Recipe: Coca-Cola Barbecue Sauce

Coca-Cola Barbecue Sauce

Makes 2 cups

Dare to be different. That's Jim Budros's motto, and his culinary open-mindedness has won the financial advisor turned pit bull boss a championship at the Kansas City Royal International Barbecue Contest. What's different about his barbecue sauce is its main flavoring, an ingredient most people are more likely to drink than cook with: Coke! This isn't quite as strange as it sounds, because Coke is sweet, tart, and spicy the flavor profile of most great barbecue sauces. Incidentally, pot roast braised in Coca-Cola is a favorite in Venezuela.

1 cup Coca Cola
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1/2 cup A-l Steak Sauce
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a heavy, non-reactive saucepan and gradually bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat slightly to obtain a gentle simmer. Simmer the sauce until reduced by a quarter, 6 to 8 minutes. Use right away or transfer to a large jar, cover, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate. The sauce will keep for several months.

Buy the Book!

Barbecue! Bible™
Sauces, Rubs, and Marinades,
Bastes, Butters & Glazes
By Steven Raichlen
Workman, 2000
Paper: $12.95 (ISBN: 0-7611-1979-5)
Hardcover: $22.95 (ISBN: 0-7611-2013-0)
Illustrations throughout; two color; 320 pages
Recipe reprinted by permission.