ckreef Posted July 2, 2018 Report Share Posted July 2, 2018 The portions are for refrigerator sauce. Double the amounts if you are going to can it. 2 1/2 cups fresh Blueberries crushed with a potato masher. 1/2 cup water Bring the above to a full rolling boil then add the following: 1/2 cup ketchup 1/3 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar 2 Tbsp yellow mustard 1 Tbsp Sriracha sauce 1/2 Tbsp "Real Lemon" from the bottle (not fresh squeezed) 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/2 tsp ground black pepper (or fresh ground crack berries ) Return to a full rolling boil. For refrigerator use reduce heat and simmer to desired consistency. For canning go straight to a 10 minute water bath. Approximately 6 regular jelly jars and maybe one small jelly jar. A simple recipe that tastes good. Use it as a finishing or dipping sauce. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 2, 2018 Report Share Posted July 2, 2018 Awesome. Doing this for sure. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 3, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, Pequod said: Awesome. Doing this for sure. If you do a little tweaking let me know what you did. I do think an hour or so cold smoking the blueberries would make it taste even better. I'll know for sure about this before too long. My original smoking session wasn't enough to make a real difference. Edited July 3, 2018 by ckreef 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted July 3, 2018 Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 Why the insistence on Real Lemon over fresh squeezed - because Inquiring minds like ours would really like to know? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 3, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 (edited) 7 hours ago, tony b said: Why the insistence on Real Lemon over fresh squeezed - because Inquiring minds like ours would really like to know? The reason why lemon juice is used in canning (and general storage purposes) is the acid content. The extra acid helps to kill the nasties (botulism etc...) when properly heated, rolling boil. Acid content is the reason why you can water bath fruits but should pressure can meats. Bottled "Real Lemon" has a known acid level. Fresh squeezed lemons can vary in their acid content so using fresh squeezed you might not get the extra acid you're looking for. Edited July 3, 2018 by ckreef 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 3, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 To expand on this a little....... Botulism dies at water canning temperature (212*) as long as there is a high enough acid level. With lower acid levels, to kill botulism requires the higher pressure canning Temps. Blueberries naturally have a high enough acid level so no lemon juice is needed when making jam. I didn't get this recipe off the internet it is straight out of my head. I did read a few articles about canning homemade bbq sauce. Since there are other ingredients in the recipe not just blueberries I figured better safe than sorry and added some acid (lemon juice) to the recipe. If you make a small batch, keep it refrigerated and consume it in a relatively short period of time you should be able to safely eliminate the lemon juice from the recipe. Since I'm canning it and passing it out I didn't want to take any chances. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tangles Posted July 3, 2018 Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 I like this very much 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted July 3, 2018 Report Share Posted July 3, 2018 Spot-on explanation of why "real lemon" is better. I could cheat and use my pH meter in my brewing room to check it, if I go that far with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 4, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 4, 2018 3 hours ago, tony b said: Spot-on explanation of why "real lemon" is better. I could cheat and use my pH meter in my brewing room to check it, if I go that far with it. Unfortunately I don't have all that. There are more scientific explanations on the internet that give actual pH levels. I'm just winging it the red neck way - LOL - and hopefully nobody ends up in the hospital - LOL x 2 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 And here we go. Going for a two hour cold smoke first. Nothing like the way cold smoke rolls out of the top on a beautiful Saturday July morning. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 (edited) Looking forward to hearing about these results. A cold smoker is scheduled to arrive at the house on Monday The question will be...... Is it better to cold smoke the blueberries or do a warm smoke so the blueberries start to split open during the smoking phase? I plan on doing at least 2 more batches, maybe I'll try it both ways. Edited July 7, 2018 by ckreef 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 One hour in. The blueberries are taking on a glossy sheen. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 Can't wait to hear the results of both of your trials guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 Alright, here it is. And the verdict is that this is awesome stuff. First, after two hours the blueberries were very sticky from accumulated smoke. Very shiny in the pan. Made the recipe as written, simmering for twenty minutes. Tasting as I went to see what I might add or change. The smoke flavor was a bit strong, so made two adjustments. First, I thought chipotle chili powder would complement the smoky blueberries, and maybe mellow it a bit. Since I already had Sriracha in there for heat, I only add 1/2 tsp, but I liked the result. Next time I'd probably omit the Sriracha and start with 1/2 tbsp chipotle adding more if needed. Second addition was 2 tbsp of this: I think this is a keeper. Final result: Great stuff. Will experiment more next time, but can't wait for a cook with this. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ckreef Posted July 7, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 Fantastic experiment. Did you go two hours with the smoke? Should you have stopped after 1 hour? I'll be interested to hear if it tasted even smokier after sitting overnight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 10 minutes ago, ckreef said: Fantastic experiment. Did you go two hours with the smoke? Should you have stopped after 1 hour? I'll be interested to hear if it tasted even smokier after sitting overnight. Yes, did two full hours with smoke. The first half hour was with high flow on the cold smoker pump, with the rest at the lowest setting. I’d probably try one hour at low flow next time. Will taste it tomorrow after a day in the fridge to see what we have. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 7, 2018 Report Share Posted July 7, 2018 Wife just returned from her morning activities and gave her a taste. She pronounced it excellent and not too smoky. I think we have a winner. Still going to try replacing sriracha with chipotle powder in the next batch, though. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony b Posted July 8, 2018 Report Share Posted July 8, 2018 Ya'll got me thinking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pequod Posted July 27, 2018 Report Share Posted July 27, 2018 Finally got around to using this with some pulled pork tonight. My daughter the food critic and I both agreed it was excellent. Great stuff! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tekobo Posted July 28, 2018 Report Share Posted July 28, 2018 This sauce was an instant hit here! And so easy to make. All jarred and waiting for their debut. I am thinking a nice piece of grilled pork... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
