Homemade Cranberry Sauce Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you take the bitterness out of homemade 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)."

The average number of cranberries used per can of sauce is 200. If you lay out all the cans of sauce consumed in a year from end to end, it would stretch 3,385 miles.

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. Another possibility is that the cranberries need to boil for longer, releasing their pectin and ensuring a jelly consistency.

We can see there is a significant difference in the nutrition facts between the two sauces. The homemade cranberry sauce has nearly half the calories, carbohydrates, and sugars compared to the store brand. It also has more fiber as well as potassium!

Dear Evelyn: I had the same problem when I first started making my own cranberry sauce. I found out that you should cook them just until they pop. Further cooking will make them bitter, and once that happens, you need to start again.

Spike cranberry sauce with citrus

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.

When to Toss Cranberry Sauce. Cranberry sauce will last for two hours at room temperature. Homemade cranberry sauce will last in the fridge for 10 to 14 days. Canned cranberry sauce that has been opened will last up to a week in the fridge.

Cranberries and cranberry products are usually safe for most people if consumed in moderation. However, excessive consumption may cause stomach upset and diarrhea — and may also increase the risk of kidney stones in predisposed individuals.

Cooking with Cranberries. The commonly sold 12-ounce bag contains about 3 cups of cranberries. If the recipe you are using specifies the use of chopped cranberries, measure after chopping. Otherwise, measure cranberries before chopping them.

Add the cranberries to the pot and return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the cranberries have burst. Stir in the mix-ins, if using: Once the cranberries have burst you can leave the cranberry sauce as is, or dress it up with other ingredients.

What if I add too much water to cranberry sauce? ›

What to do if the cranberry sauce is too thin or loose. If you inadvertently added too much water, simply bring the cranberry sauce back to the stove top and bring it to a low boil, cooking it down just a bit to help thicken it up.

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.

The sauce will thicken as it cools. If you want a cranberry mold that holds its shape, continue to boil the mixture so that more pectin is released from the fruit, additional water evaporates, and the sauce becomes thick enough to set into a firm gel.

Everyone found the biggest difference between the two to be texture; the homemade sauce had a distinct Jell-O springiness. The Health Nut: Store-bought. "The homemade's flavor is a little more mild and the texture more gelatinous, which isn't what I'm looking for in a cranberry sauce." The Foodie: Store-bought.

The reason cranberry sauce goes so well with Thanksgiving dinner has everything to do with tannins. Located in the cranberry's skin, tannins bind with protein and fats—such as turkey, gravy, and buttery mashed potatoes—much the way a tannin-forward red wine, like Chianti, pairs with a fatty steak.

While you won't taste it, salt helps equalize the sweet-tart flavor of your cranberry sauce while making it a better pairing for the rest of your savory sides and, of course, the turkey.

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.

Honey: Another option is to use honey as a sweetener. Start with a small amount (such as 1 teaspoon) and gradually add more until the desired level of sweetness is reached. Maple syrup: Maple syrup is another option for sweetening unsweetened cranberry juice.

Add agave nectar to the cranberry citrus mixture to your taste. I started with 1/2 cup and ended up with 1 cup of nectar to the 9 cups of juice. You could also use 1/2 cup of white sugar or 1/2 cup of honey for this. Just taste test as you go to achieve your desired sweetness.