Balcony Barbecue – Getting Saucy – Signature BBQ Sauce Recipe

Everyone likes barbecue sauce right? The finishing baste of liquid that is set into your barbecue to impart a highlighting taste and flavour into your meat. It’s also great on almost anything else, from fries and sandwiches to cereal and salads… ok maybe not fries. There are different kinds of barbecue sauce that are specific to certain geographical regions in the southern United States. I’ve been trying to develop an all purpose barbecue sauce that would work in all different applications. Here’s the recipe for my super simple Sweet and Spicy Bourbon Molasses Barbecue Sauce.

There are a whole slew of variations of barbecue sauce; vinegar based and mustard based sauces which tend to be tart are found mainly in the Carolinas, as tomato or ketchup based barbecue sauces are found in Kanas that tend to be very sweet. Each region has developed their own unique sauce that best compliments their style of barbecue. Texas style sauces are heavy in spicy peppers and contain little to no sugar, where Alabama’s barbecue sauce is white and mayonnaise based.

I’ve been experimenting for a while on finding an all around multi-purpose barbecue sauce that will work in different applications, from ribs, pork to chicken and turkey. I recently had the chance to include the Crosby’s Molasses (packaged as Grandma Fancy Molasses in Quebec) into my sauce development. I accepted the challenge and came up with this amazing all purpose barbecue sauce that works great on the grill as well as in the oven.

Shut Up and Eat’s Sweet and Spicy Bourbon Molasses Barbecue Sauce.

-1/2 cup Crosby’s or Grandma Fancy Molasses
-3/4 cup bourbon
-2.5 cups ketchup
-1/4 cup packed brown sugar
-4 tablespoon yellow mustard
-2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
-2 teaspoon salt
-1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
-1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
-3 tablespoon barbecue rub (Alternatively: use 2 tablespoon garlic powder, 2 tablespoon onion powder and 1/2 teaspoon chili powder if you don’t have BBQ rub available.)

-Whisk all ingredients in a medium saucepan to a simmer over medium heat for 6-8 minutes. Whisk often to prevent the sauce from boiling over or sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning. If you are concerned about the alcohol content of the sauce, alcohol evaporates at 172°F (78°C), so as long as it’s simmering, the alcohol will be cooked out within the first few minutes.
-Store in a sterilized container or mason jar in the fridge.

The sauce certainly has a kick to it. The molasses gives the sauce a beautiful sheen and look to it as well as a deep rich sweetness that isn’t overbearing. This sauce works on practically everything. I recently made a meatball appetizer and used this as a dipping sauce it was a hit!

Let me know how it goes!