If you follow a paleo diet, a moderate- to low-carb diet, or low-sugar diet, you may be wondering what to use in place of conventional barbecue sauce or ketchup. Most bottled brands and most recipes found on line and in cookbooks and magazines are loaded with sugar, which is one of the most hazardous and ubiquitous foods in the typical American diet.
The inspiration for my barbecue sauce
Ten years ago I tinkered with one of my favorite barbecue sauces from a macrobiotic cookbook, Fresh From a Vegetarian Kitchen by Meredith McCarty.
Photo credit: Shannon of NourishingDays.com
Meredith's recipe started with a tomato-less carrot and beet sauce that I’d made dozens of times. I loved the recipe and it served me well when I avoided tomatoes, but eventually I added them back to my diet. Since most people eat tomatoes and tomato sauces, I figured a remake that my friends, clients, cooking students, and acquaintances would be more likely to make a tomato-based version of that sauce.
I substituted unsweetened tomato paste and homemade Bone Building Broth. I reduced the amount of vinegar and soy sauce and listed sea salt as an alternate ingredient. I replaced brown rice syrup with stevia with the option of adding a little honey for additional sweetness. I replaced sesame oil with olive oil. I increased the amount of onion (I love onions; did you know onions contain one of the same antioxidants found in wine? You’ll never be pulled over for driving under the influence of onions). I replaced cayenne with ground chipotlé (smoked dried jalapeno pepper powder), one of my favorite seasonings.
Beyond barbecue sauce
The result is a recipe that’s been popular with people who like barbecue sauce and even people who usually don’t. You can spread this versatile sauce liberally over a wide range of foods at the table. I like to use it the way people use use ketchup or tomato sauce, meatloaf, burgers, steaks, roasts, chicken, turkey, pork chops, even salmon.
Photo credit: Shannon of NourishingDays.com
I even use my Better Barbecue Sauce to replace tomato sauce when I want red sauce with meatballs. (I skip the pasta and simply serve the sauced meatballs over blanched broccoli, cauliflower and carrots, or as a side dish with a green salad or cooked green leafy or mixed vegetables.)
Using stevia cuts the amount of sugar calories and carbs in the recipe. Even if you add the optional one or two tablespoons of honey you’ll still end up with a much less caloric, much lower sugar sauce than what you’d find in stores.
Reduce, reuse, recycle
The Bone Building Broth comes from meat or poultry bones that I stash in the freezer whenever I cook meat or poultry (I store meat bones and poultry bones in separate bags to avoid flavor mixing). Once or twice a month I brew up a batch of bone broth (technically it’s a stock, not a broth, but I liked the alliteration of Bone Building Broth so I kept that name). I strain the mixture, chill it, and freeze whatever I don’t think I’ll use within a week or two.
By recycling bones left from chicken, turkey, beef, pork, and lamb, I save money ($150 or more per year) and re-use something most people toss out. In the process I create a broth that’s rich in calcium, gelatin, and glucosamine sulfate and has multiple culinary applications. The calcium content of the broth will be higher (than the numbers indicate below) and the flavor richer if you use Bone-Building Broth rather than water. I didn’t have my broth analyzed so I don’t have figures for that but I’ve read that a cup of Bone Broth can contain as much or more calcium as a glass of milk. Mine probably has more because it’s usually thick and gelatinous like soft Jell-O.
I’ll post the recipe for my Bone Broth later this month. If you already own my book, The Garden of Eating: A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook, you can follow the recipe in their using poultry or meat bones. If you don’t have Bone Builing Broth on hand (you can’t buy it any stores that I know of), you can substitute homemade chicken or turkey broth, chicken or vegetable broth from a natural foods store, or pure water. If you use store bought broth, look for a product with the simplest and fewest ingredients and the lowest sodium content. If the product contains salt (and it probably will), reduce or omit the salt in the recipe until after you’ve cooked and tasted it.
Consider making a double batch because this sauce taste so good and it freezes well. But don’t just take my word for it. Shannon of NourishingDays.com recently tried my recipe and made a post about how much she and her husband enjoyed it. You can read it here. She also took the two gorgeous pictures included on this page. She has some great recipes, tips, and menu planning ideas on her blog. I encourage you to bookmark her site. You can win a copy of The Garden of Eating if you follow the rules for the giveaway on her site.
Better Barbecue Sauce
Prep: 20 minutes/ Cooking: 20 to 30 minutes/Yield: 2 1/3 cups; 9 servings
This mild, slightly smoky sauce contains less sugar, less sodium, and fewer calories than conventional barbecue sauce. Consider making a double batch because it taste so good and it freezes well. The calcium content will be higher and the flavor richer if you use Bone-Building Broth, but it will still taste good with water, homemade stock, or store bought broth.
A special note about ingredients: Look for a brand of tomato paste that’s free of added sugar and salt. Look for ground chipotlé pepper powder in the spice or ethnic section of natural foods stores, gourmet markets, and hispanic grocery stores, or order it on-line from Penzey’s.
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil or unrefined coconut oil
1 cup minced fresh onion
1 teaspoon unrefined sea salt or 2 tablespoons tamari soy sauce (reduce by one-half or more if using salted broth)
3 cloves garlic, minced (about 1 teaspoon) or 1 teaspoon garlic granules (not powder!)
1 teaspoon ground cumin (preferably ground fresh)
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/3 teaspoon ground chipotlé (smoked dried jalapeno pepper powder)
1 teaspoon dried, crumbled basil
1 teaspoon dried, crumbled oregano, optional
1 (6-ounce) can salt-free, unsweetened tomato paste
1 1/4 cups water or homemade chicken or vegetable broth or stock (from The Garden of Eating) or preservative-free chicken or vegetable broth, such as Imagine Foods or Pacific Brand
2 tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar or 3 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 teaspoon stevia extract powder (a brand with no fillers and no FOS)
1 or 2 tablespoons honey, agavé nectar or sorghum syrup
1. Heat oil and onions in a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat. Stir until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add herbs and spices, stir, then add remaining ingredients. After adding liquid, whisk until smooth.
2. Bring to a low boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer with the lid ajar or cover with a spatter screen, and cook until thick, 20 to 30 minutes, stirring periodically.
3. Pour sauce into 1or more wide-mouth glass jars. Cover when cool, and refrigerate. Freeze what you don’t plan to use within 2 weeks.
1/4 cup (made with filtered water): 45 calories, 1 g protein, 6 g carbohydrate (1 g fiber), 2 g fat, 12 mg calcium, 119 mg sodium
FYI: That's a generous serving for only 6 grams of carbs
Variations:
* Shortcut: Replace fresh onion with 1 tablespoon dried onion flakes in step 1. Heat oil, add onion flakes and spices, then remove from heat. Whisk in remaining ingredients, then return to medium heat. Bring to a low boil, reduce heat, and simmer util thick, 20 to 30 minutes.
* Cajun Ketchup: Replace the garlic, cumin, mustard, chipotlé, basil, and oregano with 2/3 to 1 tablespoon mild, salt-free Cajun spice blend. Replace honey with maple syrup.
Recipe excerpted from The Garden of Eating: A Produce-Dominated Diet & Cookbook by Rachel Albert-Matesz & Don Matesz (Planetary Press, 2004).
Note: If you order this book from our secure on-line server at www.TheGardenofEatingDiet.com, you’ll receive it more quickly than if you order from on-line book sellers.
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