Sauce Me Please! What Sauce Is Your Favorite?

[Troutman]

I know we've probably had this discussion 542.375 times, but it occurred to me the other day that I have a boat load of sauces hanging out in my refrigerator. It's funny but I go hot and cold on using sauces. Certain meat cuts like pork ribs I love to sauce but a good steak, forget it I want to taste the meat. That said, here is what I generally reach for when I want some BBQ sauce with my meal or just to cook with.

These are lined up as my favorite (or most used) from left to right. Meat Mitch Whomp sauce I could drink like a milkshake. If you've never tried it you're missing out. Meathead and Killer Hogs tie for second, they both seem almost interchangeable. Same flavor profiles and great with pork. Salt Lick is just an old favorite that hits those mustard notes when looking for something different. I probably also put Max Good's Black Swan sauces in a similar category. They seem more sophisticated than the normal sweet sauces and are quite different in a good way. The one on the end is a specialty sauce I general use with things like Asian wings or Korean style BBQ.

I guess that opens it up to yours. Show us the ones you prefer and tell us why. I'm always willing to try others.

[captainlee]

Killer Hogs Vinegar on a pulled pork sandwich. Killer Hog The BBQ Sauce. My home made bbq sauce which is on the sweeter side, it's the only one the grand kids will use. I've tried a bunch but keep going back to my standard ones. Hopefully I'll get inspired on this thread to try something else.

[Michael_in_TX]

Have you tried mixing them together 50/50? I see Malcom doing a fair amount on some of his videos.

[captainlee]

Yes,actually by mistake. It's good that way too.

[Panhead John]

Just last night I did some wings on the kettle and used some Franklin’s Spicy BBQ Sauce. While not my favorite BBQ sauce, it was still pretty good! Meathead’s and Max Goode’s are definitely 2 of my favorites, along with some good ol’ Stubb’s Spicy………

[Troutman]

Never tried Franklin's, may pick up a bottle.

[Panhead John]

H-E-B carry’s it…….

[au4stree]

I’m a big homer when it comes to sauces. My #1 is Big Bob’s white sauce, I put that $*** on everything….😂. I can’t help it, I was raised on it, I think mom slipped it in my bottle when I was a little fella.
All kidding aside, I do like Meat Mitch red on pork ribs. I much prefer my version of Western Carolina red (similar to Killer Hogs) on everything else, spicy and tangy. Otherwise just give me Crystal or cholula. I haven’t doke it in a while, but I make a pecan crusted pork tenderloin pinwheel, Big Bob’s mustard sauce pairs nicely with it.

[Troutman]

White sauce is good but I generally make my own when I do a chicken recipe that calls for it.

[Openfire]

My wife and I really like Blue Hogs Championsip BBQ sauce.

[Troutman]

To me Blues Hog is good as a glaze on pork, but way too sweet as a dipping sauce. Man that stuff was popular a few years back.

[Richard Chrz]

We have no sauce in our house. Well occasionally I make some Alabama white sauce.

[Troutman]

Sometimes less is more. Taste the meat, smoke and flavor. That said, sometimes a good sauce can make up for a poor cook

[Mosca]

I have way too many bbq sauces right now. I go through periods of putting bbq sauce on everything, and then forgetting about it for months, and then remembering about it and putting it on everything again.

Whomp! Is kick ass, so is Meatheads, so are the three Black Swans. I don’t have any preference among those. Right up there with them is Dinosaur Sensuous Slathering Sauce, which is much brighter and less sugary, but still sweet.

I overwhelmingly prefer, to all of those, making my own variation of Meathead’s KC sauce. The problem is that makes the equivalent of about 3-4 bottles of sauce, or two large jars, and I’ll use about half of that and then stop using bbq sauce for a while. When I get back to it, it’s usually picked up off flavors from the fridge and isn’t any good any more. So that’s one point in favor of commercially produced sauces.

