If you love Dr Pepper as much as we do, you’re going to love this Dr Pepper Rib Sauce! And this recipe is ready in less than 30 minutes with little prep.
Ribs are one of our favourite meats to smoke, and this sauce adds so much flavour to smoked or grilled ribs. This sauce is also great for basting pork tenderloin as well.
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Why Use Dr Pepper For Rib Sauce?
The sweet peppery flavour of Dr Pepper makes a perfect ingredient for a BBQ sauce. And the sugar in the soda adds to the glaze you get when basting BBQ meats, especially ribs.
Ingredients For Dr Pepper Rib Sauce
To make this rib sauce recipe, you will need a total of nine ingredients.
- Dr Pepper. For this recipe, regular Dr Pepper is used, not diet or zero sugar variety. This sauce is meant to be sweet.
- Ketchup. The base of any BBQ sauce.
- Apple Cider Vinegar. Every good BBQ sauce needs an acid. The flavour of apple cider vinegar complements the flavours of the Dr Pepper.
- Brown Sugar. Using light brown sugar adds a touch of caramel to the sauce.
- Worcestershire Sauce. This is an ingredient that shouldn’t be omitted. It adds a depth of flavour that cannot be achieved with any other ingredient.
- Garlic. We use fresh minced garlic for this recipe.
- Paprika. Smoked paprika is our favourite to use but regular paprika can also be used.
- Onion Powder.
- Fine Sea Salt.
Ingredient Substitutions and Variations
If you don’t have some of the ingredients in the recipe there are a few substitutions that can be made.
White sugar and a tablespoon of molasses can be used to replace the brown sugar in the recipe.
Apple Cider vinegar is used in the recipe but can be replaced with white vinegar.
To make the sauce spicy, add a little cayenne pepper, some diced jalapeno, or a dash or two of hot sauce.
This sauce is thin and can be used as a mop for ribs or glaze. To thicken the sauce for dipping or other uses, add a little cornstarch to the sauce as it simmers. (See notes in recipe card below)
How To Store Dr Pepper Sauce
Any leftover sauce will need to be keep in the fridge. We store the sauce in mason jars and it lasts up to one month.
Can this sauce be canned?
Yes! We have made large batches of this sauce and canned it for later use. To do this follow canning instructions for high acid foods. For instructions on canning high acid foods, we recommend checking out Bernardin Home Canning. They have a great step by step guide for canning.
Dr Pepper Rib Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup Dr Pepper
- ¾ cup ketchup
- 3 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp apple cider vingar
- 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1½ Tbsp minced garlic
- 1 Tbsp onion powder
- 1 Tbsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
Instructions
- Whisk all ingredients together in a medium saucepan.
- Heat over medium-high heat until sauce starts to simmer, stirring.
- Simmer over medium-low heat until sauce is thicken slightly, about 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Use immediately or place in mason jars and refrigerate.
