Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (2024)

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Learn to make delicious Cranberry Sauce at home using this failproof and easy recipe. Homemade cranberry sauce with orange is amazing condiment. This simple and delightful recipe requires very few ingredients. Ginger and orange peel add a bit of zest and uniqueness to the sweet and tart notes of the Cranberry sauce!

This bright crimson sauce is a quintessential staple in holiday dinner menu. It jazzes up holiday feast for Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinner with it’s beautiful color and heavenly taste. I hope you give this super easy recipe a try this holiday season! You can also use it as a topping on Baked Brie Cheese Appetizer .

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (1)

Cranberry Preserve

Most fruits and vegetables are available year-round but cranberries aren’t. They make their appearance only through fall / winter months. This recipe is great way to preserve them for use throughout the year.

Cranberries are antioxidant-rich, healthy berries. Cranberries are excellent source of vitamin C and dietary fiber, You will want to include them regularly on your Whole Food Plant Based Menu Planning.

Store brought dried cranberries are often loaded with sugar and preservatives so be watchful. Same goes for ready made cranberry sauce. It’s always good to make these easy recipes at home as much as you can.

Our Favorite Condiment

I use this sauce as a condiment to enhance the flavors of grilled and stir fry dishes. Similar to Apple Butter Sauce, this is easy to make in Instant Pot. During the peak gardening season, I also make Peach Chutney, and Tomato Chutney to preserve the best seasonal fruit for a year long storage.

Serving and Storing Suggestions

To make your next dinner party look fancy, serve it as charcuterie style board along with crackers, other cheese and vegetables. Your guests will be impressed ! You can always top it on the toast, salad or simply eat a spoonful out of the jar.

Towards end of the cranberry season, I make this sauce in bulk and freeze it for use throughout the year. That way, I don’t need to buy it from outside. The sauce freezes well and tastes superb when thawed. I prefer to freeze it in freezer safe mason jars.

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (2)

Homemade Cranberry Sauce

This particular cranberry sauce recipe is fool-proof. I have made it numerous times. Once cranberries start making their appearance in the store, I keep making this sauce.

Kids love scooping it out of jar. Freshly made sauce always tastes the best but preserved one gets added flavors of orange juice, orange peel and bits and pieces of ginger.

And it’s super easy to make. All you need is about 15 minutes of time to make this yummy goodness. I have also included instructions to make it in Instant Pot.

It is practically a dump and go recipe in Instant Pot and you can do it using Pot in Pot also. During frantic holiday meal preparation, things can’t get easier than that , can they?

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Ingredients

Exact measurements are listed under the recipe card below. Here’s what goes in making this sauce. This recipe is very adaptable so make necessary changes if needed.

  • Fresh cranberries – Rinse under cold water and drain it well before using
  • Sweetener – brown raw sugar, maple syrup or stevia
  • Orange juice and Water
  • Salt – just a pinch
  • Ginger root – shred it or cut into tiny pieces
  • Orange peel ( bite size pieces) or orange zest

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (4)

How to make

Combine sugar (or stevia), orange juice, and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Let the sugar dissolve completely.

Add cranberries, ginger pieces and orange peel and salt. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.

Continue cooking, for about 10 minutes, or until all or most of the cranberries have popped. Using the wooden spatula mash the cooked cranberries a few times so they form a jelly like texture.

Let cool completely for least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce

Making cranberry sauce in Instant Pot is super easy. Combine all ingredients including water and add them in InstantPot. Stir well. Close the lid. Choose Manual at High Pressure for 1 minute. After it beeps when done, allow for NPR- Natural Pressure Release. Open lid carefully.

Click cancel and then press the Sauté button. Stir and break the cranberries with a wooden spoon. Stir well till you get thick cranberry sauce. Remove the main insert after done. The sauce will thicken a bit more after it’s cooled off. Let cool completely for least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (5)

Thanksgiving Dinner Side Dish

Thanksgiving is almost here and I am sure everyone is looking around for delicious and crowd pleaser recipes to impress your guests. This is vegan, gluten free, nut free and soy free recipe.

If you haven’t already, do check out some off beat / Vegan and low carb recipes we have to make your Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner an unforgettable event.

All these recipes are Whole Food Plant Based and easy to make and tried and tested in our kitchen.

Our Favorite Holiday Recipes for Easy Entertaining

  • Whole Roasted Cauliflower
  • Crispy Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts
  • Wild Rice Pilaf Stuffing
  • Vegan Carrot Almond Pudding
  • Vegan Creamed Spinach
  • Savory Sweet Potato Hash
  • Mulled Apple Cider
  • Curried Butternut Squash Soup
  • Vegan Apple Crisp

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (6)

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If you make this CRANBERRY SAUCE RECIPE do let us know how you like it by star rating it and leaving a comment below.

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Prajakta Sukhatme

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce is easy and delightful. Spiced with ginger and orange peel, it is the best and unique recipe for perfect Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinner.

4.88 from 16 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Condiments

Cuisine American

Servings 8

Calories 93 kcal

Ingredients

  • 1 bag - 12 oz. fresh cranberries rinsed and drained
  • ¾ cup brown raw sugar or stevia
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • ½ cup water
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 inch ginger root cut into tiny pieces
  • 2 Tablespoons orange peel chopped into bite size pieces or 1 Tablespoon Orange Zest - Optional but highly recommended

Instructions

Stove Top Method to make Cranberry Sauce

  • Combine sugar (or stevia), orange juice, and water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Let the sugar dissolve completely.

