Homemade Barbecue Sauce

Way back when, in college, I took a cooking class. Mostly, because my boyfriend kept teasing me that he could cook better than me (and I still married him…aren’t I nice?). I really enjoyed the class, whatever my original motives for attending had been, and I came away with a book of recipes that my teacher swore were all fool proof. “You cannot mess them up,” she said – and so far I have only proven her wrong on one recipe and that was entirely my fault. Turns out, having a thermometer is pretty important when making candy – guessing really doesn’t produce the desired results. This sauce is one of her recipes and I find that it gives my meat so much more flavor than the bottled kinds. Another reason why I love it is because I have two sisters who have to eat gluten-free. Not the worst thing in the world, but after attending a gluten-free fair with one of them, I discovered how truly terrible some gluten-free things can taste (there are some equally tasty things too!) and that most BBQ sauces are off limits because they contain gluten. Since I’m not a gluten-free eater, when my sisters come over, it’s a little hard to make sure there are things they can eat just because I don’t typically stock the substitution ingredients that I would need to make recipes gluten-free. This is a very long way to tell you that this BBQ sauce is gluten-free and doesn’t require a trip to the store to make it that way. So, it’s a great dinner fix – whether you use it on chicken, pulled pork, ribs, or whatever.

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp butter

1 medium onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

3/4 cup water

1 cup catsup

2 Tbsp vinegar

2 Tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 Tbsp dry mustard

2 tsp Liquid Smoke (you can find this by BBQ sauces and other marinades at the grocery store)

Saute onion and garlic in melted butter. Add other ingredients and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes. Yield: 2 cups