Never buy canned cranberry sauce again with this simple Cranberry Sauce recipe. Sugar, freshly squeezed orange juice, cranberries, and orange zest simmer together in minutes for a sauce that’s vibrant, perfectly thick, stores well, and doesn’t require a can opener!
My homemade cranberry sauce is tart and sweet, and the orange juice and zest add balance with a subtle citrus flavor. This easy sauce is made with fresh or frozen cranberries, so you can enjoy it all holiday season long or throughout the year. For more Thanksgiving recipes, try my cornbread dressing, green bean casserole, or candied yams.
What You Need to Make This Recipe
Sugar – granulated sugar or light brown sugar adds sweetness, helps the cranberries to soften and break open as they cook, and balances the tartness of the fruit. You can also use ¾ cup of pure maple syrup to sweeten the sauce in place of the sugar.
Orange Juice – fresh orange juice offers the most flavor. One orange will typically yield around ¼ cup of juice. You can use bottled orange juice, but since this recipe is best when also using orange zest, opt for a fresh orange whenever possible. If you don’t prefer citrus, use additional water or apple cider in place of the orange juice.
Cranberries – one bag of cranberries is needed for this recipe. Fresh cranberries are available seasonally in many areas and can typically be found in the fresh produce section of the grocery store in the fall and early winter months. Frozen cranberries also work wonderfully in this recipe and are available year-round.
Orange Zest – zesting citrus fruit releases its oils, adds depth of flavor, and will also fill your kitchen with an inviting fragrance. Slice a thin piece of orange peel if you prefer. The zesty orange flavor is the perfect addition to the tart flavors of the cranberries.
How to Make Cranberry Sauce
1. Zest the orange with a zester or microplane and juice the orange. If you prefer or don’t have a zester, you can use a sharp knife to cut a thin piece of orange peel to use in place of the zest.
2. If using fresh cranberries, rinse the cranberries and discard shriveled or brown ones. Reserve a handful of cranberries and place the rest in a medium saucepan. If using frozen cranberries, you don’t need to rinse or thaw them. Add the sugar, orange juice, water, and orange zest or peel to a medium saucepan.
3. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cranberry mixture starts to simmer, about 10 minutes.
4. Decrease the heat to medium-low and stir occasionally, cooking until the berries burst and the liquid thickens the desired amount, about 5 to 10 minutes. Keep in mind the sauce will thicken as it cools. Remove the orange peel if used and stir in the reserved berries. Remove from the heat. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold.
Pro Tips For Making This Recipe
- Make this recipe ahead. Save valuable time on the day of your holiday celebration by preparing the fresh cranberry sauce ahead of time. Many people think buying the canned stuff will save them time, but this recipe is so easy to make ahead and store, that you won’t have to compromise flavor.
- Enjoy year-round with fresh or frozen cranberries. This recipe works equally as well with fresh or frozen cranberries, so don’t worry if you’re craving this sauce and can’t find cranberries in the produce section. Fresh cranberries are typically available beginning in mid-October, but frozen cranberries are available year-round.
- Add some cinnamon spice. Add one cinnamon stick to the sauce as it cooks for some extra holiday spice. Discard the stick before serving.
- Cook until desired thickness. The thickness of the sauce is a personal preference, so base your doneness on consistency instead of cooking time. After reducing the heat to medium-low, cook until the desired consistency keeping in mind that the sauce will thicken slightly as it cools.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 4 months. Defrost overnight before serving or reheat from frozen in a saucepan on low.
Cranberry sauce is a Thanksgiving dinner classic and adds sweetness and color to meals year-round too. This sauce is a perfect complement to Thanksgiving turkey recipe and other holiday sides such as my recipe for sweet potato casserole, collard greens recipe, homemade dinner rolls, and pumpkin pie recipe. You can also mix leftover cranberry sauce in yogurt or oatmeal for breakfast, use it as a jam to spread on my homemade apple bread recipe or on leftover turkey sandwiches, or dollop it over a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Serve this recipe cold, room temperature, or warm. The serving temperature of this sauce is a personal preference. When serving with hot turkey, I prefer to serve this sauce warm so that it doesn’t cool the meat too much. Cold sauce is delicious as a condiment for adding to a turkey sandwich.
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If you’ve tried this cranberry sauce recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!
Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar (granulated, light brown) (200g)
- ¼ cup orange juice (1 orange) (60ml)
- ¼ cup water (60ml)
- 1 (12-ounce/338g) bag cranberries fresh or frozen
- 2 teaspoons orange zest (1 orange)
Instructions
- If using fresh cranberries, rinse the cranberries and discard and shriveled or brown ones. Reserve a handful of cranberries and place the rest in a medium saucepan. (If using frozen cranberries, you don’t need to rinse or thaw them.)
- Add the sugar, orange juice, water, and orange zest. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the cranberry mixture starts to simmer, about 10 minutes.
- Decrease the heat to medium-low and stir occasionally, cooking until the berries burst and the liquid thickens the desired amount, 5 to 10 minutes. (Keep in mind the sauce will thicken as it cools.) Stir in the reserved berries. Remove from the heat. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold.
Notes
- Make this recipe ahead. Save valuable time on the day of your holiday celebration by preparing the fresh cranberry sauce ahead of time. Many people think buying the canned stuff will save them time, but this recipe is so easy to make ahead and store, that you won’t have to compromise flavor.
- Enjoy year-round with fresh or frozen cranberries. This recipe works equally as well with fresh or frozen cranberries, so don’t worry if you’re craving this sauce and can’t find cranberries in the produce section. Fresh cranberries are typically available beginning in mid-October, but frozen cranberries are available year-round.
- Add some cinnamon spice. Add one cinnamon stick to the sauce as it cooks for some extra holiday spice. Discard the stick before serving.
- Cook until desired thickness. The thickness of the sauce is a personal preference, so base your doneness on consistency instead of cooking time. After reducing the heat to medium-low, cook until the desired consistency keeping in mind that the sauce will thicken slightly as it cools.
