BBQ Sauce Encyclopedia: Sauces and Recipes

BBQ sauces are more than just a side dish — they are the translation of a grilling culture on your plate. A chimichurri tells the story of the Argentine parrilla. An Alabama white sauce is inextricably linked to the Alabama mountain smoke tradition. Ssamjang belongs to the Korean banchan culture. This encyclopedia brings together all the major grilling sauces, with direct recipe links. Continuously updated.

Which sauce or dip suits your BBQ?

Start with how you want to use the sauce. These flavour ideas link directly to recipes; they are not compulsory traditional pairings. Browse the regional sauce guide further down.

Check the ingredients and allergens in each recipe and on each label. These choices are not automatically suitable for every diet. Use clean serving spoons and keep sauce that has touched raw meat separate from sauce for the table. Follow each recipe's cooling and storage instructions.

South America

  • Chimichurri — Argentina/Uruguay. Fresh parsley, oregano, garlic, red wine vinegar, olive oil. The classic sauce for asado. → Chimichurri recipe
  • Pebre — Chile. Fresh cilantro, tomato, onion, aji pepper, olive oil. The Chilean chimichurri.
  • Aji verde — Peru. Green jalapeño, cilantro, mayo, feta, garlic, lime. Creamy, fresh, and spicy.
  • Amarillo BBQ sauce — Our own sweet-spicy BBQ variation with ají amarillo and a tomato base. → Amarillo BBQ sauce recipe
  • Mojo criollo — Cuba. Fresh citrus-garlic sauce with oregano and cumin. Used as a marinade and serving sauce for lechón, pork, chicken, fish, and vegetables. → Mojo criollo recipe

North America — BBQ sauces

  • Guacamole — avocado dip with lime, red onion and coriander, with optional chilli. Serve with tortillas, vegetable sticks, tacos or a burger. → Make guacamole with avocado and lime
  • Kansas City BBQ sauce — tomato/ketchup base, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, Worcestershire. Sweet and thick. → Homemade BBQ sauce recipe
  • Sugar-free BBQ sauce — keto-friendly variant based on passata, vinegar, and spices. No sugar, full flavor. → Sugar-free BBQ sauce recipe
  • Alabama white sauce — mayo base, apple cider vinegar, horseradish, black pepper. White, creamy, acidic. Iconic with smoked chicken. → Alabama white sauce recipe
  • Carolina vinegar sauce — pure apple cider vinegar + black pepper + chili flakes. Thin dipping sauce for pulled pork.
  • Mop sauce — Texas/Memphis. Thin vinegar-based sauce used to baste meat while smoking. → Mop sauce recipe · English BBQ mop sauce recipe
  • Nashville hot sauce — cayenne paste in chicken fat or butter. Extremely hot, orange-red in color.
  • Salsa macha — Coarse chilli oil with dried chillies, peanuts and sesame. → Make salsa macha with peanuts and sesame
  • Green chilli sauce — New Mexican-inspired salsa with roasted Anaheim chillies, without tomatillos. → Make green chilli sauce without tomatillos
  • Remoulade — Cajun-inspired mayonnaise sauce with mustard, capers and paprika. → Make Cajun-inspired remoulade

Middle East & North Africa

  • Toum — Lebanon. Garlic emulsion made from garlic, oil, lemon, and salt. White, fluffy, extremely garlic-forward. → Toum recipe
  • Chermoula — Morocco. Cilantro, parsley, cumin, paprika, lemon, olive oil. → Chermoula recipe
  • Harissa — Tunisia/Morocco. Roasted peppers, garlic, cumin, cilantro, olive oil.
  • Tahini — across the Middle East. Sesame seed paste, lemon, garlic, water.
  • Awaze — Ethiopia. Spicy sauce and spice paste made from berbere, acid, and oil. Used as a dip or marinade for tibs, beef, lamb, chicken, and grilled vegetables. → Awaze sauce recipe

Europe

  • Romesco — Catalonia. Roasted red pepper, tomato, almonds, garlic, sherry vinegar. → Romesco recipe
  • Tzatziki — Greece. Yogurt, cucumber, garlic, dill, olive oil. → Tzatziki recipe
  • Aioli — Southern Europe. Garlic emulsion based on oil and egg yolk — the Mediterranean counterpart to mayo. → Aioli recipe
  • Piri-piri sauce — Portugal. Piri-piri peppers, garlic, lemon, olive oil, vinegar. → Piri-piri recipe
  • Ajvar — Balkans. Roasted pepper and eggplant spread. The Balkan sauce for ćevapi.

Asia

  • Ssamjang — Korea. Doenjang + gochujang + garlic + sesame oil. The dipping sauce for KBBQ wraps. → Ssamjang recipe
  • Yakiniku tare — Japan. Soy sauce, mirin, sake, sugar, garlic, sesame.
  • Nước chấm — Vietnam. Fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, water, garlic, chili.
  • Peanut sauce — Indonesia/Netherlands. Peanuts, coconut milk, kecap manis, lime, chili. → Satay recipe including peanut sauce
  • Nam jim jaew — Thailand. Spicy, sour dipping sauce with fish sauce, lime, tamarind, chili, and toasted rice powder. Traditionally served with gai yang, moo ping, and grilled meat. → Nam jim jaew recipe

Marinades with a sauce function

Sugar-free & keto-friendly sauces

For those eating keto or avoiding sugar: chimichurri, toum, aioli, and chermoula are naturally sugar-free. The homemade sugar-free BBQ sauce is a full-fledged alternative to store-bought sweet sauces.

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