Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Homemade Cranberry Sauce is easy to make and tastes better than the store-bought! This cranberry sauce is flavorful, sweet, tart, and makes a perfect accompaniment to your holiday meals. Serve it with some classic holiday foods, or use it in your baked goods, with your favorite breakfast, as a topping on a cheesecake, or parfait.

 

 

HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE

This cranberry sauce is made with fresh cranberries and is simmered with some sugar, water, and orange juice, for a thick, flavorful sauce. Cranberry sauce makes an excellent side dish for all your holiday meals. No meals are complete without this lip-smacking cranberry sauce. 

We enjoy this cranberry sauce in baked goods, like cakes, muffins, and cheesecake. As a topping on a cheesecake or ice cream, in a parfait, on a waffle, crepes, or pancake. And how about some turkey sandwich. Ohhh... yum!!!

It takes less than 15 minutes to make cranberry sauce at home. Stir all the ingredients together and simmer to the desired thickness. And you have the most flavorsome cranberry sauce, that you can use pretty much on anything your heart desires.

The best part of homemade cranberry sauce is that it comes with no preservatives, and you have complete control over the ingredients. You can add sweetness to your taste, store-bought cranberry sauce is overly sweet for my taste. Nothing beats the taste and flavor of this simple, homemade cranberry sauce. Try this homemade cranberry sauce once. I am sure you will never go back to store-bought ones. Guaranteed!!!

INGREDIENTS FOR CRANBERRY SAUCE

12 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries, reserve ½ cup cranberries for later

½ - ¾ cup granulated sugar or preferred sweetener; ½ cup for tart sauce, ¾ for sweet

1 orange, zest, and juice (about 2 teaspoons zest, ¾ cup orange juice)

¼ cup water

Pic Shown: Homemade Cranberry Sauce

 

 

HOW TO MAKE CRANBERRY SAUCE

Cranberry sauce is easy to make at home and so much better than store-bought. Cranberry sauce can be made with fresh or frozen cranberries, and with just a few ingredients, you have the best cranberry sauce to devour.

It takes no time to make this homemade cranberry sauce. You can make this sauce in an Instant Pot or on a stovetop. Sharing my quick and easy recipe for this delicious homemade cranberry sauce.

INSTANT POT CRANBERRY SAUCE

You will need INSTANT POT 

Reserve ½ cup of cranberries to be used at the end, to add some texture to the sauce.

Add all the ingredients to the inner pot – cranberries, water, orange juice, and sugar. Mix all the ingredients for 1-2 minutes, or until everything is well combined.

Note: This is important, make sure you mix the ingredients thoroughly to prevent any burnt bottom.

Close the lid, and the vent sealed. Turn ON MANUAL / PRESSURE COOK (high), for 1 minute. Turn OFF the "KEEP WARM" setting.

Note: Pressure cook time only “ONE” minute.

Allow natural pressure release for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, release the remaining pressure manually.

Open the lid. Add reserved ½ cup of cranberries. Give the mixture a good stir.

Turn ON SAUTE (normal). Simmer for 3-5 minutes, or to the desired consistency. Stir frequently.

Note: As the sauce thickens, it starts to stick to the bottom of the pot. To avoid any burnt bottom, make sure you stir frequently.

Turn OFF SAUTE. Enjoy homemade cranberry sauce!

This recipe yields around 16 ounces of cranberry sauce. Stays fresh for up to a week in the refrigerator.

STOVETOP CRANBERRY SAUCE

Reserve ½ cup of cranberries to be used at the end, to add some texture to the sauce.

Add all the ingredients into a pot – cranberries, water, orange juice, and sugar. Toss all ingredients to combine well.

Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer. Stirring occasionally, until the cranberries burst, and the sauce thickens about 10-15 minutes.

Add reserved ½ cup of cranberries and simmer for 3-5 minutes.

