BBQ is already delicious as it is — tangy, smoky, and sticky-sweet. But what makes it even better is a thick, syrupy glaze made with everyone’s favorite yellow condiment: honey.

Honey makes many foods taste better, given its subtle, natural sweetness. And when you incorporate it into BBQ sauce, the end flavor is even more dynamic.

This specific recipe also uses ketchup as a key ingredient to add depth and round out the sweetness.

The result is an addictively delicious honey-roasted BBQ sauce perfect for slathering on ribs, chicken, or pulled pork.

What Is Honey BBQ Sauce?

There are a lot of positive traits about honey BBQ sauce, but what exactly is it? Honey barbecue sauce is a type of sauce used as a glaze, marinade or dip.

It gets made with honey, ketchup, vinegar, spices, and sometimes chocolate. Combining these ingredients results in a sweet, tangy, slightly spicy, and thick glaze.

Honey BBQ sauce gets most commonly used as a finishing sauce — meaning you brush it on during the last few minutes of the meat cooking or before serving.

This method ensures that the sauce doesn’t burn and become bitter. It also allows the sugars in the honey to caramelize, resulting in a beautiful sheen and even more flavor.

Many people consider honey roasted BBQ sauce as BBQ sauce first with honey in it. But because I like to put a considerable amount of honey in this sweet version, I’d put it the other way around — barbecue with my honey!

Tips & Tricks for Honey BBQ Sauce

Here are several helpful tips to make the best honey BBQ sauce:

High-Quality Honey

Use high-quality honey for the best flavor. I prefer raw, organic honey, but any honey will work.

Marinade

You can use this BBQ sauce as a marinade, glaze, or dip. If using it as a marinade, I recommend waiting to add the honey until you’re ready to brush it on the meat. That will prevent the honey from burning.

Add Spices

Feel free to adjust the spices in this recipe to suit your taste. For example, if you don’t like cayenne pepper, you can leave it out.

Chocolate BBQ Sauce

Add 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips to the recipe to make a chocolate version of this sauce. Let the chocolate chips melt into the sauce, then whisk until smooth.

Storage

You can safely store leftover honey BBQ sauce in an airtight container in your fridge for up to two weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions

This recipe may seem simple enough, but if you have remaining questions, check out our answers to commonly asked questions about honey BBQ sauce below.

Can I make honey BBQ sauce without ketchup?

Yes, although honey ketchup BBQ sauce is delightful, you can make honey BBQ sauce without ketchup.

What is Honey One BBQ?

Honey One BBQ is a Chicago restaurant specializing in barbecue chicken and ribs. The restaurant is known for its signature sauce, a combination of sweet and spicy flavors similar to the BBQ sauce you can make through this recipe.

What’s the difference between honey BBQ vs. sweet BBQ?

The main difference between honey BBQ and sweet BBQ is the type of sugar used. Both use sugar to balance out the acidity in the sauce, but honey BBQ uses honey as the sweetener, while sweet BBQ sauce uses brown sugar.

What is honey brown BBQ?

Honey brown BBQ is a type of barbecue sauce made with honey and brown sugar. This version is a little sweeter than traditional barbecue sauces.

What can I use honey BBQ sauce on?

Honey BBQ sauce gets most commonly used as a finishing sauce, which means you brush it on during the last few minutes of the meat cooking. It’s also delicious as a dip for chicken wings, pork chops, french fries, and even vegetables.

Nutrition Information of Honey BBQ Sauce

One serving of this honey BBQ sauce recipe contains approximately (per tablespoon):

• Calories: 48
• Fat: 0 g
• Saturated Fat: 0 g
• Cholesterol: 0 mg
• Sodium: 107 mg
• Carbohydrates: 12 g
• Fiber: 0 g
• Sugar: 11 g
• Protein: 0 g

As you can see, this honey BBQ sauce recipe is relatively low in calories and fat. However, it is high in sugar because of the honey. You can also use agave nectar instead of honey for similar calorie content; however, honey has more health benefits overall.

Conclusion

Honey BBQ sauce is a delicious and easy-to-make sauce that’s perfect for grilling season. And making your honey BBQ sauce at home is easy, and it tastes much better than store-bought versions.

This recipe is perfect for ribs, chicken, steak, or pulled pork. It’s also great as a dip or marinade. To use as a marinade, brush it on your raw meat 24 hours before cooking it. That will give the flavors time to absorb into the meat.

You can use this recipe to a tee or as a baseline and adjust the spices to suit your taste. Give it a try, and let us know what you think!