Amish Apple Butter BBQ Sauce (Slow Cooker Recipe)

This Amish Apple Butter Barbecue Sauce combines the sweet warmth of apple butter with the smoky, tanginess of classic barbecue sauce, creating a perfect blend of flavors. Whether you’re grilling on a sunny afternoon or enjoying a quiet evening meal, this sauce is perfect for everything from ribs to grilled chicken!

What is Amish Apple Butter Barbecue Sauce?

The Amish are well known for their food preservation skills, canning fresh foods from their garden is an important part of old Amish ways. Apple butter is a common and well loved staple among Amish communities, and is used in a variety of ways – including in barbecue sauce!

Why You Will Love This Recipe

Easy

This recipe only has a few simple steps. Sauté onions and garlic, then add to a slow cooker pot with the rest of the ingredients. Slow cook these ingredients over night, then blend everything with an immersion blender. Finally, cook it down a little more until it’s nice and thick, then you’re ready to use it in your favorite barbeque recipe!

Healthy

This homemade BBQ sauce recipe combines fresh apples, maple syrup, spices, vinegar, and other whole food ingredients to make a delicious and healthy sauce! Many of the store-bought varieties of Amish Butter BBQ contain ingredients like the mysterious “natural flavoring” as well as cane sugar. This sauce on the other hand is naturally sweetened with apples and maple syrup (no cane sugar or corn syrup), and gets its rich flavor from slow cooking healthy ingredients!

Delicious

The unique combination of sweet slow cooked apples, tangy vinegar, smoky spices, and savory sauteed onions and garlic creates a perfect barbecue sauce. The apples, vinegar, and spices are a perfect balance of a sweet, smoky, spicy, and tangy flavor.

Ingredients That Make This Amish Apple Butter Amazing

​Fresh apples

There’s nothing like fresh, homemade apple butter from sweet apples. Homemade apple butter is basically homemade apple sauce that is cooked down until it reaches a thick, spreadable texture. An Amish apple butter recipe is as good as it gets – add in some spices, vinegar, and a few other ingredients and you have an amazing sauce!

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar adds a tart flavor to this recipe that pairs nicely with the sweetness of slow cooked apples. 

Onions and Garlic

Freshly sauteed onions and garlic cloves offer a rich, savory flavor that balances the sweetness of the slow cooked apples. Garlic powder adds a little extra flavor to this recipe!

Maple Syrup

Maple syrup adds an extra depth of sweetness to this recipe. The darker and richer the maple syrup, the better!

Spices

Spices like smoked paprika and chili flakes add spice and smokiness to this recipe, while clove and black pepper adding brightness and warmth. 

Strained Tomatoes

​Instead of using tomato ketchup from the grocery store like other recipes, we are using strained tomatoes to make this recipe more fresh and delicious!

Worcestershire Sauce 

Worcestershire sauce adds a little umami for your taste buds (a savory, rich flavor) to this sauce, as well as tangy and sour notes. 

How to Use This Apple Butter Barbecue Sauce

Use this sauce as a replacement for regular barbecue sauce on delicious savory dishes! Here are some ideas:

• Use it on grilled or smoked meats – like pulled pork, spatchcocked chicken, or ribs.
• Serve it on a hamburger or grilled chicken breasts.
• Dip chicken wings, chicken nuggets, or potato fries in it!

How to Store This Apple Butter Barbecue Sauce

After fully cooling, store this sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. A great way to make sure this won’t go bad is to make small batches. Since this recipe is so easy, it’s simple to just make it in a smaller batch when needed. Next time you plan on making barbecue, just make this sauce a couple of days in advance!

You are welcome to freeze this sauce. Keep in mind that when you freeze liquid in jars, you need to keep the lid open until it is fully frozen to prevent the glass from breaking. The only thing you need to remember is that when freezing, you need to thaw it out before it will be ready to use!

How to Make Amish Apple Butter BBQ Sauce in a Slow Cooker

​Sauté onions in butter until translucent.

Add garlic, and sauté, stirring frequently, until fragrant (make sure not to allow garlic to turn brown or it will be bitter).

Add onion and garlic mixture to the pot of a slow cooker or instant pot. 

Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. 

Slow cook in crock pot or instant pot on low for 10 hours. 

*If using a pressure cooker, set to slow cooker mode and keep steam nozzle open while cooking.*

After 10 hours, blend ingredients together with an immersion blender. 

Pour sauce into a small pot and cook on the stove top on low heat to reduce water content for about 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally, until it reaches your desired thickness. 

​Enjoy in your favorite barbecue recipes!