Keto BBQ Sauce (Smoky and Ready in 35 Minutes)
This keto BBQ sauce is made with chopped tomatoes, cider vinegar, smoked paprika, mustard and Groovy Keto Monk Fruit Decoction Powder, simmered until thick and glossy. Each 2 tbsp serving has 2.6g net carbs. It takes 5 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook, and makes about 350ml, enough for 12 servings.
This keto BBQ sauce recipe borrows from some proven favourites. The Good Food team's barbecue sauce on BBC Good Food builds it on a tin of chopped tomatoes with tomato purée, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce, simmered for 20 to 30 minutes until thick and then blended. Katrin Nürnberger's keto BBQ sauce on Sugar Free Londoner balances four flavours, sweet, tangy, smoky and spicy, and gets its smokiness from smoked paprika rather than liquid smoke. And in an r/ketorecipes post on Reddit, the author calls mustard the most important ingredient and suggests adding it gradually to taste. Our twist is to sweeten it with a single tablespoon of monk fruit powder.
The result is a thick, smoky, tangy keto BBQ sauce with 2.6g net carbs in a 2 tbsp serving. If you're looking for a sugar free BBQ sauce for chicken, ribs or burgers, this low carb BBQ sauce uses store-cupboard ingredients and is ready in 35 minutes.
What we used: Groovy Keto Monk Fruit Decoction Powder, which is about three times as sweet as sugar and contains no erythritol, so a tablespoon sweetens the whole batch. For a BBQ chicken pizza, spread the sauce over a base made with our Keto Pizza Base Mix. See all our monk fruit sweeteners, or read our monk fruit sweetener guide.
Groovy Keto Monk Fruit Decoction Powder
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Keto Pizza Base Mix
View productKeto BBQ sauce vs shop-bought BBQ sauce
Shop-bought BBQ sauce gets most of its carbs from sugar, treacle or molasses. Here, most of the carbs come from the tomatoes, with a little from the Worcestershire sauce, spices, mustard and the small amount of monk fruit powder that sweetens it, so a serving has far fewer net carbs. To see how the tomatoes themselves add up, read are tomatoes keto?
| Per 2 tbsp (30g) | Carbohydrate | Sugars | Net carbs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barbecue sauce (CoFID) | 10.8g | 9.0g | 10.8g |
| This keto BBQ sauce | 2.6g | 2.3g | 2.6g |
Barbecue sauce figures are UK CoFID data for barbecue sauce (36.1g carbohydrate and 29.9g sugars per 100g), worked out for a 30g serving. It contains no polyols, so its net carbs are the same as its carbohydrate. Our sauce contains no polyols either.
Tips for the best keto BBQ sauce
- Use a wide pan. The sauce reduces faster and more evenly in a wide saucepan or deep frying pan.
- Stir more as it thickens. Thick tomato sauces can catch on the bottom and spit, so keep the heat low and stir often for the last 10 minutes.
- Add the mustard to taste. Mustard gives BBQ sauce its tang. Start with 2 tsp, then add more after blending if you like it sharper.
- Brush it on at the end. Tomato-based sauces can burn on a hot grill, so brush it over meat for the last few minutes of cooking.
- Let it sit. The flavour is even better the next day, once the spices have had time to settle.
Keto BBQ Sauce (Smoky and Ready in 35 Minutes)
- Prep time5 min
- Cook30 min
- Total time35 minutes
- Makesabout 350ml (12 servings)
- Net carbs2.6g per 2 tbsp
Ingredients
- 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 75ml cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp Groovy Keto Monk Fruit Decoction Powder (about 14g)
You will also need a wide saucepan, a stick blender and a clean jar or bottle.
Allergens: contains mustard. Most Worcestershire sauce contains fish (anchovies) and barley (malt vinegar), and many mustards and vinegars contain sulphites. See the allergen notes under Nutrition.
Method
- Mix. Put all of the ingredients in a wide saucepan and stir until the monk fruit powder and spices are mixed in.
- Simmer. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down and simmer, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes, until reduced by about a third. Stir often, especially near the end, because the sauce thickens and can spit.
- Blend. Take the pan off the heat and blend the sauce with a stick blender until smooth. Take care, as it will be very hot.
- Taste. Taste and adjust it: add up to 1 tsp more monk fruit powder for a sweeter sauce, more cayenne for heat or a splash of vinegar for tang. If it is too thick, stir in a little water.
- Cool and store. Pour it into a clean jar or bottle and leave it to cool. It thickens a little more as it cools.
