BBQ Sauce
A sweet, smoky and tangy barbecue sauce for ribs, burgers and grilled chicken. Basic doctors a shop-bought ketchup base, Better simmers a proper from-scratch sauce, and Ultimate deepens it with bourbon, smoked paprika and a treacle-molasses richness.
Vegetarian
Vegan
Dairy-free
Nut-free
Budget version
A quick stovetop sauce built on ketchup with smoky, sweet store-cupboard tweaks.
Per serving£0.30
Total cost£1.20
Time13 min
Ingredients for 4
- 200 g tomato ketchup
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce , use vegan if needed
- 1 tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic granules
Method
- Tip all the ingredients into a small saucepan and stir together.
- Bring to a gentle simmer over a medium heat, stirring often.
- Cook for 8-10 minutes until slightly thickened and glossy.
- Taste and adjust the sweet-sour balance with a little more sugar or vinegar, then cool.
Equipment
The three ways, side by side
Budget
A quick stovetop sauce built on ketchup with smoky, sweet store-cupboard tweaks.
Better
A proper from-scratch sauce simmered with fried onion, tomato and spices.
Ultimate
A deep, smoky sauce enriched with bourbon, molasses and treacle and slow-reduced.