Gluten Free Barbeque Sauces

I just spent 10 minutes trying to decide whether I should title this post Gluten Free Barbeque Sauces or Gluten Free BBQ Sauces.  I grew up with this spelling - barbeque.  My spell check is always trying to change it to barbecue.  It drives me crazy!  Barbecue just doesn't look right to me, and my way of spelling it (barbeque) is acceptable too.  Well, enough of that.  Let's talk about gluten free BBQ sauces.

When I was diagnosed with celiac, I was sad to see that my favorite barbeque sauce from Target had gluten in it, so the search was on to find a new sauce we would all like.  5 1/2 years ago, it was a hard to find a sauce that was labeled gluten free.  

Today, when I shop at Publix or The Fresh Market, I am amazed at how many gluten free sauces there are to choose from.  Publix carries a variety of gluten free sauces from Sticky Fingers, Stubb's, Sweet Baby Ray's, and Weber BBQ.  For a while, we used Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce.  It's sweet and not too spicy, but the first ingredient is high fructose corn syrup, which I try to avoid.  Last night, I posed this question on my Gluten Free in Orlando Facebook page - What are your favorite barbeque sauces?  Sweet Baby Ray's was mentioned more than any other sauce.  

Stubb's was also mentioned twice.  All Stubb's Bar-B-Q sauces, marinades, and rubs are gluten free.  I recently tried Stubb's when I was making Oven Baked Barbeque Chicken, because I was running low on my favorite sauce.  I chose the Sweet Heat variety, because I like a sweet sauce with a little bit of heat, and the ingredients list looked good.  It was too spicy for my daughters, and not sweet enough for my liking. 

Bone Suckin' also makes a variety of gluten free products that you can view here.  Bone Suckin' Sauce is non GMO, certified kosher, and has no preservatives.  You can view the ingredient list here.  I have seen this sauce at The Fresh Market, and the product search I did said it was available at Whole Foods.  Another gluten free option mentioned on my Facebook page was Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, which you can check out here.  

Hands down, no contest, our family favorite is Guy Fieri's Bourbon Brown Sugar Barbeque Sauce.  The back of the bottle describes it perfectly.

"Chef Guy's sweet, sticky Bourbon Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce rocks on just about anything.  Smokey bourbon, sweet brown sugar and a hint of spicy black pepper create off-the-hook flavor that's a perfect compliment to everything from beef to chicken, pork and seafood."

Ingredients:  tomato puree, brown sugar, sugar, vinegar, robust molasses, modified cornstarch, salt, bourbon, pepper, pineapple juice, natural hickory smoke, orange juice, ground chipotle chili powder, granulated garlic, granulated onion, and xanthan gum.  Allergens: none.

It is also labeled gluten free.  The only downside of this sauce is that it is hard to find locally.  I have seen it in grocery stores while on vacation, but never here in Orlando, so I buy it from Walmart.com in bulk.  I have given it to neighbors as Christmas gifts and gotten them hooked on it too.  It is the perfect combination of sweet and spicy for me, and it tastes like a homemade sauce.  We use it to make ribs, brisket, chicken, pork chops, pork tenderloin, BBQ chicken pizza, Barbeque Chicken & Pork Wraps, and Mini Turkey Meatloaves.  You can read more about Guy Fieri's gluten free BBQ sauces here.

September 2015 Update - I finally found my favorite barbeque sauce in a local store!  Bulk Nation in Colonial Plaza on Colonial Drive carries it, and it is only $4.09 per bottle.  

When we are grilling meats that we will be be adding barbeque sauce to, we always season them with a rub first.   

Our rub of choice is 4 Rivers Smokehouse Brisket Rub.  My husband puts the rub on brisket, ribs, and pork butt before he smokes them on his Big Green Egg.  The rub contains salt, pepper, and other spices.  4 Rivers Brisket Rub is labeled gluten & lactose free.  We purchase it at the various 4 Rivers Smokehouse locations in Orlando.

My favorite meal to make in my slow cooker is barbeque beef short ribs.  I buy a 3 to 4 pound pack of boneless beef chuck short ribs from Costco, and season them with 4 Rivers brisket rub.  I pour enough Guy Fieri sauce in my Crock-Pot to just cover the bottom, then add the short ribs.  I pour the rest of the jar of barbeque sauce over the meat, then fill the bottle about 1/4 full with water, put the lid on the bottle, swish it around, then pour the liquid on the meat.  I usually cook my short ribs for 5 to 6 hours, using the 6 hour setting on my Crock-Pot, and they turn out perfectly every time. 

When the short ribs are done cooking, I cut them into bite-size pieces, and cover them with the sauce from the slow cooker.

What are your favorite gluten free barbeque sauces?