Bourbon BBQ Sauce Made on the Grill

They say the best gifts are the ones you make yourself. This special BBQ sauce is no exception. Get your list of ingredients together, warm up the Traeger, and enjoy this wonderful, anytime condiment that makes the perfect gift and puts you on every “nice” list. Your directions and a list of ingredients are below the how-to video.

Ingredients

• ½ onion (minced)
• 4 cloves garlic (minced)
• ¾ cup bourbon whiskey

Coastal note: you can easily substitute apple cider for the whiskey. Worried about adding alcohol to your recipe. A lot of the alcohol will evaporate when you cook with it, while leaving the flavors.

• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ½ tablespoon salt
• 2 cups ketchup
• ¼ cup tomato paste
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (to taste)

Directions

Start your Traeger on the smoke setting with the lid open until the fire is established (4-5 minutes). Set the temperature to 350º. Close the lid and let it pre-heat for 10 minutes.

In a large skillet, combine the onion, garlic, and whiskey. Simmer for 20 minutes until the onion is translucent. Close the lid and allow everything to simmer.

Mix in the ground pepper, salt, ketchup, tomato paste, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and hot pepper sauce. Bring to a boil. Close the lid and increase heat if needed.

To finish, reduce the heat on the Traeger to 225º and simmer for 20 minutes. Close lid if needed to maintain heat. Add more hot pepper sauce to taste. Run sauce through a strainer if needed. Once cool, pour into sealable jars and give out as holiday gifts.