Ways to change it
- Smokier: add a few drops of liquid smoke after blending.
- Hotter: add another ¼ tsp cayenne pepper or a pinch of chipotle chilli flakes.
- Tangy mustard style: add another 2 tsp Dijon mustard and an extra splash of cider vinegar.
- Without Worcestershire sauce: use 1 tbsp coconut aminos instead.
Any of these changes will alter the nutrition figures.
How to serve keto BBQ sauce
- Chicken and ribs: brush it over chicken thighs, wings or pork ribs for the last few minutes in the oven or on the barbecue.
- Burgers and sausages: spoon it over a burger or serve it on the side with sausages.
- BBQ chicken pizza: make the base as in our keto margherita pizza, then swap the tomato sauce for BBQ sauce and top it with cooked chicken, red onion and mozzarella.
- Pulled pork: stir a few spoonfuls through slow-cooked shredded pork.
Storage and making ahead
- Fridge: keep it in a clean, sealed jar or bottle in the fridge and use it within 1 week.
- Freezer: freeze it in an ice cube tray or small tubs for up to 3 months. Defrost it overnight in the fridge.
- Make ahead: make it a day or two before a barbecue so the flavours have time to develop.
Nutrition
Per 2 tbsp serving (about 30g, one twelfth of the batch):
| Nutrient | Per 2 tbsp |
|---|---|
| Energy | 17 kcal |
| Fat | 0.2g |
| of which saturates | 0.0g |
| Carbohydrate | 2.6g |
| of which sugars | 2.3g |
| of which polyols | 0.0g |
| Net carbs | 2.6g |
| Fibre | 1.3g |
| Protein | 0.7g |
| Salt | 0.36g |
Net carbs are carbohydrate minus polyols. On UK labels, fibre is already listed separately from carbohydrate, so it isn't subtracted again. Figures are calculated from the Groovy Keto Monk Fruit Decoction Powder pack label and UK (McCance and Widdowson's CoFID) data for canned tomatoes (13-530), tomato purée (13-531), vinegar (17-339), Worcestershire sauce (17-723), smooth mustard (17-364), paprika (13-879), garlic powder (13-830), dried onion (13-590), cayenne pepper (13-847) and salt (17-367). They will vary with the brands you use.
Allergens: this recipe contains mustard. Most Worcestershire sauce contains fish (anchovies) and barley (malt vinegar), and many mustards and vinegars contain sulphites, so check their labels. The Monk Fruit Decoction Powder pack says it is produced in a facility that also handles nuts and milk. If you use it on a pizza made with our Keto Pizza Base Mix, the pack says it contains almonds and milk, and that there may be traces of other nuts, cereals, milk and eggs. Always check the current pack labels before serving this to anyone with an allergy.
FAQ
Is BBQ sauce keto?
Most shop-bought BBQ sauce isn't, because sugar is usually one of the main ingredients. UK CoFID data puts barbecue sauce at 36.1g carbohydrate per 100g, so a 2 tbsp serving has about 10.8g. This keto BBQ sauce is sweetened with monk fruit powder instead, so each serving has 2.6g net carbs.
What is the best sweetener for keto BBQ sauce?
A fine powder that dissolves completely works best, so the sauce stays smooth and isn't gritty. Our Monk Fruit Decoction Powder has no erythritol and is about three times as sweet as sugar, so 1 tbsp sweetens the whole batch. Add more a little at a time, then taste.
Can I make keto BBQ sauce without Worcestershire sauce?
Yes. Worcestershire sauce adds savoury depth, but you can leave it out or use 1 tbsp coconut aminos instead, as Katrin Nürnberger suggests. Most Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies, so leave it out if you are cooking for anyone who doesn't eat fish. The nutrition figures will change slightly.
How do you thicken keto BBQ sauce?
Keep simmering it, uncovered, and stir often until it is as thick as you like. The tomato purée gives it body, so you don't need flour or cornflour. Remember that it thickens more as it cools, so take it off the heat when it is slightly thinner than you want.
How long does homemade keto BBQ sauce keep?
Keep it in a clean, sealed jar or bottle in the fridge and use it within 1 week. For longer, freeze it in an ice cube tray or small tubs for up to 3 months, then defrost just what you need overnight in the fridge. Always use a clean spoon.
What can I use keto BBQ sauce for?
Brush it over chicken thighs, pork ribs or sausages towards the end of cooking, stir it through pulled pork or spoon it over a burger. It also works as a dip for chicken wings, and as the sauce for a BBQ chicken pizza on a keto pizza base.
