Healthy Vegan BBQ Sauce
There are so many dishes that could use a great barbecue sauce to enhance the flavors. With its sweet smoky flavor, a good BBQ sauce can transform a bland recipe into a culinary masterpiece. This Healthy Vegan BBQ Sauce recipe can do just that! It is vegan, gluten-free, and oil-free.
I love to use this amazing healthy BBQ sauce on recipes like my vegan BBQ soy curls, these deliciously sweet and tangy barbecue cauliflower wings that even my cauliflower-hating sister enjoys, and our crockpot little smoky carrots.
Reasons to love this healthy barbecue sauce
- Delicious Flavor: This healthy vegan BBQ sauce offers a perfect balance of smoky, tangy, and sweet flavors, making it a tasty addition to any dish. We even love it on these tempeh BBQ ribs!
- Wholesome Ingredients: Made with natural, plant-based ingredients, this BBQ sauce is free from artificial additives and refined sugars, promoting a healthier lifestyle. We use pure maple syrup to sweeten it.
- Easy to Make: Simple to prepare at home, this BBQ sauce allows you to control the ingredients and adjust the flavors to suit your personal taste.
Ingredients you will need
- Ketchup- I use my homemade healthy ketchup but you can use store-bought or even tomato sauce.
- Worcestershire sauce– You will want to buy vegan Worcestershire sauce without anchovies.
- Liquid smoke– That smoky delicious flavor is provided by liquid smoke.
- Vinegar- I use apple cider vinegar to get that tangy taste.
- Maple syrup- We don’t add any refined sugars. Other options might include date syrup or agave nectar.
- Seasonings- Garlic powder, onion powder, and salt round out the flavorful seasonings.
How to make vegan BBQ sauce
The recipe card at the bottom of the page has the full list of ingredients with measurements and instructions.
This delicious gluten-free homemade vegan BBQ sauce recipe requires only 8 ingredients and is SO easy to make. With no cooking required.
STEP #1: Simply whisk all the ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl until smooth and incorporated well.
STEP #2: Use this sauce to flavor all of your favorite BBQ recipes.
Healthy store-bought BBQ sauce options
There is one great-tasting store-bought BBQ sauce that I like, and it’s much lower in sugar and has no oil. It has a funny name–especially because we are plant-based eaters. It is called Bone Suckin’ Sauce.
For more recipe ideas for this sauce, check out these 21 Best Vegan BBQ Recipes.
Frequently Asked Questions
I think you will be happy with the thickness of this sauce, but if you want it a little thicker, try adding a little cornstarch and heat it on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Homemade BBQ sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1-2 weeks. For longer storage, you can freeze it in portions and thaw as needed.
Maple syrup is perfect for the smoky flavor of barbecue sauce, but other options include honey, agave nectar, or date syrup.
Recipes That Use Vegan BBQ Sauce
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Healthy BBQ Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup ketchup or tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or date syrup
- 1 tablespoon Vegan Worcestershire sauce without anchovies
- 4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1.5 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 pinch salt or to taste
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in medium-sized bowl and whisk together.
- Keeps in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Disclaimer
To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
About Terri Edwards
Hi guys! I am the content creator behind EatPlant-Based and a licensed Food for Life instructor with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. I am passionate about sharing healthy recipes and tips to empower others to get healthy. I’m so glad you’re here! Read More…
Hi! Excited to try this out. I see that the recipe yields 8 servings, but how much is a serving size? Wanting to know if I need to double this recipe to make enough. Thank you!
Hi Corutney- This make approximately 1.5 cups, so a serving size is about 3 tablespoons. Hope you enjoy it!
So excited to slather this sauce on all the things this weekend! Question, though. When you say ketchup or tomato sauce, my ketchup is already sweetened, and tomato sauce to me means spaghetti, so I’m having trouble wrapping my mind around what’s best to use. 😀 – if I go for ketchup, should I be using unsweetened ketchup? Or does it not matter? Clearly I’m stuck in neutral here. Help! 🙂
Hi Stephanie- If you have ketchup, that will work great. That’s what I use too. We love it made with ketchup.
Just a question… why wouldn’t this keep longer than 7 – 10 days? All of the ingredients have a much longer shelf life than that when refrigerated. That’s the one thing that I have found challenging since going WFPB, vegan versions of sauces, salad dressings, cheese sauce, etc. have such a short life span and I usually end up throwing half of them away because we can’t use them fast enough. 🙁
Debbie- You’re right, this bbq sauce should keep much longer in the refrigerator. With storage life, I always try to err on the side of caution on the website. I would think this sauce should keep for quite a while.
Fantastic! Thank you!
Anything I can use to replace the liquid smoke?
I found this link with some substitute that might work. https://www.leaf.tv/articles/alternatives-for-liquid-smoke/
We like bbq sauces with some kick in addition to the tang. What would you recommend as an addition that would give us that flavorful kick? A chipotle chili powder? Thank you!
I like a little kick myself, so I completely understand. Adding chipotle sounds great or even cayenne pepper.