  • Add cranberries, ginger and salt. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.

  • Add orange peel or orange zest. Continue cooking, for about 10 minutes, or until all or most of the cranberries have popped.

  • Let cool completely for least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.Can be stored in freezer for extended periods of time.

Instant Pot Method to Make Cranberry Sauce

  • Combine all ingredients including water and add them in InstantPot. Stir well.

  • Close the lid. Choose Manual at High Pressure for 1 minute. After it beeps when done, allow for NPR- Natural Presure Release. Open lid carefully.

  • Click cancel and then the Sauté button. Stir and break the cranberries with a wooden spoon. Stir well till you get thick cranberry sauce. Remove the main insert after done. The sauce will thicken a bit more after it's cooled off.

  • Let cool completely for least 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use. Can be stored in freezer for extended periods of time. Enjoy !

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 93kcalCarbohydrates: 24gSodium: 23mgFiber: 2gSugar: 20g

Did you make this recipe?Mention @ProfusionCurry or tag #ProfusionCurry!

Best Ever Cranberry Sauce Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What takes the bitterness out of cranberry sauce? ›

"Instead, start by stirring in one tablespoon maple syrup and one teaspoon of a sweet drink like apple juice, orange juice, or fruity white or red wine. Add more to taste. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt (in small amounts, it intensifies sweetness)."

How to improve cranberry sauce? ›

Adding a teaspoon or two of fresh lemon or orange zest, a tablespoon of chopped candied peel, or even a splash of juice to your canned sauce will brighten flavors and bring in some homemade flavor.

What thickens cranberry sauce? ›

Jelling. Homemade cranberry sauce is meant to thicken, or “jell,” while cooking. If it stays soupy, that could mean a couple of things. One possibility is that you may not have used enough sugar: Sugar helps the sauce firm up, so be sure to use the full amount called for in a recipe.

How do you cut the tartness out of cranberry sauce? ›

Sugar – you NEED sugar in this recipe to cut through the tartness of the cranberries. I use cane sugar here, but you can use any sugar of choice, from granulated, to coconut sugar, to maple syrup.

What can I add to counteract bitterness? ›

Sweetness: From sugar, honey, fruits or otherwise, sweetness will counteract bitter and sour flavours. It can also be used to cut down the heat of a particularly spicy meal. Saltiness: Salt plays two very important roles in flavouring a dish. Firstly, it balances against bitterness.

How do you fix a sauce that is too bitter? ›

Add Some Baking Soda

If your tomato sauce is too acidic and verging on bitter, turn to baking soda, not sugar. Yes, sugar might make the sauce taste better, but good old baking soda is an alkaline that will help balance the excess acid. A little pinch should do the trick.

How do you fix bland cranberry sauce? ›

Maple syrup, brown sugar and even honey can make your cranberry sauce more dynamic. And don't forget the spices! Cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, citrus zest and star anise all work well with cranberries and can be added while the sauce cooks to infuse your sauce with flavor.

How to jazz up jellied cranberry sauce? ›

Stir-in one (or more) of the following add-ins to one can of whole or jellied cranberry sauce:
  1. 2 Tbsp. of orange juice plus 1 tsp. of finely grated orange peel.
  2. ½ can of mandarin oranges.
  3. ½ cup pineapple.
  4. ½ tsp. cinnamon.
  5. ½ cup chopped dried apricots.
  6. ½ cup toasted pecans.
  7. 2 Tbsp. Zinfandel Wine.
Aug 11, 2022

Why is my cranberry sauce upside down? ›

But why? Ocean Spray says this is to get the cranberry sauce out in one intact piece. “The rounded part of the can that looks like the bottom has an air bubble in it,” Ocean Spray's representative explains. The bubble is there so you can “break the seal the sauce makes with the can.”

What cancels out tartness? ›

How Do You Neutralize Sour Taste in Food? If a dish is too sour, add a little bit of sugar! Sweetness balances out sour flavors, so if something makes your mouth pucker, a dash of sugar may help soften the blow of the sour food.

Why is my homemade cranberry sauce runny? ›

You must cook the sauce for at least 10 minutes at a full boil for the pectin to react with the sugar and create the proper gelled texture. It is also important to let the cranberry sauce cool at room temperature. Moving it to the refrigerator too soon may also affect the gel.

What do I do if my cranberry sauce is too sweet? ›

To use citric acid to save over-sweetened cranberry sauce, simply use it like you would MSG in a savory dish, and stir in little pinches until your sauce is as tart as you desire. But don't stop there. You can use citric acid in a cloying apple pie filling, a one-note turkey brine, or heavy, stodgy stuffing.

How do you get the bitter taste out of cranberry juice? ›

Add 1/4-1/3 cup sugar depending on preference.

What can I do with bitter cranberries? ›

That said, the best way to tackle fruits that are way too tart is to balance their sourness with sweetness. In addition to softening their abrasiveness, tossing any unbearably bitter berries with sugar can also heighten nuanced flavors.

Why do cranberries taste bitter? ›

One of the names Native Americans of that era called the fruit was “ibimi,” which translates literally as “sour” or “bitter berries.” The bitterness is due to compounds called tannins, which also impart health benefits to the berry.

Why does my homemade sauce taste bitter? ›

A few things can cause tomato sauces to become bitter: Overcooked spices. Both basil and oregano can become bitter with long simmers. Add them near the end of the process.

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