Note: As the sauce thickens, it starts to stick to the bottom of the pot. To avoid any burnt bottom, make sure you stir frequently.

Turn OFF HEAT. Enjoy homemade cranberry sauce!

This recipe yields around 16 ounces of cranberry sauce. Stays fresh for up to a week in the refrigerator.

Pic Shown: Homemade Cranberry Sauce

 

 

TIPS FOR THE BEST HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE

Do not overcook the cranberry sauce. As soon as the sauce starts to thicken, and reaches a desired consistency, turn off the heat. The sauce will thicken as it cools down.

You can use fresh or frozen cranberries for this recipe. Frozen berries release more moisture than fresh ones. If using frozen cranberries, simmer for a few extra minutes. 

If using an Instant pot for making this recipe, make sure to turn OFF the "KEEP WARM" setting. After releasing the pressure, simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent any food from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

The cranberry sauce thickens as it cools down, and upon refrigeration.

Cool the sauce completely before transferring it into a clean, sterilized glass jar.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHY MAKE HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE

It's easy, bursting with fresh flavor, and perfect texture. Better than the store-bought and the best, I have complete control over the ingredients. I can add sweetness to my liking.

SUGAR SUBSTITUTE

You can use any sweetener of your choice, sugar, brown sugar, honey, or preferred sweetener. The recipe uses granulated sugar. Please do not use powdered or confectioner’s sugar for this recipe.

SUBSTITUTE ORANGE JUICE

Instead of orange juice, use an equal quantity of apple cider. You can use lemon, or lime juice too. Reduce the quantity to 1 tablespoon and add a few extra tablespoons of water. Or replace the orange juice with just plain water.

CAN I JUST USE ORANGE JUICE

Yes, you can use only orange juice, works just fine. 

WHAT SPICES TO USE

For additional flavor, some of the flavorings that go well with cranberry sauce are cinnamon and all-spice. I sometimes add a few sprigs of fresh thyme for a burst of flavors.

Ginger, is one of my favorite spices. Love the fresh, peppery flavor of ginger.

HOW TO STORE AND PRESERVE CRANBERRY SAUCE

Cranberry sauce stays good for up to a week in the refrigerator. Store the cranberry sauce in a sterilized glass jar. Do not pour the mixture into the jar while it's hot. Once the sauce cools down, transfer it to a sterilized jar.

Cranberry sauce freezes beautifully. You can freeze the sauce for up to 3 months. Defrost the sauce overnight in the refrigerator, and use it as desired.

WHAT FLAVORING TO USE

I have not used any flavoring in the recipe. Vanilla and almond extract, go well with cranberries. Use ½ teaspoon of pure vanilla extract or ¼ teaspoon of almond extract.

CAN I USE FROZEN CRANBERRIES

Yes, you can use frozen cranberries. Use them as suggested in the recipe.

ADJUST THE QUANTITY OF SUGAR

You can adjust the sweetness of the sauce, depending upon how sweet, or tart you like your cranberry sauce.

For the tart sauce, use around ½ cup of sugar. If you like your sauce sweet, add ¾ cup of sugar.

CAN I MAKE CRANBERRY SAUCE AHEAD OF TIME

This is a perfect dish to make ahead of time. It stays fresh for up to a week in the refrigerator. I think it tastes even better after a few days, as the flavors combine so well.  

SERVING SUGGESTIONS FOR CRANBERRY SAUCE

Enjoy this lip-smacking sauce with your favorite food. Sharing some of my favorite ways to enjoy this delicious homemade cranberry sauce.

Cranberry sauce is a must-have with all our holiday meals

As a topping on cheesecake, ice cream, pancakes, waffles

Swirl some sauce into the cake, muffin, or cheesecake batter

Serve it with some cornbread or dinner rolls

I love the sauce on a piece of toast, biscuit, or even bagel

Add sauce to your yogurt, or parfait

Pic Shown: Homemade Cranberry Sauce

 

 

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