Canning Peach BBQ Sauce is a southern-flavored sweet and spicy sauce that is the perfect condiment slathered on your grilled chicken, fish, and shrimp or a topping sauce on your crackers and cheese. It’s naturally sweet with no high fructose corn syrup and loaded with sweet peaches, vegetables, and natural seasonings.
This year when it’s peach season and the farmers market is full of fresh peaches and you are trying to find a new way to preserve them, try canning up a batch of peach bbq sauce.
This sauce is my favorite peach recipe and a great way to use up peaches at the end of the season.
Truly, you don’t need a pressure canner since this is a water bath sealing recipe. Once canned, you will be able to enjoy the perfect combination of sweet and spicy flavors throughout the year!
It’s great served up with Air Fryer Chicken Legs or drizzled over an Instant Pot Pulled Chicken Sandwich.
If you enjoy making your own homemade sauces and seasonings, you’re going to love my homemade Whiskey Steak Marinade or this homemade Yellow Mustard Recipe.
😊 Why This Recipe Is So Good!
- Great way to use up an abundance of fresh juicy peaches.
- Easy to make and perfect for beginner canners.
- Balanced sweet and spicy flavors make everything taste better.
If you are new to canning be sure and read my Canning Supplies Guide and check out Canning 101 for Beginners. Both are great resources if you’re just getting started!
Once you’ve got your first attempt at home canning down, you’re going to be ready for more!
Here are some of my favorite canning recipes:
🛒 Ingredient for Zesty Peach BBQ Sauce
Let’s take a look at some of the ingredients you need to make homemade peach bbq sauce. For the full list of ingredients and quantities be sure to check the recipe card further down the page.
- Apple cider vinegar: A milder vinegar that’s naturally a bit sweet works best in this bbq sauce recipe.
- Peaches: I love using fresh peaches at the height of their season! They’re super juicy, sweet, and have the most flavor.
- Veggies: Onions, red bell peppers, and garlic are cooked to layer in the flavors.
- Jalapeno pepper: Just a bit for a little kick. Make sure to deseed them so the bbq sauce isn’t too spicy.
- Herbs and spices: Cumin, salt, cayenne pepper, and fresh cilantro.
- Honey: Lightly sweeten the peach barbecue sauce.
- Mason jars: You’re going to need pint jars, lids, and bands in order for canning.
🔪 How to Make Peach BBQ Sauce for Canning
Let’s walk through how to make canning peach bbq sauce. Refer to the recipe card at the bottom of the page for complete instructions.
How to Peel Peaches
- Boiling Water Bath. Place peaches in a large pot of boiling water for 20-30 seconds or until you see the peach skins start to split off.
- Ice Water Bath. Remove with a slotted spoon. Immediately place in an ice water bath to cool the peaches and stop the cooking process.
- Peel: Rub peach in your hand and loosen the skin and peel. It’s also helpful to use a paring knife to peel the skin, which should easily peel off. If stubborn areas of skin won’t peel off, just return the fruit to the boiling water for a few more seconds.
Prepare the Peach Barbecue Sauce
Once you’ve got the peaches peeled, you’re ready to start making the bbq sauce.
- Slice and dice. Cut the peach in half, cutting around the pit. Twist halves in opposite directions to separate. Using a sharp knife, loosen and remove the pit. Slice in the desired size.
- Add apple cider vinegar to a large stock pan. Add chopped, peeled peaches and cook over medium-high heat
- Prep the veggies. Chop onions into small pieces and finely chop jalapeno peppers using gloves, do not rub your eyes! Chop green pepper
- Blend. Use an immersion blender to blend peaches
- Season. Add chopped cilantro, honey garlic, cumin, salt, and cayenne pepper along with all the vegetables.
- Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Next, reduce heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Store. Follow instructions for water bath canning to preserve or put in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
⭐ Hint: I find an immersion blender the easiest and safest way to blend up hot sauces and soup!
✔️ Substitutions and Variations
Here are some recommended substitutions or variations you can try when making peach bbq sauce.
- Peaches: Other stone fruits such as nectarines, apricots, or plums also work well in a bbq sauce.
- Apple cider vinegar: White wine vinegar or rice vinegar is the closest in terms of sweetness and flavor though I prefer apple cider vinegar.
- Jalapenos: If you don’t like it spicy, you can decrease the amount or eliminate it altogether. For a spicier sauce, add more or use habanero or another ultra spicy chile!
- Honey: Honey brings a distinct flavor, but you can also use other liquid sweeteners such as maple syrup and agave syrup.
How to Store
- Canning: Use the instructions for water canning if you are making a large batch and plan to store it in the pantry. Once canned, store in a cool dark place for up to one year.
- Refrigerator: After cooling, store the barbecue sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.
- Freezer: If you skip the canning step, freeze peach barbecue sauce to extend the shelf life to up to three months.
Favorite Canning Supplies
How to Serve
There are lots of different uses for this peach barbecue sauce. Here are a few of my favorite ways!
- Chicken wings and air fryer chicken legs.
- Over skillet or grilled pork chops or oven pork ribs.
- Grilled fish and shrimp.
- Add on top of cheese and crackers.
- Serve as a dipping sauce for chicken tenders.
- Stir some into fried rice along with some oyster sauce.
- Blend it up with oil and vinegar for a tasty salad dressing.
- Toss some with fresh sliced peaches and serve over a bowl of ice cream for dessert.
- Use half pint jars instead & give them as a hostess gift. (get free gift tags here)
💭 Expert Tips
- For sweet fruit and the best flavor profile use fresh ripe peaches when in season.
- Adjust the heat level to your liking by increasing or decreasing the jalapenos.
- Blend using an immersion blender, regular blender, or food processor.
- Use yellow peaches for the best color!
Peach Salsa Recipe For Canning
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup white vinegar
- 6 cups chopped, pitted, peeled peaches
- 1 1/4 cups red onion, finely chopped
- 4 jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1/2 cup cilantro, loosely packed finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons liquid honey
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
Prepare the Canner and Jars
- Prepare your canner, jars, and lids according to standard canning procedure.
Cook the Salsa
- In a large stainless steel saucepan, combine the vinegar and peaches.
- Add the onion, jalapeno peppers, red pepper, cilantro, honey, garlic, cumin, cayenne, and salt.
- Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.
- Reduce the heat and boil gently, stirring frequently, until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat.
Fill and Process the Jars
- Ladle the hot salsa into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch of headspace.
- Remove air bubbles and adjust headspace if needed by adding more hot salsa. Wipe the rim clean.
- Center a lid on each jar and screw the band down until you feel resistance, then increase to fingertip tight.
- Place the jars in the canner filled with water, making sure they are completely covered with water.
- Bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, process for 15 minutes.
- Remove the canner lid, wait 5 minutes, then remove the jars. Let cool on a kitchen towel for 24 hours.
- Remove the rings and check that the jars are sealed properly. Write the name and date on the lids and store in a cool, dry place for up to one year.
Gina’s Notes and Tips
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This post was originally published August 2020 and was republished August 2022 with new content and images.