Homemade barbecue sauce lets you control sweetness, salt and consistency. Start small and test with cooked meat before coating the whole dish. Serving sauce and a final grilling glaze need different thicknesses.
Ingredients
For about four portions, use half a cup ketchup, one tablespoon apple cider vinegar, one tablespoon brown sugar or honey, and two tablespoons water. Add half a teaspoon paprika, pinches of garlic powder and black pepper, and an optional teaspoon mustard.
Use that sugar amount or less if ketchup is sweet. Taste combined ingredients before salting, since ketchup and mustard may already contain salt. Check labels for allergens, particularly mustard and prepared-sauce additions.
Cooking and adjusting
Combine in a small saucepan and heat gently while stirring until blended and slightly thickened. Cool a spoonful before tasting. Add vinegar drops if too sweet or a little sugar if too acidic.
Do not over-thicken while hot; cooling may thicken it further. Keep thicker for dipping and thin with a little water for a light final glaze.
Using it with meat
Reserve separate clean serving and brushing bowls. Apply sugary sauce near the end at controllable heat. Repeated thick layers over strong flames can darken and burn.
Serve alongside burgers or grilled cubes, leaving some meat plain for those preferring its flavour. In a menu with shawarma, keep tahini for shawarma and barbecue sauce for burgers to retain variety.
Storing leftovers
Cool promptly and refrigerate in a clean covered container. Never return sauce touched by a raw-contact brush to the stored batch. This uncanned homemade recipe is not a shelf-stable product.
Related products from ALRAQI MEATS
Beef Burgers - 4 Patties, 400 g, or Boneless Beef Cubes - 1 kg. Check the product page for weight, ingredients and cutting options before ordering. Choose a cut suited to the cooking method; a boneless or mixed-meat label alone does not guarantee suitability for quick cooking.
Further guidance
Safe minimum cooking temperatures, Refrigerated food storage.