Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

How to Make Homemade Cranberry Sauce

Mark Stock
By
cranberry sauce
Funwithfood/Getty Images

It’s cranberry sauce season, people. No, not the still-jiggling stuff you plopped out of a can onto a plate. We’re talking real, honest-to-God homemade cranberry sauce made from scratch—by you. It can be done, and it’s much easier than you think. Frankly, the cranberries just want to be themselves. You’re really just around to nail the consistency and add some enhancements, like citrus or cider vinegar.

Related Reading

Your first inclination should definitely be to spread this stuff on turkey. But cranberry sauce can be used for a variety of other things as well, from a granola or pastry topping with your morning breakfast to a crostini topper with cheese or alongside beef kabobs. It’s even great in a lot of salads.

Below are recipes for cranberry sauce, as well as sibling sauces like Wojape and marmalade are great for leftovers. Keep ’em handy as Thanksgiving approaches. And if you’re really feeling saucy, sprinkle in some equally vibrant red fruit like pomegranate seeds. It’ll complement the flavors and give you culinary presentation points.

Related

Orange-Maple Cranberry Sauce

orange maple cranberry sauce on a plate next to brussles sprouts.

By Ellie Krieger from Fine Cooking, image by Scott Phillips

We’ve tried many cranberry sauces but this one from Fine Cooking is tough to top. It’s beautifully tart and rounded out by the syrup. Better, it’s given another dimension thanks to some zesty citrus.

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups of cranberries (fresh is great but frozen will do)
  • 1 cup pure maple sugar
  • 1 medium orange, grated to yield 1 tsp zest and 1/3 cup juice

Directions:

  1.  Combine the cranberries, maple syrup, and orange juice in a 3-quart saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
  2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, just until the cranberries burst, about 5 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat, stir in zest, and let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Wojape Recipe

bowl of wajape cranberry sauce with a spoon dripping the sauce.

By Sean Sherman and Beth Dooley, photo by Nancy Bundt; James Beard Foundation

This indigenous American recipe can utilize pretty much any kind of wild berry and it works particularly well with cranberries. This particular version is borrowed from The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen via the James Beard Foundation.

Ingredients:

  • 6 cups fresh cranberries
  • 1.5 cups water
  • Honey or maple syrup to taste

Directions:

  1. Put the berries and water in a saucepan and set over low heat.
  2. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thick.
  3. Taste and season the sauce with honey or maple syrup as desired.

Red Onion-Cranberry Marmalade

cranberry sauce in a glass jar on a festive fall table.
Photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels
By Thomas Keller via Ad Hoc Cookbook

This recipe from renowned chef Thomas Keller is just what you need with a fridge full of extra turkey. Keller recommends squeezing a little fresh lemon juice over the marmalade before serving.

Ingredients:

  • .25 cup canola oil
  • 3 cups diced red onions
  • 1 cup chopped dried cranberries
  • 3 cups apple juice
  • .5 cup apple cider vinegar
  • .5 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • .5 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tbsp apple pectin
  • 1 tbsp grated orange zest (to taste)
  • Fresh lemon juice

Directions:

  1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over low heat. Add the red onions and cook very slowly for about 30 minutes, until the onions have softened but not colored.
  2. Add the cranberries and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the apple juice and cider vinegar.
  3. Combine both sugar and pectin in small bowl, mixing well so that the pectin will dissolve smoothly, and add to the pan, along with orange zest. Bring to a simmer and cook until the marmalade reaches 215 degrees F.
  4. Transfer the marmalade to a canning jar or other storage container, cover and let cool, then refrigerate up to 3 months.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Mark Stock
Mark Stock
Contributor
Mark Stock is a writer from Portland, Oregon. He fell into wine during the Recession and has been fixated on the stuff since…
How to make Ranch Water the right way for a day-drinking gem
Looking for a refreshing beverage suitable for functional day-drinking? Search no more, ranch water is here.
Refreshing Cold Tequila Ranch Water Cocktail with Lime.

If there was ever a beverage built for day drinking, it's Ranch Water. The simple cocktail, born in Texas, can take the sting out of the hottest days and refresh you to the core, without knocking you out with an abundance of alcohol.

We're still hibernating our way through winter but the days are getting longer and, soon enough, the warmth will return. When that happens, you'd be wise to have some Ranch Water on hand for you and yours. Lighter than a Margarita and far more interesting than plain water, the drink resides in a happy middle ground. Better, it'll tackle your thirst and keep you functional.

Read more
This is how to make an Irish coffee like a pro bartender
The Irish Coffee is a classic drink for the ages — here are some great recipes
irish coffee

The Irish Coffee is a classic drink that's outlasted any number of trends and movements within the cocktail industry. Better, it's open to all kinds of interpretation, meaning you can mix a different version up each time you feel in the mood. And since we're still in winter's cold grip, the core ingredients of warm coffee and whiskey are even more appealing.

Of the many great hot cocktails and whiskey cocktails on the menu, the Irish Coffee has a big and deserved following. It's an old beverage showing no signs of slowing down, originally concocted in northern Europe to take on the many grey days of the offseason. We love it around St. Patrick's Day as well as late in the evening, with decaf plugged into the equation for an ideal nightcap cocktail.

Read more
How to make the perfect shepherd’s pie, according to a cookbook author
Cookbook author Licia Kassim Householder shares her delicious recipe, guaranteed to be a hit
shepherds pie recipe untitled 14

Although Saint Patrick's Day has come and gone, it doesn't mean that we want to stop eating delicious Irish-American dishes. Hence, the reason you sought out a shepherd's pie recipe. We don't want to burst your bubble, but shepherd's pie isn't a traditional Irish dish. But, for that matter, neither is corned beef. However, this colcannon version of shepherd's pie really ups the level of the dish's Irishness.

Shepherd's pie has its roots in English cuisine. Dishes like corned beef and shepherd's pie have found their way into Irish-themed menus thanks to Irish-American celebrations, with emphasis on the American part. However, that doesn't mean you can't enjoy a delicious shepherd's pie on St. Patrick's Day or any day. It's a hearty and filling comfort food for the chilly winter and spring months.

Read more