Pineapple Barbeque Sauce with Jalapeno
Why buy barbeque sauce when you can make your own? This simple Pineapple Barbeque Sauce with Jalapeno is so easy to make, and it is slightly sweet with just a hint of spice. A few ingredients and a little time on the stove is all you need for this easy homemade pineapple bbq sauce recipe you’ll use on everything!!
Pineapple Barbeque Sauce
If someone were to ask what my favorite condiment is, I’d have to say that barbeque sauce is right there at the top. I especially like the ones that have a unique flavor profile, not just the ketchup and brown sugar base most barbeque sauce is known for.
This pineapple barbeque sauce has just a few ingredients and does not take much time in the kitchen. Once you give this a try, I know you’ll make your own barbeque sauce more often!
Barbeque Sauce From Scratch
There are so many barbeque sauces on the shelf these days, it can seem like there are almost too many choices. I have found most store bought barbeque sauces to be underwhelming at the least, and disappointing at the most.
While there are some good ones to be found, I prefer to make my own rather than keep trying until I find the right one. I find that homemade barbeque sauce just tastes better!
I say if you are going to the trouble to heat up your grill (if you are using this sauce on grilled food) then you might as well have a flavorful sauce, right?
What You Will Love About This Recipe
This sauce has so much great flavor! You can really taste the pineapple, and the jalapeno provides heat but doesn’t overwhelm and balances out the sweet notes.
The flavors here are really fresh, and this sauce would be great with so many things (more on that below).
Barbeque Sauce Recipe Without Ketchup
Most homemade and store bought barbeque sauces contain ketchup as a main ingredient. You don’t necessarily need it to make barbeque sauce! Ketchup has its own flavor profile, and I think when you use it to make other sauces, too much of the ketchup flavor joins the party, while drowning out some other things you want noticed.
I wanted the pineapple and jalapeno to shine here, and that’s why this recipe uses tomato paste. It adds depth, richness, and body. Don’t substitute ketchup here, it will not taste the same!
Pineapple Barbeque Sauce Ingredients
Pineapple Barbeque Sauce Ingredients
This recipe uses not only the juice, but the fruit as well. It adds so much pineapple flavor and helps make the sauce a little thicker, making it great for basting and dipping.
Fresh Pineapple Juice
Since you are using fresh pineapple, you are going to have some fresh pineapple juice. This means you might as well use the fresh stuff! There is no reason to use canned juice here. I find it to be rather flat flavor wise.
Fresh Jalapenos
I like the slight heat of jalapeno here. You can leave the seeds in or remove them, depending on how hot you want it. Don’t use jarred pickled jalapenos here, use fresh.
Light Brown Sugar
Light brown sugar has a lower molasses content than dark brown, and I think it makes for a better flavor because it does not compete as much with the pineapple.
Fresh Garlic
You don’t even need to chop the garlic before adding it to the saucepan! The blender or immersion blender will do all the work for you. All you have to do is peel it!
Frequently Asked Questions
I have not tested this with canned juice, but I think the pineapple notes might be less pronounced, since canned pineapple juice does not have as much flavor.
If you want it hotter, simply leaving the seeds and ribs of the jalapeno intact should be enough. To make it milder, you can use less jalapeno and be sure all ribs and seeds are removed. If you want it even hotter, try substituting serrano for jalapeno.
Definitely! You don’t have to wait until the last minute to make this, and it actually gets better after a few hours in the refrigerator.
Oh, yes! It can be doubled very easily. You can even triple this recipe, just make sure you have a container big enough for storage.
A juicer of course is the best method, but if you don’t have one, you can cut some pineapple into cubes and place them in a fine mesh sieve or strainer over a bowl, and use the back of a metal spoon to press on the fruit. This method takes a few extra minutes but it’s worth it to have fresh juice. I also use this method in my recipe for Chicken and Pineapple Stir Fry with Bamboo Rice.
How To Serve Pineapple Barbeque Sauce With Jalapeno
I love the versatility of this sauce! It’s terrific on grilled chicken or pork. You can either baste it on while grilling, or just use it as a dipping sauce (or both, just be sure that you have a separate batch of sauce for basting and another for dipping). It’s great on salmon, whether it is grilled, baked, or pan seared.
One batch of this sauce should be enough to divide in half to use some for basting and some for dipping for four chicken breasts, a small sized pork roast, or one medium sized pork tenderloin.
