Maple Chipotle BBQ Sauce | This homemade Maple Bourbon BBQ Sauce recipe is made in just thirty minutes with simple ingredients like tomato sauce, spices, brown sugar, liquid smoke, maple syrup, and a splash of bourbon or maple whisky.
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Every year, as the snow melts and the sun stays out longer and feels warm on my skin I get to a point where I just can't hold back anymore and that's when I say "That's it. I'm grilling."
Once my BBQ's come out from hiding it's time for me to reclaim the outdoors and cook all sorts of wonderful things on my gas grill and my Blackstone grill. A lot of those items will be liberally smothered in this homemade maple bourbon barbecue sauce.
If you're anything like me you'll want to whip up this sauce once grilling season hits. Keep it in a glass jar in the fridge, like these cute mason jars with labels. Then simply have fun covering things in it. I like it on battered chicken bites, on my turkey loaf, and on burgers, and it's my go-to for slow-cooked ribs.
If you love making homemade sauces you'll be pleased with how easy this recipe is. The key flavors are smoky, sweet, and tangy. Each ingredient is key to the depth of flavor in this sauce, so don't skip any. I'll give substitution tips where possible below.
Ingredients
See the recipe card for exact amounts.
- onion and garlic: this starts us off with a flavor base. You can keep the sauce chunky and be careful when dicing, or you can not worry too much and blend the sauce at the end.
- tomato sauce: for a savory tangy depth of flavor. I haven't tested with tomato paste instead.
- vinegar: adds acidity to balance out the sweetness.
- brown sugar: For sweetness and thickening capabilities along with its caramel notes. Use light or dark brown sugar, whatever you have on hand.
- maple syrup: I live in Canada, the land of pure maple syrup. Of course I'm putting maple syrup in for sweetness with notes of caramel and maple.
- Worcestershire sauce: Contributes to the savory, umami profile of the sauce
- Bourbon: I love a bourbon - neat. My favorites in this sauce have been Larceny, Evan Williams, and Forty Creek.
- Liquid Smoke: Infuses the sauce with a deep, smoky flavor.
- black pepper: Adds a warm, spicy kick to the sauce.
- paprika: savory, mild, and sweet.
- chipotle pepper in adobo sauce: these are essential and provide a slightly sweet, tangy, smoky, and spicy kick to the sauce.
Substitutions
- Bourbon: I wouldn't truly be Manitoban if I didn't mention and use Crown Royal Whisky (it's made here). I originally developed this recipe 7 years ago with Crown Royal Maple whisky, but it's not something I kept on hand to drink, so over the years I've changed over to bourbon whisky instead. But maple whisky is fantastic in this recipe, although it's not shown on the Crown Royal website anymore. If you have another brand of maple whisky, try it!
Instructions
Prep Tips
- To make this recipe, mix everything but the onion and garlic together.
- Next, add a swirl of cooking oil to a large saucepan or pot and add the onions. Cook over medium heat for 6-8 minutes or until the onions have softened.
- Add the garlic and cook for about a minute.
- Next, add all of the other ingredients and turn the heat up to bring it to a boil. Once the mixture has come to boil switch to a lower heat and keep the sauce at a gentle simmer for 20-30 minutes.
- The sauce is done when it's thickened to the consistency you like. You can keep it chunkier at this point or blend it.
- Let the sauce cool before blending and blend carefully using an immersion blender or stand blender.
To serve simply use the sauce as a dip, burger sauce, or during the cooking process.
If using this sauce to cook burgers, cook the burgers almost fully first before applying the sauce and continuing to cook. If you apply it right at the beginning the sugar will cause the outside of the burgers to burn before cooking properly.
Tips for making BBQ sauce
What to serve with homemade BBQ sauce
This Maple Bourbon BBQ Sauce recipe is a versatile condiment that pairs well with a variety of dishes. It's perfect for layering on grilled chicken, ribs, or burgers. You can also use it as a dipping sauce for crispy chicken tenders.
Storage
Store the cooled sauce in the fridge for up to two weeks.
FAQs
Bourbon BBQ sauce is a sweet, spicy, and tangy mix of tomato sauce, spices, maple syrup, brown sugar, vinegar, liquid smoke, and bourbon whiskey.
Recipe
Maple Chipotle BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup finely chopped onion
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup maple whisky
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 canned chiptole pepper in adobo sauce chopped
Instructions
- Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the tomato sauce, water, vinegar, brown sugar, maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, maple whisky, liquid smoke, black pepper, smoked paprika, and chopped chipotle pepper. Set aside.
- Heat a bit of oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion for 6–8 minutes until soft and lightly golden.
- Add the garlic and cook it for about 30 seconds or so, just until fragrant but be careful not to burn it.
- Pour in the pre-mixed sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20–30 minutes, stirring often, until thickened.
- Cool completely, then blend if you want it smooth.
Notes
Nutritional information is an estimate. Values vary based on products used. Read our full Nutrition Disclaimer.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you.
This post was originally posted on March 1, 2018.
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