How to make BBQ Sauce to can. This bbq sauce recipe is the best homemade bbq sauce simmered slow on the stove. It's loaded with black pepper, tangy vinegar, fresh tomatoes, spices, molasses, and hickory liquid smoke just like our favorite bottle of Texas BBQ sauce! I love to make this recipe for long-term storage and pull out as many as I need throughout the year! The best bbq sauce is homemade!
Ingredients
Ingredients:
12.5 poundsfresh tomatoes(or 5 quarts of blended tomato juice from fresh or canned tomatoes)
2quarts white distilled vinegar plus 1/2 cup
31/4cupsbrown sugar
1cupmolasses
2/3cupsWorcestershire sauce
3/4cupLiquid smoke(half Hickory and half Mesquite)
To make tomato juice wash, trim, and quarter tomatoes. Transfer to a large stockpot and bring to a boil. When the tomatoes are mushy add onions and blend with a hand blender until smooth.
Add the remaining ingredients except for the Thermflo. Bring to a boil and simmer over medium heat until cooked down (about 1 1/2-2 hours.)
Meanwhile, remove 1 1/2 cups of the bbq sauce to mix with the Thermflo later.
Place the Thermflo into a medium mixing bowl. Slowly whisk in the cooled and reserved barbecue mixture to make a slurry. Gradually whisk it into the pot of bbq sauce. Bring everything to a boil and remove from heat.
Pour bbq sauce into jars up to the headspace. Loosely close each jar shut and place it into a water canner or large pot. Fill with water about 3/4 full of the quart jar. Cover the pot with a lid and bring to a boil. Process for 20 minutes, covered after it boils.
Remove jars and twist each band tightly shut, using a kitchen towel. Allow jars to cool for at least 24 hours before checking if they are sealed.
Once sealed bbq sauce keeps for 1-2 years on the shelf.
Notes
Half a bushel of tomatoes makes 10 quarts of tomato juice.
Thermflo must be combined with cooled bbq sauce. It will clump into a mass if using hot bbq sauce or liquid.
Note: all spices are ground. I do think coarsely ground black pepper works better for bbq sauce.