[LA Pork Butt]

I am not a big sauce guy. Sometimes I do and sometimes I don’t. When I do it mostly on ribs, on wings for the grandkids, and sometimes on pulled pork. I always thought Salt Lick was unique, but a little pricy. What I keep around the house is mostly Aldi regionals. While it is not stock at Aldi’s their Sweet Georgia Heat is quite good. When I cooked at the Eggfest this fall I had a number of positive inquires and they were all shocked that it was a cheap Aldi regional sauce.

[Jim White]

We tend to almost exclusively use the recipe Lisa and I have adapted from her parents' recipe.

I'm also a huge fan of Black Swan Beso del Fuego. For a change of pace on pulled pork, I will go to a vinegar plus various peppers sauce when Lisa isn't looking. I go with a recipe I pulled off an old Kamado forum long ago.

[Smoker_Boy]

Montgomery Inn BBQ sauce.
Made in Montgomery, Ohio.

[LA Pork Butt]

My brother-in-law gave me a bottle years ago. It is not available in my area, and I don’t do mail order on sauces.

[Smoker_Boy]

captainlee What the heck were you doing in BFE Ohio??

[captainlee]

A training seminar.

[CaptainMike]

I recently impulse purchased a bottle of Melinda's Sweet and Hot Habanero Sauce that's pretty good.

[Jfrosty27]

I love bbq sauce. Like Mosca I go through periods of putting it on everything and then stretches where I kind of forget about it. I really can’t remember a sauce I didn’t like.

My grocery store go to is Stubbs original. Cheap, tasty, and available everywhere.
As for the more crafty sauces, I have been enjoying those from Bob’s Bitchin BBQ in Dodgeville, WI. Particularly the Honey Chipotle. But they’re all good. They’re available online if you’re interested. Just Google them to get to their online store.

[Michael_in_TX]

Here are mine:

• Black Swan Beso del Fuego
  This is my favorite sauce. Sadly, I am down to my last tablespoon. I'm sure Max will have it available again when he's able to. Stubb's Spicy is its backup.
• Killer Hogs The BBQ Sauce
  I use this primarily on ribs. I just love the way it tacks up.
• Aaron Franklin's Vinegar Sauce
  This is my go-to sauce for pulled pork. I prefer it over Killer Hogs Vinegar as it is less sweet.
• Aaron Franklin's Espresso BBQ Sauce
  This is dynamite on sausage! HEB used to carry it, but they stopped carrying it when Aaron came out with his Spicy sauce. I need to find another source. (Or make it myself; the recipe is in his book.)
• Stubb's Original / Franklin's Original
  It's a tie between these two for when I want a Texas-style thin sauce, but if you need to put a sauce on Texas BBQ, something has gone a bit sideways.

And Honorable Mention:

• Kraft Hickory Smoke BBQ Sauce
  This is pure nostalgia (and high fructose corn syrup!). This is the sauce I grew up on. It's what my dad basted the smoked turkey every Thanksgiving with. And for me, chicken nuggets just don't taste right without this.

[SheilaAnn]

Open Pit Original tugs at my heart strings. Won’t touch it anymore, though.

[DaveD]

We mail-order Rudy's Sause because we find it to be so superior to anything else available. We're tomato-based sauce types rather than mustard or vinegar, KC style I guess, and Rudy's is a New Mexico & Texas outfit predominantly. It's got significant heat and isn't so dang sweet like so many others on the market. You'll often see a bottle in my SUWYC posts...



My lovely bride does keep some original Stubbs on hand for when she wants a BBQ sauce note without the heat.

We only ever use sauce tableside, I never put it on meat during the cook. And I typically eat half my serving of meat with no sauce to get the full experience, then use it for the second half. I find a good sauce used in moderation really kicks up even the best prepared meat, not just camouflage for a poor result

[LA Pork Butt]

There isn’t a Rudy’s near by, but I have used it in the the past.

[Panhead John]

Stubb’s Sweet Heat is good also! Give it a shot if you haven’t tried it before.

[Michael_in_TX]

The sauces I want to try are the W Sauce and Whomp sauce. I know Matt Pittman (Meat Church) really likes them and often uses the W Sauce as a binder on beef.