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Home » Recipes » Keto

The Best Homemade Keto BBQ Sauce | Low Carb & Gluten-Free

Published: Jun 7, 2018 · Modified: Jul 2, 2022 by Lara Clevenger, Registered Dietitian This post may contain affiliate links - read my disclaimer for full details... 20 Comments

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This Keto BBQ Sauce is just what your low carb diet has been missing! This is the best low carb BBQ sauce recipe I've created! It's even better than store bought low carb barbecue sauce brands!

low carb keto bbq sauce

If you're new to following a keto diet, you'll quickly realize how much sugar is in our food! BBQ sauce, especially sweet or sweet and spicy barbecue sauce is a big culprit!

So today we're making a BBQ sauce WITHOUT sugar!

Traditional barbecue sauces contain either sugar, brown sugar or high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener. Our low carb BBQ sauce is sugar free and uses STEVIA as a sweetener.

Ingredients

  • tomato paste
  • water
  • apple cider vinegar
  • seasonings: salt, ground black pepper, cumin, cayenne pepper
  • sweetener: liquid stevia extract
  • molasses: only 1.5 teaspoon for the entire recipe - the molasses is used for FLAVOR not as a sweetener.
  • fresh garlic 
  • dijon mustard
Ingredients to make a keto BBQ Sauce recipe

How to make keto BBQ Sauce

This low carb BBQ sauce recipe is super easy! It's made in one pot on your stove top.

  1. First you add the water and the tomato paste and cook until boiling. Stir occasionally.
  2. Then add the rest of the ingredients, turn to low and let simmer for about 2 minutes to thicken.
keto BBQ sauce recipe being made in a sauce pan

RECIPE NOTES

Alternative cooking method: You can be super lazy like I am sometimes and just add all of the ingredients at once to the saucepan, let it boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and let it thicken.

I've done this recipe both ways and it still comes out good!

THE BEST KETO BARBECUE SAUCE RECIPE

Now this low carb low sugar BBQ sauce recipe is tasty and with only 1g carbs per serving it's probably the closest you're going to find to a no carb BBQ sauce recipe.

finished product homemade keto BBQ sauce

What to serve with this keto BBQ sauce

This homemade low carb BBQ sauce would be perfect ribs! I just so happen to have the easiest Instant Pot Beef Rib recipe on the planet! Or if you prefer pork ribs, how about these super tender Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs?

Or dip this tasty Instant Pot Beef Brisket in the barbecue sauce. 

This sugar free barbecue sauce would also be great on my homemade turkey sliders, made with Low Carb Buns of course! Or keep it simple and make these Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Breasts and top them with this easy sugar free barbecue sauce. 

I bet you could even put this on your favorite low carb vegetables.

I feel this quite simply is the best low carb BBQ sauce that I've ever whipped up...and I've been trying for a while now. If you don't have time to make your own keto BBQ sauce, these are my favorite low carb BBQ sauce brands.

MY FAVORITE LOW CARB BBQ SAUCE BRANDS

  • ALTERNA SWEETS - I met Misti and Jared (the owners) out in Austin last year at the first ever KetoCon. We may or may not have drank a few too many bottles of Dry Farm Wines (OMG THESE WERE AMAZING) while hanging out with a bunch of people from the conference. Not only are they amazing people but their products are great too! They put nothing but the best into their sauces. They not only have a great tasting low carb BBQ sauce, but they also have a low carb ketchup and a low carb spicy ketchup. Check out all of their Alterna Sweets Products on their website. ALSO, Misti and Jared stand behind their products and offer a 100% money back guarantee! So if you're weird and you don't like it they'll give you your money back. It's kind of a no brainer for me 🙂 PLUS, Misti and Jared gave me an Alterna Sweets coupon code to share with my readers. If you go to their website and use the coupon code "LARA5" you'll get 5% off your order!
  • G Hughes - This low carb barbecue sauce I found at my local Publix. On the plus, it is on the cheaper side and taste great, but it's not made with the best ingredients. I don't think many store bought keto barbecue sauces can really compete with Alterna Sweets ingredients!
  • Guys Award Winning Sugar Free BBQ Sauce - So this one I found while on an amazon search. I have not personally tried it, but I think I might pick it up on my next amazon purchase.
  • Walden Farms Barbecue Sauces - So, I'm not a huge fan of WFs products. Yes, they are really low in carbs but most of them are loaded up with food chemicals and preservatives, and the products are really hit or miss with their tastes.
  • Simple Girl OrganicsBBQ Sauce - I have yet to try this brand either. They seem to have a variety of rubs and sauces available and have pretty good reviews too! May be another that I need to try!

Carbs in BBQ Sauce

While most store bought regular barbecue sauces have 15-20g of carbs per serving. My recipe and the brands above have less than 5g of carbs per serving! Don't settle for bland food on a keto or low carb diet. Spice things up!

2 weeks keto diet meal plans 9.99
PHOTO COLLAGE OF RECIPE WITH THE WORDS "VIEW MEAL PLANS"
low carb keto bbq sauce

Keto BBQ Sauce

Lara Clevenger, Registered Dietitian
This Keto BBQ Sauce is just what your low carb diet has been missing! This is the best low carb BBQ sauce recipe I've created! It's even better than store bought low carb barbecue sauce brands!
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 15 minutes mins
Course Side Dish
Cuisine keto
Servings 18 tablespoon
Calories 6 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 3 ounces tomato paste
  • ½ cup water
  • 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • 20 drops liquid stevia extract
  • 1.5 teaspoon molasses
  • ⅛ teaspoon cumin
  • 1 clove garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions
 

  • In a small saucepan add tomato paste and water. 
  • Cook at medium heat until mixture is boiling.
  • Then turn to low.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients.
  • Cook for additional 2 min on low and then remove from heat and allow mixture to cool.
  • Store in fridge until ready to enjoy.

Nutrition

Serving: 1tablespoonCalories: 6kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 0gFat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 159mgPotassium: 50mgFiber: 0gSugar: 0gVitamin A: 70IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 3mgIron: 0.2mg
Keyword barbecue sauce, BBQ sauce, keto, ketogenic, lchf, low carb
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

 

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Reader Interactions

Comments

    5 from 1 vote

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Christina Giehl

    October 04, 2018 at 2:01 pm

    Dr. Berg said molasses is not Keto. Too much sugar.

    Reply
    • Lara

      October 10, 2018 at 9:15 am

      There is only 1 tsp in this entire recipe and it is used for flavor and not sweetness 🙂

      Reply
  2. Joelle

    November 12, 2018 at 2:04 pm

    I am going to make this sauce right now Lara! I will let you know what I think! Sounds fabulous!

    xo

    Reply
    • Lara

      December 18, 2018 at 11:11 pm

      Awesome! Let me know how you like it!

      Reply
  3. Tammy Ann Johnson

    November 14, 2018 at 7:25 pm

    Is it suppose to be 5 cups of water???

    Reply
    • Lara

      December 18, 2018 at 11:10 pm

      1/2 cup, sorry it was written as .5, I missed the "0" in front of it LOL. It's all fixed now, thank you for the catch 🙂

      Reply
  4. Pamela

    September 09, 2019 at 11:04 pm

    Simple and delicious. Thank you

    Reply
    • Lara

      November 07, 2019 at 10:44 am

      You're welcome 🙂

      Reply
  5. Stephaine Lane Johnston

    June 10, 2020 at 5:44 pm

    5 stars
    I left the molasses out

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Lara, a Registered Dietitian and Personal Trainer with a passion for food and travel.

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