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Barbecue Sauce

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BY Mark Bittman

PUBLISHED March 5, 2025

My go-to grilling sauce is ketchup-based and super-easy to make. To spin it in a Chinese barbecue direction, use the rice vinegar and soy sauce options. If you want to baste anything with it on the grill or in the oven, don’t do so until the last few minutes of cooking, otherwise the sauce might burn.

 

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Barbecue Sauce

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Makes About 3 cups 1x

Time 20 minutes

Units Scale

Ingredients

  • 2 cups ketchup
  • 1/2 cup dry red wine or water
  • 1/4 cup cider or rice vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce or soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon chili powder, or to taste
  • 1 tablespoon chopped onion
  • 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
  • Salt and pepper

Instructions

  1. Combine all the ingredients except the salt and pepper in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have a chance to blend, about 10 minutes.
  2. Taste and add salt and pepper if necessary. Use immediately or cool, cover, and refrigerate for up to a week.
— Recipe from How to Cook Everything

Recipe variations

Curry Barbecue Sauce

More fragrant: Add a teaspoon or more of curry powder.

Mustardy Barbecue Sauce

Reduce the vinegar to 2 tablespoons. Add 1/4 cup Dijon or stone-ground mustard.

Chipotle Barbecue Sauce

Serious heat: In a small bowl, use a fork to mash to a paste 1 or 2 chopped canned chipotle chiles along with some of their adobo sauce. Add to the sauce in Step 1.

Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

There’s some woody complexity in this one: Replace the wine with 1⁄2 cup bourbon.

Korean-Style Barbecue Sauce

Especially great with grilled beef—even burgers: Use soju or sake instead of the wine; choose rice vinegar and soy sauce. Omit the chili powder and increase the garlic to 1 tablespoon. Stir in 1 tablespoon gochujang (fermented chile paste), then taste to see if you want to add more.

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