Condiments & Sauces Recipes

Blueberry Barbecue Sauce

We went blueberry picking for the first time last weekend. Well, I should clarify that hubs and I went blueberry picking. The girls went blueberry eating.

Blueberry Barbecue Sauce made with fresh picked blueberries

We’ve made a pretty big dent in the 11 pounds of blueberries we picked (not including the pound and a half my kids ate while “picking”), but we still had plenty left to make some blueberry barbecue sauce. While not technically paleo because of the added sugar, it is gluten-free, and I think we all deserve a treat once in a while.

This sweet and spicy Blueberry Barbecue Sauce captures the taste of summer!

I found this recipe at the local farm where we picked our blueberries. The owners had stationed a shoebox out front with a stack of recipes courtesy of BC Blueberries. I’d recently made my own paleo barbecue sauce, so I was curious how a blueberry barbecue sauce would taste.

The answer is AMAZING! To make this recipe a little more paleo-friendly, I cut out a lot of the sugar and replaced the ketchup with tomato paste (no processed food, please). The plump, sun-ripened blueberries make this sauce plenty sweet even after removing over half of the sugar from the original recipe.

Blueberries, onion, garlic, tomato paste, brown sugar, and balsamic vinegar form the base for this barbecue sauce. Black pepper, smoked paprika, mustard, chili powder, cardamom, and cumin give it depth and some heat. This sweet and slightly spicy sauce is especially fantastic on chicken. Slather it on and enjoy the taste of summer!

Blueberry Barbecued Chicken

 

Blueberry Barbecue Sauce

Ingredients
  

  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup white onion minced
  • 4-5 cloves of garlic minced
  • 3 cups blueberries
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1/2 teaspoon cumin
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Instructions
 

  • Melt the coconut oil in a large sauce pan over low heat. Once hot, saute the minced onion and garlic until soft and starting to caramelize, about 8-10 minutes.
  • Add blueberries, brown sugar, vinegar, and seasonings, and mix well. Bring contents to a boil then reduce heat.
  • Simmer sauce over low heat for about an hour, stirring occasionally.
  • Add lemon juice and transfer sauce to blender. Puree until smooth.

Notes

Adapted from BC Blueberries
This post is linked up to some fantastic recipe link parties. Check out my Link Parties page to see where I’m linking up and to find some wonderful blogs and more amazing recipes!

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31 Comments

  • This sounds really good! I am sitting here wondering how it would be using blackberries? I have a freezer full of them and I might just have to try this with blackberries. Thanks for sharing a great recipe!

    • Hmm, I love blackberries, and I think the flavours would go well together. My only concern would be the blackberry seeds might leave the texture something less than desired. I’d love to hear how it goes if you try it with blackberries!

  • I think the girls had the right idea… Eat the delicious blueberries right off the bush!!! 🙂 I’ve never heard of blueberry bbq sauce before, but it sounds absolutely delicious to me! Thank you so much for linking up with us at Delicious Dish Tuesday!!

  • That sounds delicious! And I have to say, I would have probably done the same thing as your daughters. Who can resist fresh blueberries? Thank you for linking at the In and Out of the Kitchen Link Party. Hope to see you again next week.

  • Blueberries are one of my favorite fruits (blackberries being the other). I’ve never had blueberry BBQ sauce, but like the idea of having a new way to enjoy blueberries!

  • oh wow, this is a BBQ sauce I would love to make. While we don’t grow blueberries here in Utah, I suppose I can go buy a few in the store, enough to make a small batch of theis anyhow. The blueberries in the store are outrageously expensive

  • I love blueberries so much and miss having some around to pick.
    Never thought of putting them in a bbq sauce.
    Thanks for the recipe. I’ll make it and not tell my husband that there are bb’s in it to see what he thinks 😉

  • This looks like a great recipe. I love blueberries and have a hard time getting by with out eating them straight out of the carton. Once in awhile they make it to muffins, but this is definitely on my “to try” lists. I pinned it as well. yummy

  • I have to try this!!! It sounds and looks so good!!! Never would’ve thought you could make barbeque sauce with blueberries.

  • I well remember, as a child going as a family to pick blueberries up on the moors in north England. Mum baked delicious pies with our collection too.

  • Wow, you picked a lot of blueberries. Thanks for the recipe. We picked 4 liters of wild ones this summer, but the poison ivy and woodticks made me nervous.

  • wow I would never have thought of using blueberries in a barbeque sauce. DOES sound interesting and definately worth a try Thank you for the post

  • This recipe is amazing! I’ve heard of using fruit and chocolate in bbq sauces but have never attempted to do it myself. I think we’ll be making a trip to my uncles place out in Sooke where he has an acre of blueberries growing!

  • My friends own a blueberry farm that they open for u-picks every year. We pick lots of berries around 25-30 lbs. usually. Although this year with a 3.5 yo, 1.5 yo and a newborn, I didn’t do so well. Haha! This looks super yummy, I’m going to give it a shot with some of the berries from the freezer.

  • What an amazing combination of flavours! We love blueberries but I never thought of using them on meat! Thanks for the recipe.

  • I have never heard of a blueberry bbq sauce before. This looks very interesting, thanks for sharing