Angie Battle, "the pie lady," reveals her 4th of July grilling techniques and secret sauce recipes.
Fruity Barbeque Sauce – Choose Your Own Adventure!
(Featuring stone fruits—cherry, peach, plum or apricot)
Makes about 5-6 cups
By Angie Battle
Base:
2 TBSP butter
1 medium yellow onion, small dice
1 fresh jalapeno (ribs and seeds removed), minced (can substitute ¼ - ½ tsp. cayenne)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ c ketchup
¼ c. apple cider vinegar
2/3 c. brown sugar, packed
1 ½ TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 TBSP smoked paprika (can substitute 1 TBSP sweet paprika + 1 tsp liquid smoke)
2 TBSP Dijon mustard
1 tsp. kosher salt (+ more to taste)
1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper (+ more to taste)
2 c. pitted, chopped stone fruit (your choice) *
¼ c. molasses, optional (taste your sauce first to decide if you need it)
Optional Variations:
Peach Bourbon: With the peaches, add ½ c. bourbon & 1 tsp vanilla vanilla extract
Apricot Grand Marnier: With the apricots, add ½ c. Grand Marnier or triple sec and ¼ c. honey
Cherry Chipotle: With the cherries, add 1 minced chipotle pepper in adobo, additional ¼ c. brown sugar, 1 tsp vanilla extract and a few dashes of cherry bitters
Cinnamon Plum: With the plums, add ¼ tsp. cinnamon and 2 TBSP date syrup or pomegranate molasses
*Don’t worry about peeling the fruit. The skin will cook down/dissolve as it cooks. What’s left in the end will be pureed smoothly anyway.
Directions:
- Measure out all ingredients before you start. This can go quickly!
- Heat oil in a medium to large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add diced onion and jalapeno to butter, and cook until softened and golden brown—about 5-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, paprika and chipotle pepper (if using), and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds more.
- Remove from the heat and liquor (if using).
- Add in ketchup, vinegar, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt, pepper, and molasses (if using). Stir until thoroughly combined. Add the chopped fruit and stir again.
- Return mixture to heat. Bring to a boil, being careful about splatters. Once boiling, reduce heat to LOW and simmer for about 20 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Alternatively, let cool slightly then scrape contents into a blender and puree there. Add optional ingredients, stir well, and simmer on low until the sauce is of your desired consistency.
- This is easy to make even a week before your big occasion. Get ahead of it! It’ll store it in the fridge for approximately three weeks, or because it has a high enough acid content, you can use proper hot water bath techniques to put it up for longer shelf-stable storage.
Wondering how to properly cook chicken on the grill? Not sure how to get started? Watch this tutorial.