If you’ve never made homemade cranberry sauce because you thought it was too complicated to make, I am going to show you just how easy it is. Not only is this recipe easy, it is amazing! I love this sauce because it is not overly sweet and the combination of cranberry and orange give it a nice tang. The color of the sauce itself is so vibrant compared to its canned counterpart -one cannot even put them in the same category.
Trust me after you try this sauce, you will never ever buy canned again. Be prepared when friends and family “Ooooh and Awwww” over the mere fact you made homemade cranberry sauce. They will call you “Martha” and hate you for it. But that’s okay.. you’re secret is safe with me – I won’t tell how you didn’t slave over making this. In all honesty, if the world only knew how flippin’ easy this was.. no one would ever buy canned again! Do yourself a favor and leave that good-for-nothing sauce in the can on the grocery store shelf and for this Thanksgiving make your own homemade cranberry sauce. And for those of you who are wondering if you can make this in advance – YES!!! Just heat before serving. Enjoy!
- 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
- ¾ cup orange juice
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- Optional: 2 oz gold rum
- Place all the ingredients in a sauce pan and cook on medium-high for 15-20 minutes or until most of the liquid has reduced – stirring occasionally. You’ll hear the cranberries popping – don’t worry, that’s what you want them to do. Remove from heat and serve. Cranberry sauce can be made days ahead and brought to room temperature or slightly heated before serving.
{Related Post: Cranberry Apple Crisp – This recipe uses this cranberry sauce as a base}
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My Italian grandmother would add oranges and amaretto . The alcohol cooks off and leaves an amazing flavor.
Amaretto sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing Debbie!
How much Amaretto do you use? I am always looking to add alcohol into any recipe
Hi Steve,
I like using a tablespoon or two.
Am currently making my 2nd batch. We canned the first batch and took it with us for thanksgiving, everyone loved it!! We did as you mentioned and used amaretto instead, 2 oz, as well as our local berries, lingonberries. yum!
This was simple and delicious, made exactly as written (with the rum). Just the right amount of sweet and tang. Yummy! Thank you for the great recipe.
Debbie, when you said your Italian Grandmother put oranges in it; did you actually mean sliced oranges or the orange juice?
SIMPLE CRANBERRY RECIPE….MUST DO!!!!
GREAT RECIPE…YOU HV GOT TO DO IT!!!
Love this recipie! Made it a few years back, now it is the request of the family…kinda get let off the hook for most of holiday cooking
Fantastic combination!
Hey – I was trying to “like” this on Facebook, but when I hit the icon I just get a blank pop-up.
Ugh- ignore me. The FB icon does give you a blank page, but the “Like” button above it works just fine….. *sigh*
Beautiful site, thanks!
Hi, all. I have been making my own Cranberry Sauce for years now as I have always hated that canned glop! Yuck! I laugh because my relatives think I am amazing, they have no clue as to how riduculously easy this is. I usually add diced apple to mine, but I’m thinking this year I’ll make it plain. You confirmed my thoughts. Have a great season all.
This is a great recipe. I also add about 6oz frozen raspberries and add two table spoons of orange marmalade jam and just decrease the sugar a little.
I made a similar sauce last year but used about a quarter cup triple sec, and it was great.
Did anyone double this recipe? How much does it make? There will be 7 of us for dinenr, so I am guessing a single recipe is plenty?
Figure about a half cup per person (4 oz), so you will have to double the recipe. It also doesn’t hurt to have leftovers
does the pan you use matter? non stick sauté, farberwarer…cast iron? Thanks!
This Thanksgiving, I’ll be making this cranberry sauce for the third year in a row. It’s a family favorite now! The first time around, it was a bit too sweet, so now I use all of the brown sugar and add the white sugar to taste. That’s just me — I don’t want to mask those tart berries!
OMG! Third year making this as per request of all 30 guest as tradition (The Host now demands it).
Only 2 changes: ( 1 ) I double the recipe ( 2 ) about half way of the cooking I remove approx. half of the berries & put in the food processor for a few gentle pulses & put back in the pan to continue cooking.
OH! YUM. Try it… you will like it!
Will try this recipe for first time…Should I cut cranberries in half or leave whole before cooking? Does the sauce thicken from the sugar?
Hi Karen,
The cranberries will pop on their own and break down. No need to cut in half. And yes, the sauce does thicken from the sugar, like jam. Hope this helps.
