It's almost huckleberry picking season in Montana and the perfect time to introduce you to my favorite Huckleberry BBQ Sauce recipe! Drizzle it on Gourmet Elk Burgers or slather it on Traeger Smoked Beef Ribs. If you don't have huckleberries, use blueberries instead!
This huckleberry barbecue sauce is always requested by my family when I make beef or smoked pork ribs. It's tangy, spicy, and slightly sweet. The heat can be adjusted by adding less chipotle pepper and leaving out the hot sauce and cayenne pepper.
The texture can range from slightly chunky to silky smooth, just by blending or straining the bbq sauce once it's done cooking.
So if you have huckleberries in your freezer from last year's haul, this huckleberry barbecue sauce recipe is a wonderful way to use up them to make more room for this year's picking. Still need to make more freezer space? Give my huckleberry wine recipe a try!
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😍 Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This easy recipe is ready in around 30 minutes.
- If you don't have huckleberries, you can substitute chokecherries or blueberries instead.
- The spiciness can be adjusted to your preference. Skip the hot sauce and cayenne pepper for a milder sauce.
- This huckleberry barbecue sauce can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the fridge in a jar or condiment bottle until needed.
🛒 What You Need For This Recipe
🔖 Ingredients and Substitutions
- Huckleberries: Fresh or frozen huckleberries can be used for this recipe. You can also use blueberries or a mixture of huckleberries and chokecherries.
- Ketchup
- Sweetener: Brown sugar and molasses
- Spices: Salt, chipotle pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder. The cayenne pepper is optional.
*A full list of ingredients can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
🥫 How To Make Huckleberry BBQ Sauce
Step 1: Add huckleberries and water into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat for 10 minutes. Use a potato masher to mash the huckleberries as they cook.
Step 2: Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over medium-high heat for another 20 minutes. If you prefer a thicker consistency, you can cook it longer, but keep in mind, it will thicken as it cools!
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Step 3: Allow to cool, then blend for a smoother texture or leave as is.
Pro Tip: If you don't have a blender, you can use a fine mesh sieve to strain the bbq sauce.
🍽 What to Serve with Huckleberry Sauce
Serve this huckleberry barbecue sauce recipe with baby back ribs and burgers, or use it to baste barbecue chicken. You can also serve the huckleberry sauce as a dipping sauce with fries, chicken nuggets, or even dove nuggets! Store the remaining sauce in the refrigerator for later use.
🤷🏻♀️ Recipe FAQs
Huckleberries are sometimes compared in taste to blueberries, but they definitely have their own unique flavor and are usually more tart than blueberries. They grow in the Northwest, usually at 3000' and higher elevation.
Begin by either purchasing or making huckleberry barbecue sauce, then use it to baste grilled or smoked beef or pork ribs towards the end of the cooking process.
👩🏼🍳 Pro Tips
- Honey or maple syrup can be used instead of molasses.
- If you want to use your huckleberries sparingly, you can use half the amount the recipe calls for and substitute chokecherries or blueberries for the rest.
- If you don't have a blender, you can use a fine mesh sieve to strain the bbq sauce.
- Store barbecue sauce in a squeeze bottle (purchase at the dollar store) for later use.
- If you want to kick this recipe up a notch, you can add a tablespoon or two of your favorite whiskey.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to one month or more!
🥮 Related Recipes
If you enjoy this huckleberry bbq sauce recipe, check out these related posts.
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.
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📖 Recipe
Spicy Huckleberry BBQ Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 cups huckleberries
- 2 cups water
- ¾ cup ketchup
- 2 tablespoon molasses
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 2 teaspoon chipotle pepper
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Add huckleberries and water into a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat for 10 minutes. Use a potato masher to mash the huckleberries as they cook.
- Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over medium-high heat for another 20 minutes. If you prefer a thicker consistency, you can cook it longer, but keep in mind, it will thicken as it cools!
- Allow to cool, then blend for a smoother texture or leave as is.
Notes
- Honey or maple syrup can be used instead of molasses.
- If you want to use your huckleberries sparingly, you can use half the amount the recipe calls for and substitute chokecherries or blueberries for the rest.
- If you decide to double the recipe, you may want to reduce the amount of water otherwise it will take up to an hour to reduce.
- If you don't have a blender, you can use a fine mesh sieve to strain the bbq sauce.
- Store the barbecue sauce in a squeeze bottle (purchase at the dollar store) for later use.
- If you want to kick this recipe up a notch, you can add a tablespoon or two of your favorite whiskey.
- Store in the refrigerator for up to one month or more!
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