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We Tried 7 Different Bottles of Barbecue Sauce — Here Are the 3 We’ll Buy Again

updated about 7 hours ago

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(Image credit: Kelli Foster )

When people talk about summer eats, often BBQ sauce gets the short end of the stick. People rave about the fresh fruit and vegetables , the hot dogs and hamburgers , the ice cream and ice pops . Even when people do talk about condiments, they usually just scratch the surface with ketchup and mustard. But what about the BBQ sauce, people!? If you choose to forgo the DIY approach , a good bottle of BBQ sauce can really transform a burger or a piece of meat.

But what’s a really good bottle of BBQ sauce? We tried every one we could find in the grocery store in order to find out.

(Image credit: Kelli Foster )

How We Tested The BBQ Sauces

There are a lot of different kinds of bottled BBQ sauce. There’s the vinegary kind, the Kansas-city style, and BBQ sauce that has lots of tomato-y flavor. We decided not to parse out the various kinds and just go for the best based on taste.Instead, we chose as many bottles we could find that are widely available in grocery stores around the country.

1. Sweet Baby Ray’s Original

Overall this BBQ sauce was very well-balanced. A lot of the testers noted it was peppery, sweet, and tangy all at once. One even said it was “perfect.” This sauce made for an excellent dipping sauce for French fries, but would also go great with pretty much anything you throw on a grill this summer.

Buy: Sweet Baby Ray’s Original , $2.78 for 18.5 ounces at Walmart

2. Trader Joe’s Kansas City BBQ Sauce

A couple of our taste testers are from Texas and have feelings about BBQ sauce. This Kansas City style bottle did not disappoint! In fact, one of them said it tasted just like home. It had a solid deep, smoky flavor and a touch of sweetness. Other notable comments? “I want to eat this one with a spoon,” and “This tastes like a trip to the ball park.”

More info: Trader Joe’s Kansas City BBQ Sauce , $2.99 for 18 ounces

3. Bull’s-Eye Original

One of our testers described this tomato-based BBQ sauce as tasting like, “fast food, but in a good way.” It had ketchup-y undertones, a sweet honey flavor, and lots of bright, bold peppery spice.

Buy: Bull’s-Eye Original , $1.50 for 18 ounces at Walmart

Have you ever tried one of these BBQ sauces? Do you have a favorite? Or do you have a favorite we didn’t mention in this post?

Ariel Knutson

Features Director

Arie is the Features Director at Kitchn. She lives in Los Angeles.

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Source : food