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No pity BBQ sauce

I know, I bet you’re thinking, “poor Vanessa, it looks like she burned a pile of something”. But don’t pity me dear readers…I like my BBQ chicken this way…and I always have. My problem with BBQ chicken is usually a poor BBQ sauce. Many years ago I use to be hooked on a bottle sauce made by Consorzio. It was a balsamic garlic sauce and it was good, but it came from a bottle. I knew some day I could do better. Well I did and whooo boy, it is good. I marinated the chicken in it all day and then slow cooked it on the grill. It chars up because of the honey in the sauce…some might think that’s a bad deal, but I just keep slathering the sauce on…sort of like when Marge Simpson glazes a ham. Well anyway, you may doubt my cooking technique…but give the sauce a try.

The only problem with this recipe is that I picked up the Ginger Conserve at Waitrose while I was in London…I’m not sure I’ll find something comparable over here. This is serious, I just checked and I only have half a jar left…enough for one more batch and summer hasn’t even begun!!! But if all else fails I can make my own conserve…can’t I??? Do any of you dear readers have a ginger jones? Do you know where to purchase said ginger conserve? Do you know how to make ginger conserve? If so fess up and stop lurking!

No Pity BBQ Sauce

1 cup Dijon mustard
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons ginger
1/2 cup ginger conserve
1/2 cup water
8 cloves garlic chopped fine
1/4 cup olive oil

Saute the garlic in olive oil. Add the honey, mustard, vinegar, ginger, ginger conserve, water and salt and pepper. Cook over medium low flame and stir until all the parts are dissolved. Taste and see if the mixture is too acidic, sweet, or whatever, and then adjust accordingly. Simmer over a low flame for 10 minutes or so, just enough to let the flavors come together. Taste it again.

Pour the sauce into the blender and pulse until all the chunks disappear. The allow it to blend on the lowest speed for a couple of minutes in order to totally emulsify.

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May 7, 2007 | Filed Under bits and pieces, food, ginger, grilling, recipe, spicy 

comments

16 Responses to “No pity BBQ sauce”

  1. Mizburd on May 7th, 2007

    There’s a place in Virginia called the British Pantry that specializes in products like the ginger conserve you used in your sauce. Their website is http://www.thebritishpantry.us/ I don’t know if they carry the conserve you used, but it couldn’t hurt to ask — maybe they can get it for you. Your sauce looks luscious!

  2. Andy on May 7th, 2007

    I found a recipe for ginger conserve:

    Ginger Conserve

    Make a syrup with two pounds of sugar and one pint of water. Boil
    till it reaches “thread”. Have ready half a pound of green ginger
    root, which has been cut small, boiled for an hour in water to
    cover it, and drained. Put this in a separate pan, pour over it
    syrup to cover it, and simmer for an hour and a half. Remove and
    drain; let grow cold; dust with powdered sugar. Put it into the
    syrup again; let cool again; thoroughly coat with sugar, and pack,
    in sugar, in pots or jars.

    http://www.recipecottage.com/preserving/ginger-conserve.html

  3. Julie on May 8th, 2007

    Your picture makes me hungry. That’s just the way I like my grilled chicken. Unfortunately, I have no useful thoughts or ideas about ginger conserve. Except maybe a trip to London.

  4. Penny Z on May 9th, 2007

    Just found your site (and forgot where I got the link!). I’ve got a recipe for ginger “marmalade” from the book, Fancy Pantry, that sounds like your ginger conserve.

    It uses shredded fresh stem ginger and the recipe proceeds pretty much like a citrus marmalade. Let me know if you’re interested in it. Instructions are also given for “regular” gingerroot, if you can’t find fresh stem ginger (which usually is available in summer).

  5. Andy on May 9th, 2007

    Penny, I wouldn’t mind seeing that if possible!

  6. vanessa on May 10th, 2007

    Mizburd, thanks for the link, they have some cool stuff.

    Andy, thanks for the recipe. That recipe sounds good (anything with ginger is!)but i don’t think it has the right consistency. It should be more like marmalade.

    Julie, if you’re buying, I’m flying!

    Penny Z, absolutely give up the recipe…and thanks!

    Good job one and all!

  7. Penny Z on May 10th, 2007

    OK, it’s long. By the way, I get fresh stem ginger in Asian markets here (Los Angeles). Second by the way: if you have excess liquid (see recipe), mix with syrup and sparkling water for a great summer drink.

    1/2 lb stem ginger or 1 to 1 1/4 pounds gingerroot
    6 cups water
    1/2 cup strained fresh lemon juice
    4 cups sugar
    pinch salt
    3 oz. liquid pectin

    Stem Ginger: scrape the skin off, removing any blemishes and papery bits of leaf and any dried ends. Rinse and pat dry. Use a citrus zester or microplane to shred into small threads. Be sure to work over a bowl to catch all the juice. You want to end up with about 1 1/2 cups.

    Mature ginger: Scrape off skin and grate only the tender outer layer. You should end up with about 1 1/2 cups. Combine with 1 qt water and boil 5 minutes. Drain and repeat twice.

    Now combine the grated ginger, the juice if using stem ginger, and 6 cups water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer gently until very tender–probably will take a little more than an hour.

    Measure the ginger and liquid and if it’s more than 3 cups, remove excess liquid (save it!). Add lemon, sugar and salt and bring to a hard boil and boil exactly 1 minute. Stir in pectin and return to boil and boil exactly 1 more minute. Remove from heat.

    Stir the marmalade for 5 minutes to cool slightly, then ladle into hot, clean half-pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Seal and process for 15 minutes in a boiling water bath.

    Hope it’s what you’re looking for.

  8. Penny Z on May 10th, 2007

    Ack! I thought I proofed the recipe. For the mature gingerroot, you should drain it after the third boil.

    I have great admiration for recipe editors.

  9. vanessa on May 11th, 2007

    Penny Z, thank you so much. I love this recipe because it is so simple. I also think I would make more syrup just to keep on hand to spice up the fuzzy water and ice tea. Now I have a place to start. Thanks!

  10. Dexter Zaf on May 13th, 2007

    This is definitely my favorite geek food. It looks like teriyaki chicken.

  11. vanessa on May 14th, 2007

    Dexter Zaf, I love your name…it is tasty but better than teriyaki (of which I’m not a huge fan…unless it’s really loaded with…ginger!). Thanks for stopping by and commenting.

  12. Jacob on June 2nd, 2007

    Vanessa, I just picked up some “ginger spread” from TJ’s. The ingredients only list ginger and cane sugar and it’s a product of China, not Britain, but I was too excited not to make the impulse buy after having read this blog entry. What ingredients are listed in your ginger conserve?

  13. vanessa on June 3rd, 2007

    Jacob, good job! Mine has ginger, sugar, HFCS, and treacle. I think you’ve found a winner and it sounds much better than this stuff. What aisle and location did you find it?

  14. Jacob on June 4th, 2007

    I found it by the honey and jams at the Monroe street location. Let me know if you find it there as well!

  15. vanessa on June 5th, 2007

    Jacob, I’ll pick some up next time I’m there…almost everything I buy at TJ’s is an impulse buy!

  16. Angela on August 12th, 2008

    You can purchase it from Morecambe Bay Hampers, I purchased it at a local show but they also have a website http://www.morecambebayhampers.co.uk

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