If you love fried chicken as much as I do, this might just become your favorite dipping sauce (it’s so good with fried chicken). This is pretty marvelous on smoked pork or chicken as well. The possibilities are almost endless!
What could be better with grilled food or fried chicken than some Rhubarb Lemonade? For some side dish ideas to go with this sauce, try Potato Salad with Leek Scapes and Herbs or Farro Salad with Spring Vegetables.
How To Store Pineapple Barbeque Sauce
The sauce will keep for about a month in a tightly sealed container or jar in the refrigerator. I have not tried freezing this sauce, so I’m not sure how well it would defrost. For that reason, I don’t recommend freezing it.
If you tried this pineapple bbq sauce recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out! Just leave a rating or comment below, or take a picture and tag me @thecoppertable on Instagram, pin to a board on Pinterest or share with your friends on social media! If you have not signed up for my weekly newsletter, you can do that below. I have all sorts of exclusive content just for newsletter subscribers, and I’d love for you to join. Happy Cooking!
Pineapple and Jalapeno Barbeque Sauce
This easy ketchup free recipe for Pineapple Barbeque sauce with Jalapeno uses fresh pineapple along with fresh pineapple juice. It's great for basting and dipping!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup fresh Pineapple, diced
- 1/2 cup fresh Pineapple Juice
- 3/4 cup light Brown Sugar
- 2 Jalapenos, seeds and ribs removed from one jalapeno
- 1 large Garlic clove
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
Instructions
- Cut the pineapple into chunks, reserving 3/4 cup for the sauce, and run the remaining pineapple in the blender to yield 1/2 cup of juice. It's ok if you have some pineapple pulp mixed in with the juice. It will all cook down!
- Heat a small saucepan on medium heat.
- While the saucepan heats up, remove the stems from both jalapenos and seeds from one of the jalapenos, and roughly chop them.
- Peel the garlic clove (there is no need to chop it).
- Add the pineapple chunks, fresh pineapple juice, light brown sugar, garlic clove, and chopped jalapeno to the saucepan and cook until the brown sugar has dissolved and the mixture begins to simmer, about 5 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to medium low, and add the salt, black pepper, and tomato paste to the pan and simmer for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the mixture reduces and thickens.
- Pour into a blender and puree until smooth or use an immersion blender right in the saucepan.
- Place the sauce in a jar or container with a tight fitting lid and refrigerate until ready to use, or it can be used right away. Yields about 3/4 cup of sauce.
Notes
To increase the heat of the sauce, keep the seeds and ribs in both jalapenos. For even more heat, you can use serrano chilis instead.
To decrease the heat, remove all seeds and ribs, or use less jalapeno.
You may find that the immersion blender does not make the sauce completely smooth. I personally don't mind a little chunky texture to the sauce, but if you want it smooth let it cool down after it cooks and run it through your blender.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 227Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 9mgSodium: 1220mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 1gSugar: 46gProtein: 3g
All information presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian and any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline. Statements within this site have not been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is provided for recipes contained on this site. This information comes from online calculators. Although The Copper Table attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
Insanely good! A great balance of sweet and spicy.
So glad you like it Megs!
This sauce is incredible – the perfect balance of savoury, sweet and spicy.
I’m happy to heat that you like it Alexandra!
Okay, this pineapple and jalapeno BBQ sauce sounds amazing and perfect for grilling chicken on these warm summer nights!
It is perfect for that! I hope you love this recipe Genevieve!
Will make this BBQ sauce for my hubby! He’s going to love it! Thanks for the recipe!
You are welcome Nora!
This pineapple BBQ sauce was so delicious!
Glad you liked it Kayla!
This is such a tasty alternative to store-bought barbecue sauce. Most bottles sauces contain too much salt and we’re trying to watch our sodium intake. .
I try to watch my sodium too, that’s why I like making my own sauces!
I kept the seeds because I love them a bit hotter. Your pineapple jalapeno sauce is perfect for my taste, thanks!
Such a delicious, vibrant sauce – wonderful flavours, and so many ways to enjoy this!
Yum, yum, yum, I can’t wait to make this Pineapple and Jalapeno Barbeque Sauce.:) I’m loving the homemade staff. Thanks!:)
This sauce is perfect on pork tenderloin. Just brush this thick, sticky sauce on towards the end of the cook. The perfect amount of heat and sweet.