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Homemade BBQ sauce shelf life?

digger65
digger65 Posts: 13
edited November -0001 in EggHead Forum
Although our grilling/smoking has slowed down considerably since it got 'frigid/chilly' down here in central Alabama (yes we are wimps when it comes to the cold, but we can certainly take the heat), I am starting to get tired of the soups and stews and am looking forward to spring/summer smoking and grilling. As such, I'm thinking that this winter would be a great time to experiment with a homemade BBQ sauce before we are actually 'under the gun' with guests. We have several recipes that we want to try/mess with, but I am unsure as to how long anything will last in the fridge (if it does not go down the drain) before it turns toxic and kills us and and anyone else that might happen to be around. Any advice?[p]Beth
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Comments

  • Cory430
    Cory430 Posts: 1,073
    Beth, the Q sauce that I make has a ton of vinegar, some ketchup, and a fair amount of mustard in it along with a few other ingredients (no fresh produce). I have had it last up to 2 months. Even then it didn't go bad, I simply had used it all by them.
    Cory
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  • BENTE
    BENTE Posts: 8,337
    i am not sure about the shelf life but you might want to try Wild Boar bbq sauce it is about all we use here ;)

    happy eggin

    TB

    Anderson S.C.

    "Life is too short to be diplomatic. A man's friends shouldn't mind what he does or says- and those who are not his friends, well, the hell with them. They don't count."

    Tyrus Raymond Cobb

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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
    Among the sauces I've made, most have had at least some commercial ketchup and mustard, which hold for months in the fridge. The biggest batch I made had lots of molasses and cayenne also. It was boiled to a really thick consistency, but not under pressure like for canning. Pints of that were perfectly fine after 4 months in the fridge, tightly sealed. The molasses left over is still fine in the cupboard.

    gdenby
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  • FlaMike
    FlaMike Posts: 648
    Our go-to sauce is a combo of commercial sauces plus extra mustard, ketchup, spices, etc. I use a recycled large ketchup container, and have no problems so far up to 3-4 months. Could probably go longer.
    But it seems every year, we're using less and less sauce, enjoying the flavor of rubs, smoke and meat more & more.
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  • threeputt
    threeputt Posts: 13
    Can it! That's what my wife and I do. I normally do up a batch of sauce around 3-4 gallons and can it in mason jars. I don't use a pressure canner, but if you use new lids each time you'll be fine. Have your sauce boiling, or just a hair below boiling. Put the jars in the dishwasher on "sanitize". They come out VERY hot, so use gloves. Fill them to about an 3/4" or 1" from the top with sauce, put on a lid and ring, and set them aside. In a couple of hours as they cool, you'll start to hear the lids sealing POP POP POP. If you have one or two that don't seal, put them in the fridge for first use. All the others that DO seal, I keep them in the closet (dark) for over a year sometimes. No problem. My sauce is pretty acidic with the tomato, vinegar, lemon juice, etc and I'm sure that helps. Critters don't thrive well in a vacuum, and as long as everything is as hot as it can be when you cap them off, the cooling will create that vacuum and seal them. Hope this helps!

    Jeff
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