Simple, satisfying 3-ingredient barbecue sauces perfect for summer
This mouth-puckering condiment was one of America’s original barbecue sauces, and while a watery mix of cider vinegar, hot red pepper flakes, salt and pepper may not seem like barbecue sauce to most Americans, North Carolina-style pulled pork just wouldn’t taste right without it. The vinegar counterpoints the fatty pork, while the black and hot peppers crank up the heat. In the western part of the state, ketchup or tomato sauce is often added for sweetness, a practice made optional in this recipe. Some pitmasters add liquid hot sauce in place of (or in addition to) red pepper flakes, while others add water to diminish the vinegary bite.
North Carolina Vinegar Sauce
Total time: 5 minutes
Servings: 2 cups
INGREDIENTS
2 cups apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons ketchup (optional)
1 to 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), plus more to taste
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
STEPS
Place the vinegar, ketchup (if using), red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a jar with a tightfitting lid and shake until the salt dissolves (or place the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until the salt dissolves). Season to taste with more salt or pepper as needed. To serve, mix with or spoon over pulled pork. (It’s also great over shredded barbecued chicken or lamb.) Sauce keeps, refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.
South Carolina Mustard Barbecue Sauce
South Carolina’s contribution to regional American barbecue is mustard sauce. Barbecue buffs in these parts understand the wonders that mustard can work on pork, how the spice enhances the meat’s sweetness while the acidity cuts through the fat. A good mustard sauce is a study in balance: the bite of mustard and mouth-pucker of vinegar offset by the sweetness of honey or brown sugar. Tradition calls for using ballpark-style mustard, but this recipe instead opts for the finesse of Dijon-style mustard or a grainy mustard. Serve this sauce over smoked, pulled or grilled pork (it goes great with pork tenderloin), smoked or grilled chicken, grilled salmon and other seafood, and why not, whole roasted cauliflower.
Total time: 10 minutes, plus about 45 minutes’ cooling
Servings: 2 cups
INGREDIENTS
2/3 cup grainy or Dijon-style mustard
2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup honey or dark brown sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
STEPS
Combine the mustard, vinegar and honey in a small saucepan and whisk to mix. Bring to a simmer over medium and cook for 3 minutes, then let cool to room temperature for serving. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve over sliced or chopped smoked chicken, pulled or grilled pork, grilled salmon and other seafood, and even whole roasted cauliflower. Sauce keeps, refrigerated, for up to 2 weeks.
Alabama White Barbecue Sauce
Visit Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q in Decatur, Ala., and you’ll find a barbecue sauce unlike any on the planet. Created by a railroad worker-turned-pitmaster in the 1920s, this piquant mixture of mayonnaise, vinegar and black pepper has accompanied barbecued chicken for five generations of pitmasters. If you’re not from Alabama, mayonnaise may sound like a strange ingredient for a barbecue sauce, but its creamy piquancy goes great with smoked chicken, pulled pork and roast beef. Some pitmasters like to crank up the heat with some prepared horseradish.
Total time: 5 minutes
Servings: 3½ cups
INGREDIENTS
2 cups mayonnaise
1 cup apple cider vinegar
½ cup jarred prepared white horseradish (optional)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
STEPS
Source: The Seattle Times
