By Susan Voisin 28 Comments
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Here’s a healthy version of South Carolina mustard-based barbecue sauce, with less sugar and salt and no preservatives. Vegan and gluten-free, too!
When I moved to South Carolina, I was surprised to discover that the barbecue there was yellow instead of red. Tangy and sweet, mustard-based barbecue sauce was very popular, but I never sampled the barbecued pork that the natives raved about because I became vegetarian shortly after moving there. Fortunately, the bottled sauce was available in stores, and once I tried it, I developed an instant love for it.
When we moved to Mississippi six years ago, my husband and I thought far enough ahead to bring several bottles of barbecue sauce with us. After all, we’d been importing Louisiana ingredients into South Carolina for years, and we were now prepared to drag South Carolina staples to Mississippi.
Unfortunately, our stockpile of mustard sauce eventually ran out and a decent substitute was not to be found anywhere in Mississippi. What to do? It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out that I should just make my own.
Now, I can buy mustard-based BBQ sauce in Whole Foods, but I still come back to this recipe because it is lower in sugar and salt while still tasting good. But be careful as you cook it not to lean over the pot or else you’ll get a snootful of vinegar fumes!
5 from 4 votes
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South Carolina Golden Mustard Barbecue Sauce
Here's a healthy version of South Carolina mustard-based barbecue sauce, with less sugar and salt and no preservatives. Vegan and gluten-free, too!
Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes minutes
Total Time 30 minutes minutes
Servings 4 servings
Author Susan Voisin
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup prepared mustard I use spicy brown mustard
- 1/2 cup cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp molasses
- 1-2 tsp turmeric makes it yellower
- 3 tbsp agave nectar or other sweetener
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 tsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp celery salt optional
- 1/4 tsp rubbed thyme
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp cayenne optional
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Makes about 1 cup (enough for the tofu recipe below).
Notes
To make the Barbecued Tofu and Vegetables pictured above, I combined the sauce with 1 pound of cubed extra-firm tofu, 2 medium zucchini (cubed), 1 medium red onion (cut into wedges), and 1 red bell pepper (cubed). I poured it into a 8 X 11-inch non-metal baking dish (sprayed with non-stick spray) and baked it at 400 F for about 30 minutes, stirring after 15 minutes.
Tofu benefits from a longer cooking time than the vegetables, so another option is to mix half of the sauce with the tofu and bake it alone for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through; then add the vegetables and remaining sauce and cook for 15-20 more minutes. The vegetables will be tender-crisp while the tofu will firm up and absorb more of the sauce.
1/4 cup is 4 Weight Watchers Freestyle points.
Nutrition Facts
South Carolina Golden Mustard Barbecue Sauce
Amount Per Serving (0.25 cup)
Calories 94Calories from Fat 13
% Daily Value*
Fat 1.4g2%
Cholesterol 0mg0%
Sodium 624mg27%
Potassium 159.9mg5%
Carbohydrates 19.5g7%
Fiber 1.8g8%
Sugar 14.3g16%
Protein 1.6g3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Nutritional info is approximate.
Have you made this recipe?Mention @SusanFFVK and tag #fatfreevegankitchen in your photos on Instagram.
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This family favorite meal is certified as kid-friendly: even the spice-intolerant E. loves this one!
Did you know that mustard and turmeric are good for you? Mustard seeds contain phytonutrients that have been studied for their anti-cancer effects, and turmeric contains a powerful antioxidant that is believed to help people with arthritis, protect against breast, prostate, lung, and colon cancer, and do a whole lot more.
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Kyla McAuliffe
Hi! I can not find rubbed thyme anywhere, nor any information about it on the internet. Can you use a different form in the recipe? Thanks for your help!
Reply
SusanV
Kyla, rubbed thyme is more powdery than dried whole leaf thyme. If you want to substitute dried, I would just use twice as much.
Reply
Kyla McAuliffe
Thanks for the quick response – I was hungry though and decided to give my dried thyme a try (before I received the info on doubling it). I have to say .. WOW! My husband (meat & potatoes guy) who absolutey refuses to touch tofu, LOVED this meal. I never make anything he likes anymore (since I've become a vegan). Thank you!
