Getting Ready to Cookout: Homemade Worcestershire Sauce (for making BBQ sauce this weekend)

Jim is still not able to sit long enough to blog efficiently, so here I am again.

Let's get ready to make some BBQ sauce later this week (for me, this weekend). It's gonna be a good one, and features my favorite fuzzy fruit. From Palisade. Hint, hint.

One ingredient you can make at home that tastes way better than store-bought is Worcestershire sauce. It's quick and easy, and even if you don't can, you can store it in your refrigerator for up to 3 months! That'll get you through summer, right?

You'll need:
3/4 cup soy sauce
1 to 2 tablespoons of packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons of molasses
a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar
a whole jalapeno, slit open
1/2 a nutmeg
6 cloves
a chunk of lemon peel, not too big
a chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and grated

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. Heat and then simmer 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let rest until cooled, then move the covered saucepan to the refrigerator and let it sit for 24 hours.

Prepare a sterilized jar. (I usually do a load of dishes in the dishwasher and use the heated dry setting.) Boil some water in a small saucepan and prepare a canning jar lid by turning the burner off once the boiling starts, and toss in the two-piece lid and let it sit until you are ready.

Strain the sauce to get out the chunks. I usually use cheesecloth to do that. Then re-heat the sauce and transfer it to the sterilized jar. Put the lid on. Let cool to room temperature, then put it in the refrigerator and store it tightly covered. It will keep about 3 months.

Get it ready now, 'cause we're making BBQ sauce this weekend!

Kathi