This Texas-style barbecue sauce for brisket, pulled pork, or almost anything is the culmination of years of searching for the best tomato-based sauce we’ve tried. It comes together in minutes from ingredients you already have on hand and is smooth and complex and slightly sweet with hardly any heat. Although the spices are mild, the depth of flavor is no less intense. Kid-approved, time and again.
Adapted from Matthew McCarry and Stacy Toth | Beyond Bacon | Victory Belt, 2013
Saucing before or after cooking—that is the question. It’s all a matter of taste. Serve this tangy sauce on the side after grilling or smoking brisket, chicken, bbq meatballs, or pork shoulder. Brushing the sauce on the meat at the end of grilling will create a sweet and spicy caramelized finish.–Matthew McCarry and Stacy Toth
WHAT IS TEXAS-STYLE BARBECUE SAUCE?
Texas barbecue is all about the beef. And what you put on that beef. Traditionally, Texas barbecue sauce is a well-seasoned mixture of tomato, spices, celery, onions, and garlic, and it’s thinner and less sweet than Memphis and Kansas City sauces. Also, it’s generally used to marinate or baste meat, rather than as a condiment.
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Texas-Style Barbecue Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the lard. Add the onions, garlic, and celery, and cook until softened, 5 to 7 minutes.
- Add the ketchup, vinegar, water, Worcestershire, and black pepper and simmer for about 30 minutes.
- Spoon a few tablespoons sauce into a small bowl. Add the chili powder and stir until smooth.
- Stir the chili powder mixture into the rest of the sauce. Remove from the heat and let stand for 1 hour.
- That's it. You're done. The slightly chunky sauce is nice as is, but for a smoother consistency, purée it in a blender or with an immersion blender. This sauce is best served warm or at room temperature but it stores really well in the fridge for up to 5 days.
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
I chose to make this recipe because my entire family loves barbecue pork. This BBQ Sauce recipe was a HUGE hit! Even my 4-year-old grandson loved the meat! Super easy and quick, about 20 minutes to prep. The sauce was a perfect match with ribs. All the rich, earthy flavors went so well together. Everyone ate everything on their plates and even wanted more.
Really, really good!” That was my 12-year-old nephew’s assessment after he demolished a rack of baby back ribs doused with this barbecue sauce. Just a few minutes prior, my nephew had asked me to “not glop on the sauce,” as he had yet to try it and wasn’t certain if he’d like it. But at the table, he was slathering crazy amounts of extra sauce on each rib. Meanwhile, my husband nodded his agreement at my nephew’s proclamation, his mouth full of ribs.
I understand why. The sauce has a velvety texture from the lard and a remarkably cohesive and complex taste despite the fact that it calls for just a few everyday ingredients and is on the stove for just minutes. I was particularly grateful that the recipe had kid appeal even though the only sugar of any sort comes from the ketchup—and I was careful to use natural ketchup without any high-fructose corn syrup.
I used ground ancho chili powder rather than standard supermarket chili powder. Since then, I’ve made this numerous times, once with standard chili powder and we prefer the more mellow heat of ancho. I’ve also taken to using bacon drippings in place of lard just because it’s more economical and we always have it on hand for barbecue sauce emergencies, of which there’ve been a few since this recipe landed in our laps.
We served this sauce with the smoked spare ribs. The sauce was nice and chunky with deep flavors that perfectly complemented the ribs.
I think 1/4 cup lard is more than is actually needed; 2 tablespoons would probably be just right. While the sauce was simmering, it appeared to be quite oily and I skimmed about 2 tablespoons of oil from the top of the sauce. There was still some oil left on top, but it seemed to incorporate into the sauce as the sauce rested.
HUNGRY FOR MORE?
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
I would like to make this but where can I get “good tasting” lard? I tried the supermarket but it didn’t taste fresh. Any suggestions? Thanks.
Thanks so much!
You bet, Peggy.
Peggy, try the butcher. Also, oftentimes Latin grocery stores have good lard. Barring that, using bacon drippings. Loaded with flavor.