Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (2024)

This North Carolina BBQ Sauce recipe is tangy and full of flavor! We love slathering it on pulled pork or grilled chicken. This vinegar based BBQ sauce is the perfect mixture of sweet and tangy.

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (1)

People. I have a problem.

I want to dip all the things in all the things.

By which I mean, I want to dip every single food in every single type of condiment available.

If I make our oven fried chicken tenders, I must also have country gravy, ranch dressing, honey mustard, barbecue sauce, and our copycat Chick-Fil-A sauce.

If I eat french fries, I want a plate with little squirts of ketchup, dollops of mayo, blobs of spicy mustard, cheese sauce, and a good amount of fry sauce.

I have condiment commitment issues, you guys. I should probably go to therapy for this.

Anyway, barbecue sauce is a condiment which means that I love it and .

So, I made up a batch of my favorite Carolina barbecue sauce recipe this week and thought I’d share the recipe.

I snagged it off the back of a bag of Lay’s barbecue chips a long time ago (embarrassing? maybe. also true.), doctored it up a bit, and it’s been a favorite ever since! I love the tangy flavor from all of the vinegar!

This vinegar based bbq sauce is absolute perfection, my friends.

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (2)

Table of Contents

What is Carolina Style BBQ Sauce:

Carolina BBQ sauce is a vinegar based BBQ sauce that often contains no tomato products at all. It’s a very thin sauce.

Our version of Carolina BBQ sauce contains both apple cider vinegar and ketchup, making for a sauce that’s thicker than just a straight vinegar based sauce. The tanginess of the vinegar shines through nicely and is paired perfeclty with the sweetness of the ketchup and brown sugar. We think this is the best of both worlds – thinner and tangier than something like our Bourbon BBQ sauce or Sweet Baby Ray’s, but still with a bit of body that will cling nicely to your pulled pork or grilled chicken.

Ingredient Notes:

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Wet Ingredients: This easy vinegar based BBQ sauce recipe starts with a mix of ingredients you probably already have at home. The wet ingredients include apple cider vinegar, ketchup, yellow mustard, and Worcestershire sauce.

Dry Ingredients: Along with the tangy flavor from the vinegar every good BBQ sauce recipe needs a little bit of sweet and a little bit of heat! That’ll come from brown sugar and chili powder. Some onion and garlic powder along with salt will also help balance out the flavors in this tangy North Carolina BBQ sauce recipe!

What Readers are Saying!

“We smoke our own meats and this sauce is amazing! Exactly what I’ve been looking for! Followed the recipe and I couldn’t be happier with it. Thank you!” – April

How to Make Carolina Barbecue Sauce:

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (4)

Combine: This is one of those really simple one pot recipes where you can just dump everything in and go. Add all the wet ingredients to a medium saucepan with the dry ingredients and whisk it all together over low heat until it begins to form into the tangy BBQ sauce.

Boil: Bring the sauce to a boil, being careful to stir often so that the bottom doesn’t burn.

Thicken (Or Don’t): We like to let our sauce boil and reduce down by about a third. This makes for a thicker sauce with a bit more body. You can boil it for as long as you like – the longer you boil it, the thicker it will be. The less you boil it, the thinner it will be!

Store: When the sauce is ready you’ll need something to store it in. I recommend mason jars! Let it cool for about 20 minutes before transferring to the jars or another airtight container.

I wouldn’t recommend using this sauce right away though. It’ll thicken up a bit and take on even more flavor if you let it set it in the refrigerator first for at least a couple of hours or even a day or two!

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (5)

Serving Suggestions:

Pretzel Crusted ChickenThe perfect dip for this juicy, crunchy chicken is our barbecue sauce!

Air Fryer Boneless Pork Chops Just 10 minutes in the air fryer. Baste these with our tangy barbecue sauce or serve on the side.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches We drizzle these with sauce and top them with dill pickle slaw. A must!

BBQ Chicken Burgers Dry burgers? No, sir. We add BBQ sauce and cracker crumbs to the mix and they turn out fab.

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (6)

FAQs:

What type of vinegar should I use?

We prefer apple cider vinegar in this Carolina BBQ sauce.

How to store BBQ sauce?

This tangy Carolina BBQ sauce is best stored in a mason jar in the refrigerator. It won’t last as long as the bottled stuff from the store but it will last for a couple of weeks in the fridge. It can also be frozen in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. We do not have experience canning this sauce.

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Recipe

Tangy Carolina Barbecue Sauce

This North Carolina BBQ Sauce recipe is tangy and full of flavor! We love slathering it on pulled pork or grilled chicken. You won’t be able to get enough of this barbecue sauce recipe.

4.10 from 297 votes

Print Pin Save

Prep2 minutes minutes

Cook3 minutes minutes

Total5 minutes minutes

Serves 16 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup ketchup
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup yellow mustard
  • 1 tablespoons onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Instructions

  • Dump everything into a medium saucepan set to low heat. Whisk together to combine. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.

  • Boil, stirring often, for 5 minutes or until the sauce has reduced to your liking, keeping in mind sauce will thicken slightly as it cools.

  • Remove from the heat and store in a one pint mason jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 51kcal (3%)| Carbohydrates: 11g (4%)| Sodium: 234mg (10%)| Potassium: 81mg (2%)| Sugar: 10g (11%)| Vitamin A: 90IU (2%)| Vitamin C: 0.8mg (1%)| Calcium: 14mg (1%)| Iron: 0.2mg (1%)

Author: Karly Campbell

Course:Condiment

Cuisine:American

Did You Make This?Tag Us On Instagram

This recipe was originally published in May of 2013. It was updated with new photos in October 2023.

Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (9)
Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (10)
Tangy Carolina BBQ Sauce Recipe | Buns In My Oven (2024)

FAQs

Do you put barbecue sauce on before or after oven? ›

You only add BBQ sauce near the very end of cooking, so if you are going to be cooking your drumsticks for 45 minutes, at 35 minutes apply your BBQ sauce and cook it enough for it to warm up and maybe caramelize a little, but be careful because BBQ sauce has allot of sugar and tends to burn.

How do you thicken Carolina BBQ sauce? ›

You can use either flour or cornstarch to thicken BBQ sauce. Just mix together 2 tbsp (16 g) of flour and ¼ cup (62.5 mL) of water, or combine 1 tbsp (9 g) of cornstarch with 1 tbsp (15 mL) of water. Continue mixing the thickener until there are no lumps of flour or cornstarch.

What is tangy BBQ sauce made of? ›

To the tomato base, vinegar, a sweetener like sugar, brown sugar, honey or molasses, and seasonings like chili powder, onion, garlic, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili peppers, cayenne pepper or hot sauce is added and the sauce is simmered to marry the flavors. Is it hard to make barbecue sauce from scratch?

How do I get my BBQ flavor in the oven? ›

The best way—it seems—to do this is by soaking your favorite barbecue wood and heating them in the oven with your meat. The first thing I did was find different types of wood to use to create that memorable smoky barbecue flavor. I tend to use more fruity wood such as cherrywood or applewood.

How do you do the BBQ effect in the oven? ›

Using a grill pan in the oven

Using a cast-iron grill pan (as opposed to your oven's normal grill pan) can help emulate the outdoor BBQ or 'grilling' experience inside the oven. These pans can withstand high temperatures and feature raised ridges to impart signature grill marks on your food.

How do you make something taste tangy? ›

Try adding fresh lime or lemon juice, a splash of vinegar (such as apple cider), sour condiments such as pickles or sauerkraut, and sweet-flavored herbs such as cilantro and basil.

What makes a tangy flavor? ›

Tangy foods, like vinegar and lemon juice, have a sharp, acidic flavor. Your salad will taste better if you pour plenty of tangy salad dressing on it. If you like tangy flavors, you'll probably enjoy lemonade that's not too sweet, as well as foods like blue cheese, lime-flavored Thai dishes, and plain yogurt.

What style of BBQ sauce is tangy? ›

Carolina BBQ Sauce

It's a rich, spicy, and tangy sauce made with yellow mustard that gets slathered on pork. North Carolina has a vinegar-based BBQ sauce. It's mostly cider vinegar, salt, and red pepper flakes.

What makes Carolina BBQ sauce different? ›

Eastern Carolina barbecue sauce is tomato-free, but the Western Carolina variant, sometimes called Piedmont or Lexington, does contain some ketchup—though not enough to thicken it. It's still thin and vinegary, albeit slightly pinker than its Eastern cousin.

What makes Carolina BBQ sauce unique? ›

The ingredients of Carolina-style BBQ sauce can vary depending on the recipe, but typically include: Apple cider vinegar: This is the base of the sauce and gives it its characteristic tangy flavor. Ketchup or tomato paste: This provides a sweet and slightly acidic flavor that balances the acidity of the vinegar.

How long does homemade Carolina BBQ sauce last? ›

Homemade barbecue sauce should be stored in an airtight container in your refrigerator and should be used or tossed around the 3 week mark.

What does Carolina Tangy Gold BBQ sauce taste like? ›

Cattlemen's® Carolina Tangy Gold™ BBQ Sauce blends signature flavors like zesty, creamy mustard, sweet molasses and sugar and tangy apple cider vinegar with hickory smoke notes and a hint of perfectly aged cayenne peppers for a complex, unmatched flavor profile and a rich, distinctive golden color.

What are the different types of Carolina BBQ sauce? ›

Also called “Carolina Gold,” this style first appeared in the middle of the state + quickly spread out from there. S.C. is known for a variety of sauces (dictated by geography): vinegar-pepper, light tomato, heavy tomato + mustard-based sauce – which is unique to S.C. Search for BBQ in your area here.

What is Carolina style BBQ? ›

Characteristics of Carolina BBQ

Carolina Style BBQ Meat - whole hog BBQ and pulled pork shoulders define the tradition, but you'll find ribs, chicken, brisket, and turkey on menus. Carolina Style Dry Rub - uses few seasonings; pitmasters slather the meat in a mop sauce during its long cooking process.

Do you add sauce before or after cooking? ›

With few exceptions (such as when you're making a pesto-style sauce), pasta should be tossed with sauce that is already hot and ready. You don't want your cooked pasta to heat up in a cold pan of sauce, slowly absorbing more water and becoming mushy.

Do you put BBQ sauce on ribs before baking? ›

Ribs, however, can handle more sauce applied earlier in the cooking process. Most people expect a thick barbecue sauce on ribs, so it should be layered on during the last 30 minutes to an hour of cooking. Apply several thin coatings to build layers. This is what makes for a sticky, delicious surface on ribs.

How do you get barbecue sauce to stick to chicken in the oven? ›

Roast the chicken for 10 minutes, then brush with more sauce. Return the chicken to the oven and roast for 10 minutes more. Brush the chicken all over again with the sauce. Roast for an additional 10 minutes until burnished and sticky.

How do you get BBQ sauce to stick to chicken in the oven? ›

Place enough sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish to be able to spread it around and cover the bottom. Place 1 cup of flour in a shallow bowl. Dip each chicken breast into flour on both sides and place in the baking dish top side down. Spoon remaining sauce over them, making sure to coat the chicken.

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