Just finished making this recipe; did a batch with rum and one without. The RUM one wins hand down! Thanks
I only have light rum in the house. Do I need to go get gold which it calls for? Or what about brandy instead?
Hi Ellen,
Light rum works just fine. Happy Thanksgiving.
Do you think I could use grapefruit juice? I have no orange juice but I have at least five grapefruits sitting in a bowl…
Hi, you could try grapefruit, but it will not be the same. You are better omitting the juice completely or squeeze a couple tablespoons of fresh lemon juice.
No rum on hands here, could i use maybe some white wine instead? What do u think…
Hi Krystal,
Yes, you could go either red or white wine. It will be slightly different undertone but I’m sure it will be good. You might want to do a 1/2 tablespoon and add more as you like. Happy Thanksgiving.
Ok so i tried the recipe with white wine and it was fantastic!! I’m sure It’ll be a hit tomorrow! Thanks again
Happy Thanksgiving to you too Alice!
I just recently discovered the wonderful world of cranberry sauce thanks to an amazing hot turkey sandwich I get at the Tallyrand in Burbank, CA. (if you are ever in the neighborhood I highly recommend giving it a try!) Anyways, back to the cranberry sauce. I have never much cared for the canned version but when I tasted it homemade, I was a convert! I will be making it for the first time this Thanksgiving and from the raving reviews I am sure I will be making it for many Thanksgivings to come!
Happy Thanksgiving Joy. Once you go homemade, you never go back to can!
Hi Alice…I just wanted to say “thank you” for the simple yet amazing recipe – love it! First time adding brown sugar which I think added to the taste. I also added a cinnamon stick and then made a second batch and added some apples (no alcohol on either batch). Thanks to Victoria for her suggestion on taking some of the sauce out and giving it a few pulses in the food processor – it gave it a nice even texture. I can’t wait to share with my family tomorrow.
Sounds like a winning combination Lainey. Happy Thanksgiving!
I made this recipe with dried cranberries because that was all I could find at the supermarket near me. I had to add extra water in addition to the orange juice to help soften the dried cranberries, which I then boiled off. At first it didn’t have a sauce-like consistency – more like solid berries in a little juice, but I used a potato masher to smash them down a little and it is perfect. Also added a little orange zest.
It’s so yummy!! Really tangy and fruity and delicious. My boyfriend was cynical to start- he didn’t think it would be worth doing it from scratch when you can just buy the ocean spray stuff in a jar – but he is now well and truly convinced!
Oh also added a little cornstarch to thicken it since I read dried cranberries have less pectin, which is what makes the jelly texture.
Great recipe!
Sounds great, and I’m impressed by your adaptation. Happy Thanksgiving!
This recipe is wonderful! Made it last year and making it again this year:)
I started making this in 09′ when it was first posted. Amazing recipe! I get asked to make it every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Try it! You’ll like it!
just made it for Thanksgiving. Pretty good, but too much sugar. Next year I would make it with a lot less. Added the rum, adds a nice flavor.
Skipped the rum (too many kiddies…) but added a couple of green cardamom pods and a few star anise… yum!
excellent recipe. the balance of sweet : tart seems right on to me, but i think the difference might be to convert the volume of the ingredients to weights and weigh them accordingly–can make a huge difference with brown sugar especially. i used my immersion blender on most of it, delicious over stuffing and hopefully with the squab we’ll be eating later! thank you for this!
Tried it with a little orange zest. No rum this time.
Loved it. Thanks!
I have been making my own cranberry sauce for decades. I use 1 Cup water and 1 Cup Natra Taste Gold (like Splenda) and a 12 oz. bag of cranberries. It is the pectin in the cranberries that causes the mixture to thicken when the berries pop, more so than the sugar. This was my first year using a sugar substitute and the results were great. I used to gag on that brown-red stuff Mother used to get at the grocery store when I was a kid.
Thank you, a big hit at Thanksgiving. Doubled the recipe and jarred half for Christmas!
I used a little Grand Marnier in mine. Delicious!!
I have a question, I have never been fond of warm or hot or even room temperature cranberry sauce. Is it ok to serve chilled? or Will this ruin the recipe?
Hi, i don’t have any rum, but there is whiskey & also vodka or red wine in my cupboard, which would be the best choice? Also could only get dried cranberries, so should i pre-soak before hand? thank you. cheers MJ
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