This is a very simple, classic homemade cranberry sauce recipe. It’s sweet (but not overly sweet) and tart with a little touch of lemon that I think makes all the difference. It takes all of 3 minutes of active preparation time and 20 minutes on the stove – very low maintenance!
Cranberry Sauce recipe originally published November 2015. Post updated with new recipe video added. No change to recipe – it’s still the same one I use and love!
HOMEMADE CRANBERRY SAUCE IS AMAZING
I tried store bought cranberry sauce once many years ago and it turned me right off it. It just tasted like….jam. I may as well have slathered my turkey with strawberry jam!
It wasn’t until I started to take on the roast turkey centrepiece for holiday gatherings that I decided to give Cranberry Sauce another go….
and well, well, well, what do you know? Homemade cranberry sauce is sensational! It’s nothing like store bought. It tastes (shock horror) like cranberries!
WHAT IS CRANBERRY SAUCE USED FOR?
Well, the obvious answer is ↑↑↑ : turkey! But there’s so many other options too. It’s sweet and tart, so it’s ideal to use like a warm jam for things like Scones, French Toast, or Pancakes. Or to make a jam and whipped cream layered Vanilla Sponge Cake.
Because it’s a bit tart, it’s also ideal paired with savoury things. I serve it with Glazed Baked Ham at Christmas, on sandwiches piled high with leftover turkey (roast whole turkey, slow cooker or roasted turkey breast) or sandwich cold cuts (ham, turkey, chicken slices).
Try it on a grilled sandwich with brie – what a fabulous combination! Use it to make Cranberry Bars (switch out the raspberry jam in this Raspberry Jam Bars recipe) or swirl dollops of it through muffins – like these Apple Muffins or in place of blueberries in these muffins.
In short – your only limited by your imagination!
HOW TO MAKE THIS SIMPLE CRANBERRY SAUCE
A great Cranberry Sauce just needs cranberries (frozen, sold alongside other frozen fruit), sugar, water, and I like to add a touch of lemon zest which I think gives it a little edge. It lifts the flavour and gives it a tiny touch of freshness that will make your family and friends ask what the secret ingredient is!
Sometimes I use orange zest – and once I used both. All are great, but lemon is my base recipe!
I really love that I can control the sweetness of the sauce to my taste. I’m a savoury gal, so I’m not a fan of overly sweet cranberry sauces.
If you’re here for Thanksgiving, complete your menu with a browse through the new Thanksgiving Recipe Index! It’s sorted by category so it’s nice and easy for you to find what you’re after (and get ideas for things that you didn’t even know you needed in your life! 😂). Enjoy! – Nagi x
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
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Easy Classic Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 16 oz / 500g bag frozen cranberries (or fresh)
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/8 tsp lemon zest
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Tip the cranberries in a saucepan set over medium low heat. Remove a heaped 1/2 cup of cranberries and set aside.
- Add remaining ingredients. Cook for 5 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.
- Increase heat to medium high. Cook for 10 minutes or until most of the cranberries have burst and the liquid is syrupy.
- Reduce heat to low, stir through reserved cranberries. Adjust sweetness to your taste with more sugar and add a pinch of salt.
- Allow to cool and store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools. Best served at room temperature or warm. Serve with a juicy Roast Turkey - or Slow Cooker Turkey Breast or Roasted Breast.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
Perfectly positioned so he doesn’t get zonked every time I open the fridge door…
Hi Nagi,
I’ve had no success finding fresh or frozen cranberries on the Sunshine Coast. Can I substitute with fresh cherries to make a sauce to go with leg ham?
I could only find dried cranberries for Xmas in July so I pre-soaked them and then made the recipe using 1/2 the sugar as they were already sweetened. I then added a lot more water and kept cooking until I like the consistency.
Flanerrys have frozen cranberries
Sorry, Nagi. Have just seen that you have previously answered my question.
How could this recipe be adapted to use dried cranberries as opposed to frozen cranberries?
I always add a little orange zest or instead of water use orange juice.
