Take those jars off your Christmas grocery shopping list! Home made Cranberry Sauce is one of the simplest festive feast components to rustle up in your own kitchen, and can be elevated from simple to spectacular on a whim. All recipes make about 8 servings.
Classic Cranberry Sauce
Tip 100g light muscovado sugar and 100ml fresh orange juice into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add 250g fresh or frozen cranberries, stir well and simmer gently for around 6-10 minutes until the cranberries are tender but still holding their shape. Remove from the heat (the sauce will thicken as it cools) and keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Cranberry and Port Sauce
Tip 250g fresh or frozen cranberries into a saucepan with the grated zest from 1 orange and the juice from 2 oranges. Add 2 tbsp redcurrant jelly, 150ml ruby port and 1 star anise and slowly bring to a simmer. Cook gently over a low heat for about 15 minutes (stirring occasionally) until all the cranberries have burst and the sauce has turned thick and glossy. Add golden caster sugar to taste, stir well, then take the sauce off the heat and allow to cool. Remove the star anise before transferring to a sealed container and storing in the fridge for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Cranberry, White Wine and Chilli Sauce
Gently heat 175ml dry white wine with 100g caster sugar in a saucepan, stirring continuously. As soon as the sugar has dissolved, bring to the boil and add 300g fresh or frozen cranberries and ½-1 finely chopped red chilli, with or without the seeds, according to taste. Return to the boil then turn the heat down and simmer for about 6-10 minutes until the cranberries are starting to burst but are still retaining their shape. Remove from the heat (the sauce will thicken as it cools) and keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 1 week. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Orange and Maple Cranberry Sauce
Tip 75g light brown soft sugar, the grated zest from 1 orange, the juice from 2 oranges and 3 tbsp maple syrup into a saucepan and heat over a medium-low heat, stirring continuously until the sugar has melted and the mixture is simmering. Add 250g fresh or frozen cranberries and cook for around 6-10 minutes until the mixture has thickened and the cranberries have started to burst but are still retaining their shape. Remove from the heat (the sauce will thicken as it cools) and keep in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 5 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.