Spicy Peach BBQ Sauce Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you spice up BBQ sauce? ›

Adding garlic or onion powder are standard flavors for barbecue, but get a little creative and try out different chile powders, peppers, cumin, or dried herbs to add body to the sauce.

More of the base, sweet, and sour ingredients can help neutralize or weaken the heat. Or, try adding more sweetener with extra acid, but add it in very small amounts and taste as you go. A small amount of brown sugar or honey can tone down a spicy sauce when combined with a bit of vinegar or lemon or lime juice.

Add smoky, spicy, or tangy flavors for a semi-homemade bbq sauce that tastes just like it's from scratch. You can spice up bbq sauce and add some texture and flavor to store-bought bbq sauce with chopped kimchi, bacon bits, sautéed onions, or jalapeños, fresh herbs, or fruit like pineapple and peaches.

Spices For Barbecue Sauce

Popular spices and herbs to use for barbecue are; allspice, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, clove, coriander, cumin, granulated garlic, granulated onion, Mexican oregano, mustard powder, nutmeg, paprika, sage, and thyme leaves.

To make it less tart or spicy

Try adding some molasses for a rich flavor, honey for a subtle sweetness, or brown sugar for a simple sweet taste. You may need to add some spices like garlic or cumin to help it blend properly.

Balancing it with an acid can help neutralize the molecule's activity. This means drinking or eating something acidic — such as lemonade, limeade, orange juice or a tomato-based food item or drink — may also help cool your mouth down. (Milk is also acidic, by the way.)

Vinegar-based and tomato-based hot sauces are some of the most common. You can tone each of these down by adding more vinegar or more tomato to dilute the heat level. Similarly, if you made a fruit-based hot sauce, such as a mango habanero, you can add more of the base fruit to dilute the sauce.

Use the right fuel

Our main man DJ BBQ, author of Food Tube's BBQ Book, recommends lumpwood charcoal – the stuff that looks like burnt tree – because it will give the best flavour. It's unadulterated and natural. If you're a bit of a pro, try adding wood chips to your charcoal.

You can use either flour or cornstarch to thicken BBQ sauce. Just mix together 2 tbsp (16 g) of flour and ¼ cup (62.5 mL) of water, or combine 1 tbsp (9 g) of cornstarch with 1 tbsp (15 mL) of water. Continue mixing the thickener until there are no lumps of flour or cornstarch.

Why is BBQ sauce so spicy? ›

In some of the older, more traditional restaurants, the sauces are heavily seasoned with cumin, chili peppers 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.

Eastern Carolina-Style Vinegar Sauce

Found in the eastern half of both North and South Carolina, Eastern-style vinegar sauce has the unique honor of being the oldest barbecue sauce in the country. Given its origin in the 13 colonies, it's literally where American barbecue was born, at the hands of enslaved chefs.

The base ingredients of barbecue sauce usually include tomato sauce or ketchup, vinegar, and sweeteners, such as molasses or brown sugar. Other common ingredients include Worcestershire sauce, mustard, garlic, onion powder, and various spices, which can include paprika, cumin, and chili powder.

Besides, this sauce doesn't have the unappealing red food coloring that some restaurants use. Just simple and natural ingredients, plus tons of flavor. Unlike American-style barbecue sauces, traditional Chinese barbecue sauce doesn't contain tomatoes.

Apple Cider Vinegar: Apple cider vinegar is a versatile choice for BBQ sauce. It has a slightly fruity and tangy flavor that pairs well with the smoky and savory elements of BBQ. It adds a pleasant acidity and a touch of sweetness to the sauce.

Ingredients vary, but most include vinegar or tomato paste (or a combination) as a base, as well as liquid smoke, onion powder, spices such as mustard and black pepper, and sweeteners such as sugar or molasses.

Generally, barbecue sauces is categorized into four varieties: tomato-based sauces, vinegar-based sauces, mustard-based sauces, and mayonnaise-based sauces. Each category can have a range of BBQ sauce styles, ranging from sweet and tangy to hot and spicy.

With that in mind, the best time to sauce a grilled (BBQ) chicken is after it's cooked, or more precisely, when it's nearly cooked. Go ahead and season it liberally and coat it in butter or oil beforehand, but wait until it is no more than a few minutes away from being done before you sauce it.