Fourteen Sauces We Can’t Live Without
Arthur Bryant's Sweet Heat Sauce, from the legendary restaurant in Kansas City, is the classic match for hickory-smoked brisket. It delivers honey sweetness, a strong garlic kick, and a subtle turmeric undertone.
Roscoe's Barbeque in Rochester, Minnesota, makes Roscoe's Original Sauce. It's full of fresh tomatoes and red chile peppers, local Minnesota honey, and bright lemon juice. Try it on chicken or pork chops.
Ribs get a blast of chipotle fire from Cowtown Barbecue's Night of the Living Bar-B-Q Sauce, another Kansas City favorite, with all the sweetness and sultry smoke that the town's sauces are famous for.
Full of tartness from Michigan-grown cherries, Petoskey, Michigan's, American Spoon Cherry BBQ Grilling Sauce has fresh orange zest and a touch of cumin. Delicious on pork loin, chicken, or duck.
Since 1924, at Abe's in Clarksdale, Michigan, they've been topping everything from barbecue to burgers with Original Abe's Barbeque Sauce. It's dark and peppery, with a bracing Worcestershire punch.
Smokey Garlic Sauce from Guy's Barbeque in Newton Falls, Ohio, has deep garlic flavor and a mesquite smokiness. It's also completely gluten-and sugar-free (though still sweet). Slather it on steak or a burger.
From York, Maine, comes Denny-Mike's Sweet 'n Spicy Slathah Sauce. This small-batch sauce has fresh pineapple juice and a touch of jalapeño. Use it to "slathah" some ribs or barbecued shrimp.
On a brisket sandwich or some smoked sausage, try Lauren's Spicy Recipe from the Salt Lick in Driftwood, Texas. Its sweetness is tempered with fresh lime, zingy mustard, and just enough habanero.
A bright and lively vinegar-based sauce with lots of black pepper and red chile spice, Scott's Barbecue Sauce from Scott's Famous Barbecue in Goldsboro, North Carolina, goes best with eastern Carolina-style 'cue.
Loveless Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee, makes this Sweet With a Bite BBQ Sauce, which balances brown sugar sweetness with crushed red pepper heat. Paint it on ribs, or pour it on a pulled pork sandwich.
Bursting with smoky flavor cut with sharp cumin and anise notes, Norma Black's Barbecue Sauce from Black's Barbecue in Lockhart, Texas, is a rich, tangy accompaniment for beef ribs or smoked sausage.
Baste some baby backs or liven up a pot of be ans with Big Rick's Big Taste Bar-B-Q Sauce, the creation of a barbecue-loving house painter in Wichita, Kansas. This sweet-hot sauce is thick with chunks of onion.
From Legends in Harbert, Mississippi, Apple Cider for Pork Barbeque Sauce has a rich tomato base with a sweet, fresh apple taste and a bit of heat in the finish. Use it to baste a pork loin or tenderloin.
TODD COLEMAN
Recipes

Fourteen Sauces We Can’t Live Without

Arthur Bryant's Sweet Heat Sauce, from the legendary restaurant in Kansas City, is the classic match for hickory-smoked brisket. It delivers honey sweetness, a strong garlic kick, and a subtle turmeric undertone.
Roscoe's Barbeque in Rochester, Minnesota, makes Roscoe's Original Sauce. It's full of fresh tomatoes and red chile peppers, local Minnesota honey, and bright lemon juice. Try it on chicken or pork chops.
Ribs get a blast of chipotle fire from Cowtown Barbecue's Night of the Living Bar-B-Q Sauce, another Kansas City favorite, with all the sweetness and sultry smoke that the town's sauces are famous for.
Full of tartness from Michigan-grown cherries, Petoskey, Michigan's, American Spoon Cherry BBQ Grilling Sauce has fresh orange zest and a touch of cumin. Delicious on pork loin, chicken, or duck.
Since 1924, at Abe's in Clarksdale, Michigan, they've been topping everything from barbecue to burgers with Original Abe's Barbeque Sauce. It's dark and peppery, with a bracing Worcestershire punch.
Smokey Garlic Sauce from Guy's Barbeque in Newton Falls, Ohio, has deep garlic flavor and a mesquite smokiness. It's also completely gluten-and sugar-free (though still sweet). Slather it on steak or a burger.
From York, Maine, comes Denny-Mike's Sweet 'n Spicy Slathah Sauce. This small-batch sauce has fresh pineapple juice and a touch of jalapeño. Use it to "slathah" some ribs or barbecued shrimp.
On a brisket sandwich or some smoked sausage, try Lauren's Spicy Recipe from the Salt Lick in Driftwood, Texas. Its sweetness is tempered with fresh lime, zingy mustard, and just enough habanero.
A bright and lively vinegar-based sauce with lots of black pepper and red chile spice, Scott's Barbecue Sauce from Scott's Famous Barbecue in Goldsboro, North Carolina, goes best with eastern Carolina-style 'cue.
Loveless Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee, makes this Sweet With a Bite BBQ Sauce, which balances brown sugar sweetness with crushed red pepper heat. Paint it on ribs, or pour it on a pulled pork sandwich.
Bursting with smoky flavor cut with sharp cumin and anise notes, Norma Black's Barbecue Sauce from Black's Barbecue in Lockhart, Texas, is a rich, tangy accompaniment for beef ribs or smoked sausage.
Baste some baby backs or liven up a pot of be ans with Big Rick's Big Taste Bar-B-Q Sauce, the creation of a barbecue-loving house painter in Wichita, Kansas. This sweet-hot sauce is thick with chunks of onion.
From Legends in Harbert, Mississippi, Apple Cider for Pork Barbeque Sauce has a rich tomato base with a sweet, fresh apple taste and a bit of heat in the finish. Use it to baste a pork loin or tenderloin.

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