Cherry season is here, and to celebrate, the folks at CherryHill Orchards kindly gave us a big box of juicy, sweet cherries to enjoy. We wanted to make a recipe that was a bit different than usual that would show off the characteristics of the fresh cherries and, with the barbecue being used that day, we decided to create a cherry BBQ sauce. The sweetness of the cherries works well with the with the tang of the vinegar and mustard resulting in a sauce that’s got a classic barbecue flavour with a distinctive, subtle cherry flavour.
Preparation Time: 10 minutes / Cooking Time: 1 hour / Makes 625ml sauce
Ingredients
- 1 small brown onion, diced
- 2 medium garlic cloves, diced
- 400g fresh cherries
- 60ml pomegranate molasses
- 5 large truss tomatoes
- 60ml apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp (5g) chilli powder
- 1 tbsp (15g) djion mustard
- 1 tsp (5g) smoked paprika
- 200ml topaque/muscat/tokaj
- 200ml water
Method
- Remove the pits from the cherries.
- Place all ingredients into a saucepan and bring to the boil.
- Once the ingredients have reached a boil, decrease the heat and allow them to simmer for 45 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and allow it to cool for a few minutes.
- With a food processor or stick blender, blend the mixture into a smooth sauce.
- Place in a glass jar and refrigerate.
Notes
The cherry BBQ sauce can be kept in an airtight container for approximately two weeks.
I would recommend using this sauce on baby back ribs. If you cover the ribs in this sauce for the last half an hour of cooking it will caramelise and give your ribs a beautiful sticky coating.