This sweet and savory Pineapple Barbecue Sauce Recipe is the perfect homemade sauce to use as a dipping sauce, glaze, spread or drizzle. Delicious over fish and veggies, as well as chicken, beef and even pork ribs.
If you've ever wanted to make your own BBQ sauce without preservatives or high fructose corn syrup, this recipe is for you! The perfect sweet and tangy sauce with pineapple has the best flavor. Everyone will be asking for your secret.
This is a great make-ahead ingredient to keep in your refrigerator throughout grilling season (and if you have a grill pan or cast iron skillet, grilling season lasts 365 days a year!) You'll love it on Foolproof BBQ Salmon Fillets.
What you'll need to make this sauce:
Before we get to the step by step directions, a few notes about the ingredients:
Pineapple: the recipe calls for crushed pineapple, but feel free to substitute what you have and use your food processor to crush.
Brown sugar: substitute your favorite sugar substitute if you prefer.
Red pepper flakes: this optional ingredient adds just a hint of balancing heat to the sweet and savory sauce. Omit for a completely mild sauce.
Additional ingredients if making salmon skewers:
- Salmon fillets
- Pineapple chunks
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Full ingredient list and measurements included in printable recipe card below.
Step by step instructions:
1. Combine ingredients
Remove 2 tablespoons of the pineapple juice and set aside. Then combine the rest of the pineapple juice along with crushed pineapple, ketchup, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, dehydrated onion, ground mustard, black pepper and red pepper flakes (if using) in a saucepan.
2. Simmer sauce
Cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes until thickened and glossy. Taste and adjust seasoning.
3. Finish and store sauce
Now, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of pineapple juice with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Then add to the simmering barbecue sauce. Stir to combine and allow to cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Prep and cook salmon skewers
For the salmon skewers, alternate a square of salmon and a pineapple chunk on skewers. Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle salmon pieces with salt and pepper.
Heat grill or grill pan over medium high heat. Add skewers to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, brushing with pineapple BBQ sauce as you turn the skewer.
5. Serve and enjoy
Remove, top with additional sauce, and serve.
Looking for more delicious sauce recipes?
- Grilled Argentine Red Shrimp Skewers with Pistachio Chimichurri
- Japanese White Sauce (Yum Yum Sauce)
- Mardi Gras Mustard (Popeye's Copycat)
- Creamy Lemon Dill Salmon Patty Sauce
FAQ's and Serving Suggestions:
Either one works, just be sure if using fresh pineapple that you blend or chop it finely so it resembles a crushed pineapple texture.
The optional red pepper flakes add a hint of spice to this tangy barbecue sauce. For a spicier experience, add your favorite hot sauce, cayenne pepper or hot paprika.
For pescatarians, grilled salmon, shrimp or tuna offer a perfect combination for this fresh and tangy barbecue sauce. For non-pescatarians, chicken wings, chicken thighs, boneless pork chops, beef brisket, pork steaks, chicken breasts or your favorite burgers would all offer a lovely excuse to break out your next level BBQ sauce. This is the perfect sauce to keep on hand throughout grilling season. And if you own an indoor grill pan, that season lasts all year round!
One variation I make with this sauce is to add 2 tablespoons of fresh ginger (minced) and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce to the BBQ mixture. These additional ingredients add a delicious, fresh Asian flavor the sauce.
This pineapple bbq sauce recipe is nearly indestructible, but I wanted to include some options for making adjustments.
If your sauce is thicker than you'd like to see, add a few more tablespoons of pineapple juice and let the sauce come back up to a simmer.
If the sauce is too thin, make an additional cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon cornstarch + 1 tablespoon pineapple juice) add to the saucepan and bring up to a simmer.
To store, transfer to airtight container or mason jars and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Can be frozen for up to 3 months. To reheat, warm gently in a saucepan over medium heat, then brush on your favorite protein.
Pineapple Barbecue Sauce Recipe with Salmon Skewers
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
For the sauce:
1 cup pineapple juice, divided
1 cup crushed pineapple
¾ cup ketchup
⅓ cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon Worcestershire
1 tablespoon dehydrated onion
1 teaspoon ground mustard
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
For BBQ salmon skewers:
1 pound salmon fillets, cut into 1 ounce squares
16-20 pineapple chunks
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- To make the pineapple barbecue sauce, remove 2 tablespoons of the pineapple juice and set aside. Then combine the rest of the pineapple juice along with crushed pineapple, ketchup, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, dehydrated onion, ground mustard, black pepper and red pepper flakes (if using) in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes until thickened and glossy. Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Now, combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of pineapple juice with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Stir to combine. Then add to the simmering barbecue sauce. Stir to combine and allow to cook for another minutes. Remove from heat.
- For the salmon skewers, alternate a square of salmon and a pineapple chunk on skewers. Drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle salmon pieces with salt and pepper. Heat grill or grill pan over medium high heat.
- Add skewers to pan and cook for 2-3 minutes per side, brushing with pineapple BBQ sauce as you turn the skewer.
- Remove, top with additional sauce, and serve.
Notes
Salmon can be substituted by any other seafood or meat.
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 20
- Category: sauce
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: American, southern
Tipsy Brisket
This sounds delicious. Normally when a sauce has pineapple in it I'll bump up the heat and add more peppers or some sort of other spiciness to it, the sweetness from the pineapple along with a good strong heat on the backend is addictive!
Christina
You just can't beat that sweet heat!