Cranberry Sauce

Photo: Ryan Gregory

Cranberry sauce is a staple on Thanksgiving. Three ingredients, 20 minutes, and can be made days ahead. Not only is this super easy to make, it’s delicious. Let’s make this!

I’m sure many of you have grown up with the canned version of cranberry sauce. Sure, you can just open a can and figure out how to slide that jellied cylinder of cranberry sauce out in one fell swoop. But, don’t you deserve much better? It’s not a big deal to make. You’ll need three ingredients –

• fresh cranberries
• frozen orange juice for that concentrated flavor
• sugar

That’s it. Nothing else. Using frozen orange juice is my preference because the orange flavor is concentrated which pairs well with the cranberries. You don’t need to add any water to this. The frozen orange juice will melt and create just enough liquid along with the sugar for the perfect consistency. No other liquid needed.

To make:

• Combine the cranberries, sugar, and frozen orange juice in a 2 quart saucepan and bring to a boil.
• Lower heat and simmer, stirring a few times to combine. Let it simmer for 15 minutes.
• The cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.

Now let’s talk texture. There are two camps – chunky (whole berry) or smooth (jellied).

If you prefer chunky, serve as is after it has cooled and set.

Photo: Ryan Gregory

If you prefer a smooth texture, pass the cranberry sauce through a fine sieve. If you have a high powered blender like a Vitamix (affiliate link), then you can blend it until smooth. This pulverizes the skins and creates a smooth texture. Either way, when set, it will have the same texture as canned jellied cranberry sauce.

Can it be any easier than that?

Try this cranberry sauce with your Thanksgiving dinner and throughout the year. Enjoy.

Be happy, eat well…

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Cranberry Sauce

Prep Time

2 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

22 mins

 

This simple Cranberry sauce has three ingredients, takes 20 minutes, and can be made days ahead. 

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cranberries, Cranberry Sauce

Servings: 6 - 8 servings

Author: Natalie@thegeneticchef.com

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package of fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup frozen concentrated orange juice

Instructions

1. In a 2 quart saucepan, combine all the ingredients.
2. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the cranberries pop, about 15 minutes. Mixture will start to thicken.
3. Serve as is if a chunky consistency is desired.
4. If a smooth consistency is desired, pass through a fine sieve. Alternatively, you can use a high performance blender to pulverize the sauce until smooth.
   
5. Allow to cool before serving. The cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.
6. This sauce can be made up to 5 days ahead and refrigerated.