Honey Chipotle BBQ Sauce
A sweet, smoky BBQ sauce made with honey, chipotles in adobo and smoked paprika, with lemon juice and cider vinegar for tang.
Servings 32 tablespoons
Ingredients
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce chopped, plus 1 teaspoon extra adobo sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 white onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 can tomato paste 6-ounce can
- 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, warm the olive oil, then sauté the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
- Add the chipotle peppers (and extra adobo sauce), water, honey, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, tomato paste, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, smoked paprika, and salt. Bring to a simmer and cook over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove the sauce from the stove, then using a hand blender or food processor, process the sauce until smooth.
- If the BBQ sauce is too thin, place the sauce back in the saucepan and continue to simmer until it reaches your desired thickness.
Notes
Two chipotle peppers provide a good amount of spiciness. If you prefer your sauce to be a little milder, but still plenty smoky, remove 1 of the chipotle peppers from the recipe and add extra smoked paprika, which tends to be milder in heat.
If you use this as a basting sauce on the grill, pour what you need for basting into a separate bowl first. Sauce that a brush has carried from raw meat shouldn’t go back in the jar or be served at the table.