Cola Barbecue Sauce

  • Level: Easy
  • Yield: 2 cups
  • Total: 1 hr
  • Prep: 10 min
  • Cook: 50 min
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Ingredients

4 cloves garlic, peeled

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus a generous pinch for the garlic

3 cups cola

1 1/2 cups ketchup

1/4 cup cider vinegar

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 slightly heaping tablespoon chili powder

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus additional for seasoning

1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, plus additional for seasoning

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions

  1. Smash the garlic cloves, sprinkle with a generous pinch of salt, and, with the flat side of a large knife, mash and smear mixture to a coarse paste. 
  2. Stir garlic paste, the 1/4 teaspoon salt, cola, ketchup, vinegar, Worcestershire, chili powder, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, and allspice together in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until thickened, about 45 minutes. Allow to cool slightly, stir in the lime juice, and season with black pepper and hot sauce, to taste. 
  3. Know-How: Barbecue sauces are all about balance: a sweet note offset by sour with a jolt of spice, all of which flourish in a cloud of smoke. There are lots of ways to work this magic-thick, thin, and in-between. Concocting a signature sauce is compulsory in some barbecue circles. Start with this basic riff and play with variations to suit your style.

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Daria Jane

Great sauce recipe! Will definitely use again. I thickened part of the sauce with cornstarch and added honey which thrilled my taste for sweet BBQ sauce. Makes a lot and makes great crock pot chicken.

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