exact ratios if you decide to do a full sized batch). Finally add about 3/4 cup of liquid to dissolve the sugars.

To develop the flavor you want to add seasonings, herbs, salt, fruit juice, wine, or whatever you think fits your flavor profile. Add small amounts like 1/4 teaspoon of spices or a tablespoon or two of liquid since you're making about a cup of finished product (a teaspoon of garlic powder would take over). Also it's easier to add a bit more spice than it is to add a lot more of everything else to try to fix overseasoning. Keep track of what you add and taste as you go to see what you're getting so you can guess what might make it better. Video yourself if you don't want to take notes. Dried peppers or fruit can be added with a bit more liquid to rehydrate them since once it's all mixed together you'll let it simmer to combine the flavors and reduce a bit. If you want to adjust the consistency without reducing the sauce more an immersion blender or a strainer might be useful.

If you can use a saucepan and can measure ingredients you can trial and error your way to something that's not just to your taste, but unique to your kitchen, in a few hours. If you really don't know what you like you can even get a couple versions hammered out and see what mixing some together gets you.

Two of my more successful test batches were a sour cherry BBQ sauce and a sweet apple BBQ sauce, both great with pulled pork. I also have a brown sugar and caramelized onion concoction that I'm pretty much expected to make when I do brisket.