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Home » Sauces, Dressings, Dips, Pickles, Flavored Salts » Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe-Vinager Based

Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe-Vinager Based

June 14, 2015 Updated: November 29, 2019 By Katie Crenshaw 81 Comments

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In the Carolinas, vinegar based barbecue sauce and pulled pork go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other. This vinegar based Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe is so easy, cheap, and fast to make, there is NO reason to buy it.

Pork Shoulders on the Green Egg

Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe

My husband makes the BEST Pulled Pork.

I am so spoiled and ruined. I have never been at any other restaurant that can even come close to his beautiful hunks of meat. And I am not just saying this because he is incredibly cute and the father of my child… I am saying this because he really makes the BEST Pulled Pork  ever… And when he makes his beautiful Pulled Pork; I use my homemade Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe.

I remember the first time as a child being told by my grandmother that we were having Barbecue for dinner at her house. I was so excited. I love Barbecue. So when she plated a sandwich with hamburger meat, I was in complete dismay . I did not want to eat it. I said,  “This isn’t Barbecue!”

You see, in the South, Barbecue is generally defined as “Pulled Pork.”

We are very, very proud of our Pulled Pork Barbecue, as we should be; because if cooked correctly, it is AMAZING! In Wisconsin, and I assume other northern states, they define Barbecue as what we call a “Sloppy Joe;” consisting of a very tasty mixture of slowly cooked hamburger meat, a tomato based sauce, an assortment of seasonings, and onions.

Now, my grandmother’s Sloppy Joes are fantastic. And I do love them. But they are NOT BARBECUE! Just saying…

The secret to my husband’s beautiful Pulled Pork is Time, Patience, Babysitting, Salt and Pepper, and a Green Egg.

Perfectly Cooked Pork Shoulder

My husband salts and peppers heavily a Boston Butt Pork Shoulder. He heats his Green Egg Grill to 220 to 250 degrees. Then he cooks the pork shoulder real slow until meat temperature gets to 195 to 200 degrees. The grill’s temperature can go up and down, so this requires his babysitting.

When the meat is the temperature he wants, he wraps it in tinfoil and lets it rest. This step is very important to keep the moisture and juice to settle in the meat.  If you cut it too quickly, the juice will run out of the meat and  the pork will not be as juicy and tender. We know from experience. When you see that beautiful meat, you loose all patience and want to tear into it immediately. But as the saying goes, “The best comes to those who wait!”

perfectly cooked Pulled Pork

If done correctly, you can pull the pork apart easily with a fork, hence “Pulled Pork.”

Juicy, Tender, Pulled Pork

*This post contains affiliated links.

Us Southerners are CRAZY over the bbq sauce.

There is the mustard based sauce, the sweet and tangy sauce, the tomato based sauce, the brown sugar and molasses sauce, the smokey spicy sauce…  I could go on and on… Honestly, we are very serious about our sauces and if you can find one in the store that is local, BUY it! Those are the best. Skip the chain, massed produced stuff.

Our favorite store bought for the sweet tangy sauce is Cackalacky Sweet Cheerwine Sauce 33.8 Oz .It is made here in North Carolina and when we put it out at our cookouts, the jar goes empty.

My  Southern friend Karrie Holland (She lives in New Hampshire, but is originally from Florida) makes a really good sweet and tangy sauce for the crock-pot. If you want to create your own Sweet & Tangy sauce, check out her Slow Cooker BBQ Sauce recipe.

But just as much as we like the sweet stuff, we also like the vinegar based bbq sauce.

In the Carolinas, vinegar based barbecue sauce and pulled pork go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other.  And the homemade stuff is so easy, cheap, and fast to make, there is NO reason to buy it. I am sharing my spicy, tangy, vinegar-based recipe with you. I hope you love it as much as we do!

Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe

* I put my sauce in a mason jar. Old salad dressing bottles are also great for storing your sauce.

