View source for Barbecue sauce

{{Short description|Sauce used as a marinade, basting, topping, or condiment}}
{{globalize|article|United States|date=January 2025}} <!-- See other sauces mentioned on [[Regional variations of barbecue]] and [[Barbecue in the United States]]. -->
{{Infobox prepared food
| name = Barbecue sauce
| image = Pork steaks cooking-1.jpg
| caption = [[St. Louis–style barbecue]] involves slow open grilling until done, then simmering in a pan of barbecue sauce placed on the grill.
| alternate_name = 
| country = [[United States]]
| region = 
| creator = 
| course = 
| type = [[Condiment]]
| served = 
| main_ingredient = [[Vinegar]], [[tomato paste]], or [[ketchup]]
| minor_ingredient = [[onion powder]], [[spice]]s such as [[mustard (condiment)|mustard]] and [[black pepper]], [[mayonnaise]], and [[sugar]] or [[molasses]]
| calories = 
| other = 
}}
'''Barbecue sauce''' (also abbreviated as '''BBQ sauce''') is a [[sauce]] used as a [[marinade]], [[basting (cooking)|basting]], [[condiment]], or topping for [[meat]] cooked in the [[barbecue]] cooking style, including [[pork]], [[beef]], and [[chicken as food|chicken]]. It is a ubiquitous condiment in the [[Southern United States]] and is used on many other foods as well.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gourmetretailer.com/gourmetretailer/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000827762|title=Category Analysis: Condiments|access-date=2006-11-01|author=Michelle Moran|website=The Gourmet Retailer|date=2005-03-01|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061103112041/http://www.gourmetretailer.com/gourmetretailer/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000827762|archive-date= 3 November 2006|url-status= dead}}</ref>

Ingredients vary depending on area, but most include [[vinegar]] or [[tomato paste]] (or a combination) as a base, as well as a combination of [[onion powder]], [[spice]]s such as [[mustard (condiment)|mustard]] and [[black pepper]], and [[Sweetener|sweeteners]] such as [[sugar]] or [[molasses]].

==History==
{{main|Barbecue in the United States}}
Some place the origin of barbecue sauce at the formation of the first [[Thirteen Colonies|American colonies in the 17th century.]]<ref name=Garner>{{cite book|author = Bob Garner|title=North Carolina Barbecue: Flavored by Time|year=1996|isbn=0-89587-152-1|page=160|publisher=John F. Blair }}</ref> References to the sauce start occurring in both [[England|English]] and [[France|French]] literature over the next two hundred years. [[South Carolina]] [[Mustard (condiment)|mustard]] sauce, a type of barbecue sauce, can be traced to [[Germans|German]] settlers in the 18th century.<ref name="high">{{cite web|author=Lake E. High Jr.|title=A Very Brief History of the Four Types of Barbeque Found In the USA|publisher=South Carolina Barbeque Association|year=2019|url=https://www.scbarbeque.com/index.php/2014-01-26-09-56-40|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313171657/https://www.scbarbeque.com/index.php/2014-01-26-09-56-40|archive-date=13 March 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Early homemade barbecue sauces were made with vinegar, salt, and pepper. Sugar, [[ketchup]], and [[Worcestershire sauce]] started to be used in the 1920s, but after World War II, the quantity of sugar and the number of ingredients increased dramatically.<ref name="moss"/>

The Georgia Barbecue Sauce Company of [[Atlanta, Georgia|Atlanta]] advertised an early commercially produced barbecue sauce in 1909.<ref>"Georgia Barbecue Sauce" (advertisement), ''[[Atlanta Constitution]]'', January 31, 1909, as reproduced in Moss, ''Barbecue''</ref> [[H. J. Heinz Company|Heinz]] was the first major company to sell bottled barbecue sauce in 1940. Soon afterward, [[General Foods]] introduced "Open Pit". [[Kraft Foods]] only entered the market in around 1960, but with heavy advertising, succeeded in becoming the market leader.<ref name="moss">{{cite book|author=Robert F. Moss|title=Barbecue: The History of an American Institution|publisher=University of Alabama Press|year=2010|pages=189–190}}</ref> Kraft also started making cooking oils with bags of spice attached, supplying another market entrance of barbecue sauce.<ref>{{cite book|author=Bruce Bjorkman|title=The Great Barbecue Companion: Mops, Sops, Sauces, and Rubs|year=1996|isbn=0-89594-806-0|page=112|publisher=Ten Speed Press }}</ref>

==Variations==
Different geographical regions have allegiances to their particular styles and variations of barbecue sauce.

===East Carolina===
Most American barbecue sauces can trace their roots to a sauce common in the eastern regions of [[North Carolina]] and [[South Carolina]].<ref name="high" /> The simplest and the earliest, it was popularized by enslaved Africans who also advanced the development of American barbecue, and originally was made with [[vinegar]], ground [[black pepper]], and hot [[chili pepper]] flakes. It is used as a "mopping" sauce to baste the meat while it is cooking and as a dipping sauce when it is served. "Thin, spicy, and vinegar based," it penetrates the meat and cuts the fats in the mouth, with a noticeably tarter flavor than most other barbecue sauces.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Moss|first=Robert F.|title=Barbecue: The History of an American Institution|publisher=University of Alabama Press|year=2010|isbn=9780817317188|location=Tuscaloosa, AL|pages=119}}</ref>

