The most delicious Cranberry Sauce with the perfect ratio of sweetness and tartness. It’s made in 20 minutes using just 3 ingredients. Perfect for your holiday table, as a spread, or as a quick snack fix to eat by the spoonful - it’s that good.
I'm sure many of you have grown up with the canned version of cranberry sauce. Sure, you can just open up a can and figure out how to slide that jellied cylinder of cranberry sauce out in one fell swoop.
Jump to:
But don’t you deserve much better? It’s not a big deal to make.
You need only three ingredients to make cranberry sauce
- 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.
Let's make this cranberry sauce - it's so easy!
- 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.
Are you a chunky or a jellied?
There are two camps when it comes to texture - chunky (whole berry) or smooth (jellied).
If you prefer chunky, serve as is after it has cooled and set.
If you prefer a smooth texture, pass the cranberry sauce through a fine sieve. Don’t want to go through that trouble? No problem!
If you have a high powered blender like a Vitamix, then you can blend it until smooth. You can also use an immersion blender and blend the hell out of it.
Either way, when set, it will have the same texture as canned jellied cranberry sauce except you don’t have to watch it slide off that plate and onto the floor.
Yes, that’s happened to me. How about trying to slice the canned stuff? It's like playing whack a mole.
Want a fancy shape? Use a small jello mold and store in the fridge for a few hours to set. If you have decorative little cake molds then use them.
How to make sweet and tart cranberry sauce video
Life is too short for mediocre food.
CHECK OUT MY SHOP FOR PRODUCTS I RECOMMEND
PIN THIS RECIPE FOR SWEET AND TART CRANBERRY SAUCE TO SAVE FOR LATER.
FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST FOR MORE DELICIOUS RECIPES!
CRANBERRY SAUCE
PRINT RECIPE PIN RECIPE SAVE RECIPEEquipment Used
Ingredients
- 1 (16 ounce) package of fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup frozen concentrated orange juice
Instructions
- In a 2 quart saucepan, combine all the ingredients.
- Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium low and reduce to a simmer. Cook until the cranberries pop, about 15 minutes. Stir it here and there as it cooks. The mixture will start to thicken.
- Serve as-is if a chunky consistency is desired.
- If a smooth consistency is desired, use a high performance blender or an immersion blender to pulverize the sauce until smooth. Alternatively, you can pass it through a fine sieve.NOTE: When blending, vent the top to allow the steam to escape. Start on low then increase the speed.
- Allow to cool before serving. The cranberry sauce will thicken as it cools.
- This sauce can be made up to 5 days ahead and refrigerated.
Nutritional Information
I don't post the nutritional value because I don't trust the accuracy of the nutritional apps. I’m not a nutritionist and don't want to post misinformation.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!