Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce
This Homemade BBQ Sauce blows away anything from the store and is made with easy-to-find vegan-friendly ingredients. You’ll make a sweet, tangy, and spicy barbecue sauce in under 20 minutes with a can of tomato soup! Great on chicken, ribs, tofu, and more.
Today, I’m sharing my mom’s famous homemade bbq sauce recipe, which happens to be my favorite rib sauce. One taste, and you’ll never return to store-bought. With a handful of fresh ingredients and pantry staples, this simple recipe will show you how to make an easy barbecue sauce for all of your grilling needs.
The best part? This easy recipe turns tomato soup into sweet, tangy, and spicy barbecue sauce. The remaining ingredients are inherently vegan or can easily be modified with vegan ingredients. Head to your pantry to gather what you’ll need, and let’s get started.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- You’ll never buy BBQ sauce again when it’s this easy to make your own.
- This is the BEST vegan bbq sauce.
- It’s made with easy-to-find pantry staples in under 20 minutes.
- This is the perfect sauce for all your vegan grilling needs and everything else!
- It’s delicious slathered on racks of ribs, chicken, pork, etc.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Cooking oil – canola, olive oil, or avocado; just a couple of tablespoons to cook the onion and garlic.
- Onion & garlic – The first layer of deep, savory flavor.
- Condensed tomato soup – Double-check for any non-vegan ingredients in whatever type of tomato soup you use. Campbell’s condensed tomato soup isn’t certified vegan, but the label doesn’t list any animal products.
- Brown sugar – Homemade bbq sauce isn’t complete with a sweet component. Please don’t skip it!
- Vinegar – Use white vinegar or apple cider vinegar (ACV gives it that distinct Carolina-syle BBQ tang).
- Worcestershire sauce – If you’re making a vegan sauce, use a vegan Worcestershire sauce, or try tamari, soy sauce, or coconut aminos instead.
- Mustard – as a flavor enhancer. No need for anything fancy. Yellow mustard will do the trick.
- Hot Sauce – use your favorite chili pepper-based hot sauce for a fiery kick.
How To Make Homemade Vegan Barbecue Sauce
Step 1: Cook aromatics. Add the oil to a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat until hot but smoking. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic and cook until fragrant and tender (5 to 10 minutes).
Step 2: Simmer. Add the tomato soup, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and hot sauce to the saucepan and stir. Lower the heat and gently simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. And that’s it!
Recipe Tips
- Most ingredients are vegan-friendly, but tomato soup and Worcestershire sauce may include animal products, so be sure to check.
- You should be able to find organic and gluten-free varieties of condensed tomato soup and Worcestershire if you prefer that option.
- Add more hot sauce, cayenne, chipotle chili powder, or red pepper flakes to make it spicier.
- Add just a dash of liquid smoke (a little bit goes a long way).
- The onion gives this sauce bits of texture with each bite. For a silky consistency, make the sauce and let it cool completely to room temperature. Then pour into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
- This homemade BBQ sauce doubles as a marinade. Once cooled, pour the sauce into a bowl and whisk in a splash of vinegar at a time to thin it out into a marinade consistency. Then, soak your food in the marinade for at least an hour before cooking on a hot grill.
How To Use This BBQ Sauce
This sauce has a sweet and tangy flavor with a kick of spice, similar to St.Louis-style BBQ sauce. For more of a Carolina-style taste, add extra vinegar and mustard.
Either way, this vegan bbq sauce is fantastic on everything from meaty ribs to grilled tempeh. Here are more delicious ideas.
- Slathered on smoked beef brisket or ribs
- Basted over grilled or broiled chicken
- As a Crockpot sauce
- Tossed with hot and crispy chicken wings
- As a marinade for grilled tofu or tempeh
- With barbecue chicken flatbread
- Brushed onto veggie burgers
Storing & Freezing
Storing: Let cool and keep your zippy bbq sauce in a covered container in the fridge for 7-10 days.
Freezing: It also freezes well. Pour into a freezer-safe container leaving room at the top for expansion, and freeze for up to 3 months—Thaw in the fridge before using.
Recipe FAQ
Not always, but many sauces are made without any animal products (like honey and anchovies).
Yes, but with minor modifications. Be sure to use gluten-free condensed tomato soup and gluten-free Worcestershire (or gluten-free tamari), and you’re all set.
You can make bbq sauce without brown sugar, but you’ll need another sweetener in its place. Coconut sugar, date sugar, and maple sugar are good options. You can also use honey or maple syrup.
There are about 70 calories in 1 serving (about 2 tablespoons).
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Easy Homemade BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup onion chopped
- 1 small clove garlic minced
- 2 tbsp canola oil
- 10 3/4 oz can or carton of condensed tomato soup use GF tomato soup for gluten-free option
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1-2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce for gluten-free see notes*
- 1 tsp mustard
- dash hot sauce
Instructions
- In a saucepan, cook onion and garlic in oil over medium heat until tender
- Add remaining ingredients and cook over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Use as a baste for chicken or ribs.
- Store remaining sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator
Notes
- Most ingredients are vegan-friendly, but tomato soup and Worcestershire sauce may include animal products, so be sure to check.
- You should be able to find organic and gluten-free varieties of condensed tomato soup and Worcestershire if you prefer that option.
- Add more hot sauce, cayenne, chipotle chili powder, or red pepper flakes to make it spicier.
- Add just a dash of liquid smoke (a little bit goes a long way).
- The onion gives this sauce bits of texture with each bite. For a silky consistency, make the sauce and let it cool completely to room temperature. Then pour into a high-speed blender and blend until smooth.
Nutrition
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Homemade BBQ sauce is the best!
You know it! 🙂
I love making sauces from scratch, this one is going on my list for the Summer. My husband would love it on ribs for sure!
Thanks Tammi!
Love that your mom would serve this sauce with met for you growing up. It is funny what things we remember.
I know…not really something you’d think I would pick but I loved it!!
This sounds amazing! I love making homemade condiments! Can’t wait to try for BBQ season this summer!
Me too! Thank you Jessica!
My mom would love this. All summer long, she cooks on the fire. I bet she would really like this if I made it for her. Good idea. Thanks for the inspiration.
You’re welcome Kim! I hadn’t thought about making it for a gift. Great idea!
This sounds like a great all-purpose BBQ sauce. I plan to give it a try the next time I grill chicken.
I hope you enjoy it Lynne!
great idea to use soup! cant wait to try
Thank you Sarah!
I love that your mom used tomato soup as a base. How clever.
I’m going to try this…I would love a good BBQ sauce that I can whip up – I hate to admit it but I use one from a jar
I do that, too, Monica when I need to save time. This one is so quick and easy, I need to make it more often!
Perfect timing with BBQ season well underway. Thanks for sharing 🙂