===Western Carolina===
In [[Lexington, North Carolina|Lexington]] and the Piedmont areas of western North Carolina, the sauce is often called a dip. It is similar to the East Carolina sauce with the addition of [[tomato paste]], [[tomato sauce]], or [[ketchup]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wral.com/eastern-nc-barbecue-is-healthier-than-western/17689807/|title=Eastern NC barbecue is healthier than western|publisher=[[WRAL-TV]]|date=July 11, 2018|access-date=November 6, 2022}}</ref>

===South Carolina mustard sauce===
Part of South Carolina is known for its yellow barbecue sauces made primarily of yellow [[mustard (condiment)|mustard]], [[vinegar]], [[sugar]], and [[spice]]s. This sauce is most common in a belt from [[Columbia, South Carolina|Columbia]] to [[Charleston, South Carolina|Charleston]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://abcnews4.com/news/local/south-carolina-mustard-sauce-ranked-no-15-in-latest-bbq-poll-wings-south-carolina-sauces-abc-news-4-2024 | title=South Carolina Mustard Sauce ranked No. 15 in latest BBQ poll | date=15 March 2024 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.foxnews.com/lifestyle/sunny-south-carolina-sauce-brightens-barbecue-with-golden-blaze-mustard | title=Sunny South Carolina sauce brightens barbecue with golden blaze of mustard | website=[[Fox News]] | date=7 February 2024 }}</ref>

===Memphis===
Similar to the Western Carolina style, but using molasses as a sweetener and with additional spices. It is usually served as a dipping sauce, as Memphis-style barbecue is typically a [[dry rub]].<ref name="Memphis vs KC">{{cite web|url=http://www.outdoorcookingchannel.com/kansas-city-bbq-vs-memphis-bbq-whats-the-difference/|title=Kansas City BBQ vs. Memphis BBQ – What's the Difference?|first=Cleo|last=James|date=September 6, 2013|access-date=November 6, 2022}}</ref>

===Kansas City===
[[File:Maulls24oz.jpg|thumb|Bottles of [[Maull's barbecue sauce]], a commercial [[St. Louis–style barbecue]] sauce]]
Thick, reddish-brown, tomato-based, and made with sugar, vinegar, and [[spice]]s. It evolved from the Western Carolina– and Memphis-style sauces but is thicker and sweeter and does not penetrate the meat as much as it sits on the surface.

Typical commercial barbecue sauce is based on the Kansas City style.<ref name="Memphis vs KC"/>

===Texas===
In some of the older, more traditional restaurants, the sauces are heavily seasoned with [[cumin]], [[chili pepper]]s or [[chili powder]], [[black pepper]], and fresh [[onion]], while using less [[tomato]] and sugar. They are medium thick and often resemble a thin tomato soup.<ref>{{cite web|author=Daniel Vaughn|title=All About the Sauce|publisher=TexasMonthly|year=2014|url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/bbq/all-about-the-sauce/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200706015843/https://www.texasmonthly.com/bbq/all-about-the-sauce/|archive-date=6 July 2020|url-status=live}}</ref> They penetrate the meat easily rather than sit on top. Bottled barbecue sauces from Texas are often different from those used in the same restaurants because they do not contain meat drippings.<ref>{{cite web|author=HEINZ|title=Heinz Texas Style Bold & Spicy BBQ Sauce, 19.5 oz Bottle|publisher=Kraft-Heinz|year=2019|url=https://www.heinz.com/product/00013000004671|access-date=2019-06-27|archive-date=2020-12-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204141958/https://www.heinz.com/product/00013000004671|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Alabama white sauce===
North Alabama is known for its distinctive white sauce, a [[mayonnaise]]-based sauce that also includes apple cider vinegar, sugar, salt, and black pepper, which is used predominantly on chicken and pork.<ref>Cary, Josh & Jackson, Chef Tom. (Aug 10, 2018). ''[https://www.kmuw.org/post/cooking-fire-alabama-white-sauce Cooking With Fire: Alabama White Sauce]'', KMUW 89.1 Wichita Public Radio, Wichita, KS.</ref>

==Brands and types of barbecue sauce==
* [[Ah-So]]
* [[Bull's-Eye Barbecue Sauce]]
* [[Carolina Gold BBQ Sauce]]
* [[HP BBQ Sauce]]
* [[Hunt's]]
* [[KC Masterpiece]]
* [[Kraft]]
* [[Maull's barbecue sauce]]
* [[Reggae Reggae Sauce]]
* [[Sauer's Barbecue Sauce]]
* [[Shacha sauce]]
* [[Siu haau sauce]]
* [[Sweet Baby Ray's]]

Other sauces sometimes used for barbeque include [[Mojo (sauce)|mojo]], [[mumbo sauce]], and [[satay sauce]].

==See also==
{{cookbook|Barbecue_Sauce|l1=Barbecue Sauce}}
{{portal|Food}}
{{div col}}
*[[Barbacoa]]
*[[Brown sauce]]
*[[Ketchup]]
*[[List of barbecue dishes]]
*{{section link|Dip (food)|List of common dips}}
*[[List of sauces]]
*[[Marination]]
*[[Red sauce (disambiguation)|Red sauce]]
*[[Regional variations of barbecue]]
*[[Steak sauce]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{marinades}}
{{Barbecue sauces}}
{{Barbecue}}
{{Condiments}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barbecue Sauce}}
[[Category:Barbecue sauces| ]]
[[Category:Marinades]]