Best BBQ Sauce

Ingredients

½ red onion,
3 scallions,
8 to 9 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cup soy sauce
¼ cup date syrup
4 tablespoons rice vinegar
½ apple, chopped
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1 inch piece fresh ginger
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup water
2 tablespoons potato starch

Method

In a high-powered blender, combine the red onion, scallions, garlic, soy sauce, date syrup, rice vinegar, apple, bell pepper, ginger, sesame oil, and pepper and blend until smooth.
Transfer the marinade to a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook the liquid until reduced by about one-third, about 10 minutes.
In a small bowl, stir the water into the potato starch to create a slurry.
Gradually stir the slurry into the cooking marinade and continue stirring until the sauce thickens.
Once the sauce has thickened, remove it from the heat and let it cool. Keep the sauce in the refrigerator for use in the next several days. You can also freeze the sauce and use as needed in the future.

Another BBQ Sauce

If you can’t find a quince, an apple works just as well.

Ingredients

1 quince, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 hot pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
6 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
6 dates, pitted
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 cups vegetable stock
Salt to taste

Cook the chopped quince, onion and chili in a dry pan for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the paprika and tomato paste and cook until the paste darkens for about another minute or two. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until reduced by half. Allow to cool and blend until smooth.

This is a tasty sauce to have with so many things. I particularly like it with roasted veggies. It keeps for a week in the fridge.