Skip the canned jellied stuff, grab a few simple ingredients and make your own slightly tart, slightly sweet easy Homemade Cranberry Sauce.
Probably the most underrated side dish of Christmas and Thanksgiving dinner, but it really should be the star for bringing everything together in one bite.
Bacon Green Bean Casserole and Sausage Stuffing along with our fresh cranberry sauce make for one delicious holiday meal.
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What is cranberry sauce
Cranberry sauce more than likely wasn't among the side dishes at the first Thanksgiving in American with the Pilgrims. They might have been used in a stuffing, but that's not really known either.
Amelia Simmon published American Cookery in 1776. It is the first American cookbook every published and contains the first American recipe for cranberry sauce.
Cranberries are native to North American but are now enjoyed world wide. Those in the UK enjoy this sauce with their Christmas meals and a bit more tarty, whereas Americans tend to use it more for Thanksgiving and a whole lot sweeter.
Recipe Ingredients
- Cranberries — the star of the show! Grab a bag of fresh cranberries in the produce section of your local grocery store.
- Liquids — water and orange juice turn the berries into sauce.
- Seasonings — fresh zest from an orange, a pinch of salt, and cinnamon.
- Brown sugar — turns your tart berries sweet.
How to make Easy homemade cranberry sauce
Step 1 — Rinse and pick through the bag of cranberries, removing undesirable berries, and add to a 2 quart Dutch oven.
Step 2 — Add the orange juice and water and begin to cook on medium high heat.
Step 3 — Add the orange zest.
Step 4 — Add the brown sugar.
Step 5 — Add the salt and cinnamon. Stir well.
Step 6 — Stir frequently. As the sauce begins to boil, the berries will spit and pop. This is normal.
Step 7 — Allow to boil for about 10-15 minutes, or until you see it start to reduce and slightly thicken; stir frequently.
Step 8 — Reduce heat to medium low and allow it to simmer away for another 10-15 minutes, stirring often. It will not have a thick, gelled consistency at this stage. Remove from heat. Allow to cool down, then put it in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours but overnight is best.
Other Related Thanksgiving Recipes
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Get the Recipe
Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Equipment
- 2-quart Dutch oven
Ingredients
- 12 oz fresh cranberries cleaned and sorted
- 1 cup orange juice
- ¾ cup water
- 1½ cups dark brown sugar
- ⅙ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅙ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to the mini Dutch oven.
- Cook over medium high heat and bring to boil. The cranberries will begin to pop.
- Boil, stirring constantly for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce begins to reduce and thicken.
- Reduce heat to medium low and allow it to simmer away for another 10-15 minutes, stirring often.
- Remove from heat. Allow to cool down, then put it in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours but overnight is best.
Nutrition
Dutch Oven Daddy is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
Gus
Your homemade cranberry sauce recipe was a delightful find! The simplicity and flavor balance made it a hit at our family dinner. It's refreshing to see such a straightforward approach that yields such delicious results. You've definitely made me rethink homemade sauces with this one.
Charah
I want to try this with some bread and coffee. I love this recipe, thanks for sharing
Holley
Homemade is always the way to go! I never used the canned stuff anymore. This is my go-to cranberry sauce!
suja md
super recipe, well balanced delicious sauce
Jill
Terrific recipe. Cranberry and orange is such a perfect combination.
Harriet Young
Amazing! I couldn’t believe how quick and easy it was to make this cranberry sauce. Will definitely make again. Thank you
Colleen
This recipe is so easy and tasty. There's no excuse to go back to canned stuff. Thank you.
Dina and Bruce
Love the orange zest in this sauce. Was perfect with our Ham!
Carrie Robinson
I am kind of partial to the canned stuff, but I do enjoy a good homemade cranberry sauce sometimes. 🙂 This looks perfect.
Varnamala
So easy to make. Delicious. And there’s something really satisfying about the sound the cranberries make when they pop.
Naelle
Oh wow. Cranberries and oranges just go so well together! This was delicious!
Anjali
We made this over both Thanksgiving and Christmas and it turned out great both times!! It was well balanced, not too tart and not too sweet either!
nancy
this homemade cranberry sauce is so tasty. Way better then store bought sauce. Know I know exactly what is in my sauce!
Justine
This was the most delicious cranberry sauce I've ever had. Perfectly balanced between sweet and tart, and so so easy to make!
Beth
I ran of my cranberry sauce yesterday, so I made this version to try something new. It is SO GOOD! It's the best I've made.