I always make my own cranberry sauce. I use brown sugar instead of white. I have not, but will, start adding some lemon zest (great idea).
Made my whole Thanksgiving spread from your recipes, with the exception of the turkey (went with the slow cooker) . This sauce was EASY and delightful. I’ve only ever made one homemade sauce before and this far exceeded the last one I made. Thank you.
I will never use canned cranberry again….ever! I love all your recipes and everytime I hesitate thinking one might not turn out ok, I’m wrong and they are always amazing. Thank you so much for all the wonderful recipes
I love the flavor of this recipe. But like many cranberry sauces, I really don’t like the crunchiness of the seeds. If I sieve it, then it truly turns into a jam/jelly. How could we keep some of the texture of the fresh cranberries without the seed? Am I chasing a unicorn?
Hi Phillippe, why don’t you strain then add half of the seeds back into the mix. You can always loosen it a little with water if it’s too thick 🙂
Hi Nagi, this recipe sounds great. I can’t find frozen cranberries, can I substitute dried ones instead?
Hi Angela, Dried ones aren’t quite the same unfortunately!
Hi Nagi, love the new website, very crisp and clear, but wondered if you are able to add metric measurements to all your recipes? I have seen that some websites have an option to click on Aus cups or Metric, and wondered if you had considered incorporating that function? I particularly want to try making the Italian Cheese Log. I love all your recipes and use them constantly!
Love the new website!
Thanks Carrie!
How would you tackle dried cranberries, which are easily available in health food shops at our market here in Melbourne? Same weight as fresh?
Hi Marina! Hmm, I haven’t tried this with dried but this is what I would do: I would use about 2/3 of the weight, then soak in boiled water until they plump up. Drain then cook per recipe 🙂 Hope that helps! N x
Thanks, I’ll give it a go as soon as I get a chance.
Hi, Nagi,
Just out of curiosity, you say cranberry sauce keeps for ages. About how long would those ages be?
Thanks! I have been making my own cranberries for years — can’t stand that canned stuff!
Donna
We have fresh cranberries here in US. Can I use fresh instead of frozen?
Nagi – I make a variation on what you’ve published here, adding two whole cinnamon sticks and a few (4-6) cloves. But be sure to fish out those pointy cloves before serving! And the cranberries actually taste best after resting a few days in the refrigerator.
A dab of the the cranberries are ambrosial on a turkey and mayo sandwich the day after the big dinner!
Using a spice/tea ball would make life much easier getting those cloves out. We love homemade cranberry sauce and have made it with orange zest also.
Ah yes! Biting into cloves is NOT nice! 😂
im so glad i happened across your blog today! I’m making my first ever Christmas dinner on monday and i will be using your bone in turkey recipe as well as this one above! thank you, thank you!!! bought all my ingredients last night. will report back! have a wonderful holiday.
Oooh how exciting, your first Christmas dinner! Merry Christmas Katia, you’re going to ROCK it! N xx
Could you please tell me where I can buy frozen cranberries. I am from Australia and the local Coles/Woolworths don’t stock them. Thanks
Hi Julie! I’ve noticed that they appear in stock towards Christmas, I went looking for them mid year but couldn’t find them 🙂
Thanks Nagi. I’m doing our dinner early (10 December) so may struggle
Hi Julie,
I had no luck finding cranberries at either Coles/Woolworths/Aldi, either fresh or frozen. Might have a bit of luck at IGA – I ended up finding punnets of frozen cranberries at my local independent grocer.
Trying out my sauce to go along with cocktail meatballs and glazed ham on Saturday!
* I just noticed you have already had your dinner – Hopefully this helps someone else on the hunt!
I managed to find frozen cranberries in Woolworths. They weren’t in my local sore but the guy working there offered to check other stores and I was in luck. The sauce was beautiful!
Hi Nagi,
Have you ever made cranberry sauce with orange. We have it in the store. It tastes pretty good. Plus, I think you can use less sugar for the recipe. I try to avoid sugar when it possible.
Thank you
Oooh yes to adding some orange rind! N xx