Carolina Gold Barbecue Sauce

You might want to also try my Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce. Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce is vinegar and mustard based. It’s roots come from South Carolina and has trickled into the homes of some of North Carolinians. Unlike North Carolina bbq sauce, which is vinegar based with ketchup, brown sugar or molasses; the Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce is based with mustard, vinegar sugar and/or honey, and spices. I like to have multiple sauces at my parties so my friends have a variety to choose from. This is another easy recipe that is whipped up in 10 minutes.

By the way, my Bacon Ranch Potato Salad  and Southern Baked Beans Quintet would make awesome side dishes to any pulled pork!!! Both dishes are a favorite at any cookout I have and I never have leftovers. Add in a couple of vegetables or a salad and you have a wicked good spread!!!! Just saying…..

Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe

This is an amazing Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe is a Southern vinegar based barbecue sauce made for Pulled Pork Barbecue.
4.97 from 26 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Sauce
Cuisine: American, Southern
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 12
Calories: 18kcal
Author: Katie Crenshaw

Ingredients

  • 2 cups apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon of ground pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Place all ingredients in a pan.
  • Cook on stove top at Medium heat.
  • Bring to a boil.
  • Whisk together until sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Remove from heat.
  • Cool to room temperature.
  • Pour sauce into a jar or bottle. For best results, refrigerate one day before serving.
  • Shake well before serving.

Notes

I put my sauce in a mason jar. Old salad dressing bottles are also great for storing your sauce.
You can serve immediately, but this sauce is best made 24 hours or more in advance.

Nutrition- Nutrition info is based on estimation only.

Calories: 18kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Sodium: 210mg | Potassium: 36mg | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 85IU | Calcium: 4mg | Iron: 0.1mg
Tried this recipe? I want to see it!Mention @aForksTale or tag #aForksTale!
This is an amazing Carolina Barbecue Sauce Recipe is a Southern vinegar based barbecue sauce made for Pulled Pork Barbecue. #bbqsauce #vinegarbbqsauce

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Filed Under: Easy Recipes, Fall Recipes, Healthy Recipes, My Favorite Recipe Collection, Party Food, Quick Recipes, Recipes, Sauces, Dressings, Dips, Pickles, Flavored Salts, Southern Recipes, Uncategorized

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Comments

  1. Katie says

    April 6, 2019 at 11:01 pm

    We cook our pork in the Egg. I honestly have never made it in the oven. Tyler Florence looks like he has a good oven pulled pork recipe. This is his link. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/oven-roasted-pulled-pork-sandwiches-recipe-1941398 I would try this recipe if you are cooking it in the oven. Then you can use my Carolina Barbecue sauce for the sauce. I also have a good Carolina Mustard sauce you can make too. Both are really good with pulled pork. This is the mustard bbq recipe: https://www.aforkstale.com/carolina-mustard-bbq-sauce/

  2. Rachel Laycock says

    April 6, 2019 at 4:24 pm

    Should I cover the pork while cooking it in the oven ?? I haven’t done this before and don’t want it to dry out

  3. Olga says

    March 18, 2019 at 4:16 pm

    5 stars
    Katie, it’s really awesome! This will quickly become a favorite in our house!

  4. Katie says

    March 12, 2019 at 11:48 am

    The vinegar preserves the sauce, similar to pickling. It may loose its taste over time, but it shouldn’t go bad. However, if you are worried, keep it for 2 weeks and then toss it. It is so easy to make a new batch.

  5. gary newport says

    March 11, 2019 at 11:53 pm

    Can you give me a best by date? I noted the remarks in the comments above about it lasting “forever” in the fridge, but I am very careful with sauces made at home due to the fact that there are no preservatives in it.

  6. Alexander Cornejo says

    March 1, 2019 at 10:07 pm

    5 stars
    In Orlando, have a surplus of extra starfruit and made this sauce adding 2c starfruit purée, and increasing all the ingredients 1.5x and using Aleppo pepper instead of red chili flakes. Came out great! Thanks for the solid recipe.

  7. Katie says

    February 10, 2019 at 11:47 am

    So glad you liked it Thomas!

