Thick and Sticky Barbecue Sauce
TIME/SERVINGS
Total: 15 mins
Active: 15 mins
Makes: 3 1/2 cups
From: Dr. BBQ's Big-Time Barbecue Cookbook , by Ray Lampe
This is the kind of sauce typically associated with Kansas City, where such recipes are closely guarded secrets.
To finish his ribs and chicken at barbecue cookoffs around the country, Dr. BBQ combines 2 cups Thick and Sticky Barbecue Sauce with 1 cup honey and 1 tablespoon hot sauce in a saucepan and simmers the mixture for 15 minutes, until it is reduced and thickened.
- 2 cups ketchup
- 1 cup dark molasses
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground mace
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
- Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. As soon as the molasses dissolves, the sauce is ready to use. Store in a covered glass jar or plastic container in the refrigerator.
This recipe, while from a trusted source, may not have been tested by the CHOW food team.
COMMENTS | ADD YOUR OWN
Below are 2 recipes for sauce from the most popular KC BBQ places: Gates and Arthur Bryant's (I'm sure that they are approximations). They are typical of KC sauces. Note the complete absence of molasses:
GATES
1 cup sugar
¼ cup salt
2 tablespoon celery Seed
2 tablespoon cumin
2 tablespoon cayenne Pepper
2 tablespoon garlic Powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 quarts catsup
2 cups cider vinegar
1 to ½ teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Mix together all spices. Set aside. Combine the remaining ingredients and
then add the spice mixture; mix well. Serve warm or cold. Freezes well.
ARTHUR BRYANT’S BARBECUE SAUCE
1/2 CUP CIDER VINEGAR
1/2 CUP RICE VINEGAR
1 CUP WATER
1/2 CUP PAPRIKA
1/3 CUP YELLOW MUSTARD
1/4 CUP BROWN SUGAR
1/8 CUP KOSHER SALT
1/8 CUP WORCHESTER SAUCE
1 TABLESPOON GARLIC POWDER
A LITTLE BLACK PEPPER
1 TABLESPOON HOT SAUCE - CHOWALLA IF AVAILABLE
COOK UNTIL DESIRED THICKNESS. FINE TUNE FLAVORS BY ADJUSTING QUANTITIES.
In my opinion, molasses does not belong in KC sauce. It was only when that KC Masterpiece guy put it in his sauce did people think that KC sauces are thick and sweet.
I grew up in Kansas City and lived there until I was 25 and must disagree. While Arthur Bryant's is a great place their sauce has always been the weakest link IMHO. It has a very strong vinegar flavor and tends to be one of the thinnest sauces in the area. It pairs well with brisket, but that's about it. Not to mention that brisket tends to be more strongly associated with Texas barbecue, rather than KC's greater focus on burnt ends.
The comparison to Gates' sauce is also rather apt as it has the same thin, vinegary taste.
Personally, I think that KC sauces need to have molasses in them. Since KC barbecue tends not to use much in the way of rubs and isn't as heavily invested in mop sauces the proper application of a good sauce is essential. Out of all the places I've eaten in KC over the years Gates and Arthur Bryant's tend to be unique in using these vinegary sauces. KC Masterpiece is a decent sauce (though far from great, and the actual restaurant is both pretty terrible and owned by someone else IIRC), but while it's become a mass-produced, common-denominator type it's still quite indicative of a proper KC-style sauce (it's a bit too sweet for one thing). Further, while molasses is essential, you should never have honey in your KC-style sauce.
I don't have the recipe, but Hayward's is one of the better examples of a top-notch, readily-available KC sauce (plus, the restaurant is located in a part of the suburbs that hasn't been hot since the 80s so the place is often very easy to get into, unlike Jack's Stack... which is nothing on the old original Smokestack out in Martin City).
My point of contention was with the line "This is the kind of sauce typically associated with Kansas City."
Considering that the two most famous (and most representative) titans of BBQ in KC don't resemble the recipe, it's just misleading.
And I also have to disagree with the idea that KC BBQ doesn't use rubs. It's simply not true.
And another thing: a burnt end is a part of the brisket.
Burnt ends can be either beef or pork.
Regarding the faux Arthur Bryant's original sauce, which is by far my favorite: If this recipe is supposed to be for the Original sauce, it's missing something--that special "grittiness" that no other sauce has is ground, dried peppers. At least, that's what they told me the last time I was there. Don't know how close the rest of the recipe is, but it's gotta have that grit if it's going to taste like Arthur Bryant's, IMHO.
One thing that's missing is celery seed --
All in all, it's too "fancy" and over-thought for the traditional KC sauces.
My favorite is a combo of LC's sauce and Zarda BBQ Sauce -- and yes, I know that a lot of BBQ lovers might say that Zarda BBQ doesn't have enough fat in their meats.... but I like that trimmed brisket with their kinda bbq/southwestern taste to the sauce.
Sauce is but an excuse for inferior barbecue.
Not to drag this into even more of a holy war, but sauceless barbecue isn't barbecue. At least, not to me. Yes, liberal doses of sauce can help to cover up badly smoked meat, but if all I wanted was dry smoked meat... well, I can't imagine why I would.
I just got back from my second trip to KC, and I don't think their sauce is "thick and sticky" at all. It certainly isn't like carolina stuff, but it does seem thin next to the grocery store garbage.
If you really want kansas city sauce, you need to have an overpowering amount of some dried spice that ruins the sauce. Its celery seed at LC's, cumin at Gates, and IDK what at Arthur Bryant's. Then, you need to hype it up and have presidential candidates stop by to try it.
Sauce makes BBQ.
I grew up in Missouri and have had a lot of barbecue in Kansas City. I never liked Arthur Bryant's original sauce. It is its own thing and I don't like it. I do like their "spicy" (I think that's what they call it) sauce which they added a few (several?) years ago. It's much more traditional as I recall and quite good.