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Fresh Cranberry Sauce
Flavored with orange juice and orange zest, this cranberry sauce is a must on your holiday table.
Homemade cranberry sauce requires just a few ingredients and is a cinch to make. This version is flavored with orange juice and orange zest, which makes it a little more special for the holidays. Serve it with roast turkey, gravy, and all the other classic holiday dishes. If you have any leftover, try mixing it with some mayonnaise — cranberry-mayo is delicious on turkey sandwiches!
What you’ll need to make cranberry sauce
How to make Cranberry sauce
Begin by zesting one of the oranges. A rasp grater is the best tool but any grater with small holes will work — just be sure to leave the white pith behind as it’s quite bitter. Always zest the orange before squeezing the juice out, as it’s near impossible to do afterwards.
Combine the orange juice, water and sugar in a medium pot and bring to a boil.
Add the cranberries, orange zest and salt.
Boil gently for about 10 minutes.
Most of the cranberries should burst open, creating a thick sauce. You may need to mash them a bit with a spoon.
Transfer the sauce to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.
You may also like
- Cranberry Dijon Vinaigrette
- Cranberry Nut Bread
- Apple Cranberry Oat Crumble
- Classic Thanksgiving Side Dishes
Cranberry Orange Sauce
Flavored with orange juice and orange zest, this cranberry sauce is a must on your holiday table.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup fresh orange juice, from two oranges
- 1/2 cup water
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 (12 oz) bag fresh or frozen cranberries (do not use dried)
- Zest of one orange, about 2 teaspoons
- Pinch salt
Instructions
- In a medium sauce pan over high heat, bring the orange juice, water and sugar to a boil. Add the cranberries, orange zest, and salt and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and boil gently for 10 to 12 minutes, until most of cranberries have burst open. (You may need to mash them a bit with a spoon.)
- Transfer sauce to a serving bowl. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: Cranberry sauce will keep for 10 days in a covered container in the refrigerator. It can also be frozen for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: about 1/3 cup
- Calories: 126
- Fat: 0 g
- Saturated fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 33 g
- Sugar: 28 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 0 g
- Sodium: 43 mg
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Reviews & Comments
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I made this today and it tastes amazing! However, I have a lot of seeds in the sauce. What did I do wrong? Did I boil it too high or too long?
Hmmm, I’m guessing a bit too long. If it’s too thick you can thin it with a bit of water.
Loved it, I added 3 tbs of nice red wine and it took the bite out of it and added a mellow flavor
This is one of the few recipes I have physically printed out & put in my “mom’s go-to recipes binder”. I’ve made it for Thanksgiving two years in a row. It consistently converts “canned cranberry sauce” purists to the far more delicious fresh cranberry sauce team. I have always been partial to orange in my cranberry sauce, and this is a divine combo of zest & juice. Seriously, this your recipe is permanently a part of my family’s Thanksgiving dinner table, and they all just think *I* make a really good cranberry sauce… but I have you to thank. 🙂 So, THANK YOU!!!