  8. Thomas Donnelly says

    February 10, 2019 at 1:11 am

    5 stars
    OUTSTANDING – Baby Backs were on special this week so I got 2 cryovaced racks. I used the pressure cooker and tried the 1st rack with a dry rub and the Pressure Cook a 1/2 hour followed by a crisp up in the oven with BBQ sauce. Used a award winning store bought BBQ sauce on the first rack and hated it.
    Today, I did everything exactly the same but substituted Katie’s recipe for store bought— WOW! Perfect with Pork. Thank You Katie!

  9. Gneissguy says

    February 2, 2019 at 1:42 pm

    5 stars
    I live on eastern NC. She nailed this recipe! Well done!!

  10. Katie says

    January 27, 2019 at 10:49 am

    I am so glad you liked it Sarah.

  11. Sarah says

    January 26, 2019 at 11:44 pm

    5 stars
    This recipe is spot on for Eastern NC BBQ sauce. This on a pork shoulder tasted exactly like my favorite place in New Bern, NC, Smithfield’s Chicken & BBQ. You nailed it!

  12. Katie says

    December 18, 2018 at 11:10 pm

    Some people prefer a thicker sauce, so I can completely understand that you might like that combination. I am glad you found a winning sauce creation and glad you enjoyed my post. Thanks for sharing and offering an extra spin on the recipe.

  13. Duncan Albright says

    December 18, 2018 at 10:35 pm

    5 stars
    Hi, Katie;
    Love this recipe! I liked it all by itself, but I really like it when mixed it with a bit of KC Masterpiece. Hope that’s not blasphemous, but the mix of sweet and sour was excellent for me and KC Masterpiece is easy to find and relatively inexpensive.
    Many thanks for your well-done post.

  14. Katie says

    October 14, 2018 at 11:34 am

    I am glad you enjoyed it Rhonda! Thanks for sharing.

  15. Rhonda says

    October 14, 2018 at 1:13 am

    5 stars
    Just had this tonight with oven pork butt and it was delicious, thank you for sharing your recipe. So simple to make and took me by surprise how perfect it was with the pork. I will make over and keep on file for future pulled pork dinners.

  16. Katie says

    August 22, 2018 at 12:35 am

    I am so happy you liked it Amanda! Thanks for sharing. You made my day!

  17. Amanda Powers says

    August 22, 2018 at 12:32 am

    5 stars
    Well this was amazing !! I smoked a butt in the oven then smoked it on the grill for a cpl hours. I wanted a vinegar based sauce just like what i grew up eating in North carolina. I havent had a Bbq as good for many years. I first tried another recipe i found. I didnt mix into the pork just in case it wasnt what i was looking for. And it wasnt lol.. So tonight i found this recipe and it was the damn recipe i was looking for. THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.

  18. Katie says

    July 31, 2018 at 10:05 am

    When I was younger and a much much more inexperienced home cook, I have made pulled pork in the crockpot and it turned out just okay… Reason being, I cooked it in the sauce. Some people like that way, but to me, this draws out the natural juices and the pork doesn’t stay moist and tender. I found this recipe, and if I were to make it from the crockpot, this is what I would try https://www.southyourmouth.com/2013/05/crock-pot-pulled-pork-with-buzzys-butt.html. I would try this recipe because the dry rub looks fantastic, she doesn’t add liquid at first, and slow cooks it. She adds liquid smoke in the end which will give it a nice “smoked” taste as if you cooked it on the egg. After it is cooked and you pull the pork, you can add a little sauce in to flavor it up. Then put the remaining sauce to the side for those who want more or have a couple other sauces handy for those who don’t like vinegar based sauces. Hope this helps.

  19. Elise Evans says

    July 31, 2018 at 2:48 am

    I unfortunately do not have a green egg. My brother has one and loves it. I however Have only a gas grill and crockpot. I have made pp in a crockpot before with store bought sauce but I am definitely trying this recipe this weekend. My SIL is from NC and his family will be over for an event. Since my pork cooking options are limited which do you suggest? And regardless of which, do I cook in the sauce or not. If not do you use a dry rub on the meat? Thanks!!

  20. Katie says

    July 15, 2018 at 11:09 am

    Awe. That warms my heart. I am so glad you liked it and I am so touched you shared. xoxo

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