Reply
Natalie
I know this may be a ridiculous question, but what do you suggest serving this with? For me any great sauce always has to be accompanied by some kind of starch like rice or potatoes, but since I didn’t grow up eating barbecue I have no idea what would go best with this!
Reply
SusanV
Potatoes or rice are both good choices. I think when I served it, I put the barbecued tofu and vegetables on top of the rice, but you could also try it with baked potatoes or mashed potatoes on the side, and a big, green salad is always good.
Reply
Gayathri
Planning on making this today. Is there anything I can use instead of molasses? I have all other ingredients handy. COuld i use Jaggery (Indian unrefined sugar, aka Gur) Or Maple syrup instead or Brown Sugar?
Also For the mustard, could we use any kind? Will Dijon Mustard work?
Reply
SusanV
Brown sugar or jaggery would probably both be fine. And Dijon mustard will be great. Hope you enjoy it!
Reply
lea
Delicious! I thought that this might be a bit time consuming since you make your own sauce, but everything came together so easily! I even had time to make some vegan cornbread and turnip greens to go with. The bbq sauce is so tasty, I will definitely make this one again!
Reply
This looks amazing; it’s on the menu for tomorrow night. Thanks so much for all the great recipes!
Reply
Dmitri
I’m not a big fan of tofu, but I will eat it if it’s covered in a tasty sauce as this seems to be! Could you substitute seitan for the tofu?
Also zucchini makes me gag (I think it’s psychological); what would you suggest for a substitute?Reply
SusanV
You can really use this sauce with anything you like. Seitan would be great, and just choose the vegetables that you like. Carrots, broccoli, and eggplant come to mind.
Reply
Laina
Dh and I lived in Charleston for a couple of years so I’ve been wanting to try this for a long time. Today was the day! 🙂
I felt it had the flavor of what I remember, I just thought that was way too much sauce for the veggies. The sauce overpowered the dish.
What I would do differently next time is to roast the vegetables and add some of the sauce at serving the dish.
Thanks, Susan for another great recipe!
Reply
Padma
Hi Susan,
What does prepared mustard mean?
Thanks,
Padma.Reply
SusanV
It’s the mustard in jars that you find on supermarket shelves, at least in the US. In other words, it’s not mustard powder or seeds, but the wet paste that is used on sandwiches.
Reply
KALASUNSHINE
DEAREST SUSAN I MADE YOUR VEGAN LASAGNA TO TAKE TO SOMEONE’S POTLUCK IT WAS THE FIRST DISH TO GET EMPTIED THANK YOU FOR SUCH A WONDERFUL SITE WITH GORGEOUS PICTURES AND AWESOME RECIPES I AM MOST GRATEFUL I FOUND YOU TO START MAKING THE RIBZ FOR A FAMILY REUNION I WILL LET YOU KNOW HOW IT TURN OUT.
GOD BLESS YOU FOR ALL YOUR ENDEAVORS MAKING DELICIOUS FOOD!!!!
YOU ARE INCREDIBLE MUCH LIGHT AND LOVE TO YOU & FAMILY…
I AM SUNSHINEReply
Alexandra
Made this sauce to flavor tasteless mushy cubes of seitan; the sauce made the seitan taste like hotdogs, and I had 2 helpings.
Reply
MaryEllen
I just made this for a “drizzle” for my baked potato and beans for lunch. VERY flavorful and yummy!!
Reply
You are so clever! You were able to turn this meat eater on to so many vegan dishes. Thanks,
Reply
Linda Markus
Do you have a recipe for Eggplant Parasiam (SP)?
Thanksk
LindaReply
I sure do! It’s here: https://blog.fatfreevegan.com/2006/09/vegan-eggplant-parmesan.html
Reply
MaryA
This is delicious! I grew up in SC loving mustard based barbecue on pulled pork. I haven’t even thought of it since going vegan. To replicate those bbq sandwiches of my youth, I made seitan, shredded it finely, sauteed it in a little oil, then let it simmer in the sauce. It was absolutely delicious! My NY born boyfriend had never had mustard based bbq and he loved it, as well.
Reply
Lovely recipe, Susan. I didn’t even know mustard-based BBQ sauces existed but this is the perfect balance of sweet-tart. Thank you for sharing it. 🙂
Reply
Sharon Wagner
I just made this tonight. Delicious! Thank you!
Reply
I’m so glad you liked it!
Reply
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