Sweet Papa Joe's BBQ Sauce - Scrumptious Easy and Good For You!

Barbecue (BBQ) sauce is a condiment used to flavor slow-cooked meats (chicken, pork, beef etc.).  It can be used as a marinade, basting sauce, or a simple topping.  The most common barbecue sauce in the United States is a commercialized Kansas City-style which uses tomato purée, corn syrup, molasses and vinegar and has a long shelf life.  One of my favorite commercial BBQ sauces in this genre is called "Sweet Baby Ray's".  I recently learned an easy technique for speedy melt-in-your-mouth barbecue ribs but didn't have any Sweet Baby Ray's so I set about to make my own BBQ sauce to save money and control the ingredient list myself.  I compared proportions from a number of online recipes and wound up deciding on the unique combinations listed below.  The result was delicious.  I'm calling it "Sweet Papa Joe's" BBQ Sauce.

By the way BBQ sauce is actually good for you.  It has vitamins A, C, and E, and selenium which are powerful antioxidants which protect cells throughout the body, support your immune system, and are essential for healthy eyes and thyroid hormone regulation.  BBQ sauce also contains lycopene which is known to significantly reduce the chance of developing prostate cancer.

Here is how to make Sweet Papa Joe's BBQ Sauce with stuff from your pantry:

• 1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar (packed) or 1 1/4 cups White Sugar plus 1/4 cup Molasses
• 1 1/4 cups Ketchup
• 1/2 cup Wine Vinegar
• 1/2 cup Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2 1/2 tsp Ground Mustard (I like crushed mustard seed using a mortar and pestle)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
• 1 tsp Black Pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl. Serve right away or keep it in the fridge!