Serves: 5
Total Calories: 176

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, medium, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and minced
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup water, or more if needed
3 tablespoons cider vinegar, or more to taste
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice, fresh
2 tablespoons pineapple juice (optional)
1 teaspoon hot sauce, your favorite, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke or 2 tablespoons meat drippings
2 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons brown sugar, firmly packed, dark brown, or more to taste
2 tablespoons mustard of choice
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
salt, to taste

1. Heat the oil in a large nonreactive saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and bell pepper and sauté until softened but not brown, about 4 minutes.

2. Stir in the ketchup, tomato sauce, 1 cup water, 3 tablespoon vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, pineapple juice (if using), hot sauce, liquid smoke, molasses, sugar, both mustards, and black pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, until thickened, about 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent scorching. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little water. Remove from the heat and taste for seasoning, adding salt and vinegar, hot sauce, and sugar as necessary the sauce should be highly seasoned.

3. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve warm or at room temperature. The sauce will keep, tightly covered in the refrigerator, for several weeks.

Makes 2 1/2 to 3 cups

Nutritional Facts:

Serves: 5
Total Calories: 176
Calories from Fat: 72

More Recipes from the The Barbecue Bible Cookbook:
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A Simple Tamarind Barbecue Sauce
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Basic Barbecue Sauce
Basic Chimichurri
Basic Vietnamese Dipping Sauce / Nuoc Cham
Bengali Mango-Tamarind Barbecue Sauce
Carolina Mustard Barbecue Sauce
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Georgian Pickled Plum Sauce / Tkemali
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Hoisin-Chile Sauce
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Indonesian Ketchup / Ketjap Manis
Jake's Turkish Coffee Barbecue Sauce
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