This sweet, subtly spicy rhubarb bbq sauce is my tangy twist on a classic! Ruby red rhubarb stems, sweet onion, savory soy sauce, and a blast of fiery fresh ginger simmer together–creating a richly hued sauce with tons of deep flavors.
Get your groans ready people, because I love a good pun.
I came up with the idea for a rhubarb bbq sauce, wait for it–rhubarbecue sauce 😉–after cooking up a batch of The Daily Spud’s rhubarb ketchup while working a farm dinner job years ago. Though it came to me separately, I would be remiss not to mention that the rhubarb-bbq concept is widely credited to the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving, where it is known as Victorian Rhubarb BBQ Sauce.
My version veers off in a different direction though, combining classic barbecue ingredients like molasses and smoky paprika with Asian influences in the form of piquant fresh ginger (spicy!), rice vinegar, and soy sauce.
While rhubarb in its fresh form can be shockingly colorful, it unfortunately loses its brightness as it cooks. To compensate, many other rhubarb bbq sauce recipes add lots of tomato ingredients so as to give the sauce a redder color.
For me though, the strong tomato taste too easily overpowers the uniquely jazzy rhubarb flavor, so my recipe for rhubarb bbq sauce uses just a couple of spoonfuls of tomato paste to serve as a complementary base rather than a main ingredient.
It’s not the prettiest, but it sure is tasty! And once slathered atop your favorite proteins or mixed into your favorite dishes, this simple rhubarb bbq sauce will light up a meal like no other.
ingredients for rhubarb bbq sauce
ingredient notes & swaps
- Fresh rhubarb stalks can range in color from deep crimson to riotously fuschia pink to pale lime green and anywhere in between. No matter the color though, all rhubarb tends to turn brown after cooking for a long time as we will be doing for this homemade barbecue sauce recipe, so don’t worry too much about which color stalks you end up with.
- I would avoid using blackstrap molasses here, as its bitterness could overpower the fresh tang of your beautiful rhubarb. Instead, opt for regular or dark molasses. If you don’t have molasses, you could swap in ⅓ cup brown sugar, but know the flavor of your sauce will turn out a bit less barbecue-y.
- Rice wine vinegar has a sweet taste and more delicate sharpness as compared to other vinegars, and I love the way its flavor plays with the other ingredients like soy sauce and ginger. If you don’t have it, your next best bet would be apple cider vinegar.
- If yours are large, use just 1 bay leaf. Mine were on the smaller side so I used 2 leaves.
tangy rhubarb bbq sauce recipe
This sweet, subtly spicy rhubarb bbq sauce is my tangy twist on a classic! Ruby red rhubarb stems, sweet onion, savory soy sauce, and a blast of fiery fresh ginger simmer together–creating a richly hued sauce with tons of deep flavors.
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 1 quart
Ingredients
- 5 long stalks rhubarb (enough to yield 2 ½ cups chopped)
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 2 inch knob fresh ginger, (enough to yield ¼ cup chopped)
- Salt, to taste (use smoked salt if you have it!)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- Black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup orange juice
- ½ cup molasses
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup rice wine vinegar
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Rinse and roughly chop the rhubarb stalks, removing any brown or mushy parts as you do so. Peel your ginger root and roughly chop it as well.
- Combine the chopped rhubarb, onion, and ginger with a big pinch of salt (smoked salt adds great flavor if you have it!) in a lightly oiled pot over medium-high heat. Sauté for about 3-5 minutes, just until slightly softened.
- Stir in the tomato paste, garlic clove, smoked paprika, ground allspice, and black pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes, just enough to cook the tomato paste a little bit, stirring almost constantly so that the tomato paste doesn’t stick.
- Stir in the orange juice, molasses, soy sauce, vinegar, and bay leaves.
- Increase the heat to high and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and let it simmer gently for about 45 minutes, stirring often, until the veggies are very soft and the sauce is thickened. Your rhubarb barbecue sauce will look a bit like chocolate sauce at this point!
- Remove from the heat and pick out and discard the bay leaves. Use an immersion blender to puree the sauce until nice and smooth, or transfer it to an upright blender if needed. If the sauce is too thick and not blending well, add a splash of water. If your sauce seems too thin, simply return it to the pot after blending and keep simmering on low until it reaches your desired consistency.
- Taste and adjust seasonings to your taste–sometimes it needs a little more salt or vinegar at this point–then use your rhubarb bbq sauce right away or pack it into containers or jars!
Notes
- When prepping your rhubarb, be sure to discard any leaves or leafy bits (they are toxic if ingested!), then give the stalks a good rinse before roughly chopping them.
- The easiest way to peel fresh ginger is to scrape it with a metal spoon, using quick, short strokes. The papery skin will peel and flake away. Feel free to trim any stubborn bits with a paring knife.
- You can use either an immersion blender or upright blender to puree your rhubarb barbecue sauce. If using an immersion blender, make sure the sauce is in a deep enough pot or container that the head of the blender is completely submerged, otherwise it will splatter. If using an upright blender, let the sauce cool a bit first, then transfer it to the blender and make sure the lid is firmly in place.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minues
- Category: sauce
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: american
FAQs
Can you use frozen rhubarb to make this sauce?
Yes! I think fresh rhubarb makes for the best rhubarb bbq sauce, but made with frozen rhubarb, it will still turn out delicious!
Is this rhubarb bbq sauce good for canning?
It is, although I have never tried it myself (yet!) so I can’t give specific instructions on canning rhubarb bbq sauce. I recommend referencing a reputable home canning resource and following their instructions for safely canning a comparable bbq sauce recipe.
If you loved this Rhubarb Barbeque Sauce Recipe, make sure to try my other summertime favorites like Crockpot Chicken Legs and No Bake Key Lime Cheesecake!
dig in!
Enjoy & let me know what you think 🌙 💛
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