Name: Best Cranberry Sauce
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: PT-486506H44M28S
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 12 ounces (340g) cranberries; 1 large tart apple, peeled and chopped; 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 cup granulated sugar; Water

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This Best Cranberry Sauce recipe is made with fresh cranberries and 3 other simple ingredients including my secret ingredient. It really is a must-have for a Thanksgiving side dish or Christmas dinner. Once you see how quick and easy it is, I’m sure you’ll never want to return to the canned version!

It’s a perfect with my oven roasted turkey tenderloin and leftover turkey casserole served with my cranberry fluff salad.

Homemade 4 Ingredient Cranberry Sauce

We all have that uncle who will only eat canned cranberry sauce at thanksgiving dinner.

I feel this easy make-ahead cranberry sauce is much better and making it ahead during the holidays is a game changer.

It really is so easy to make in as little as 15 minutes, to surprise and please your family during the holidays. It also makes a great hostess gift!

Cranberry and apple sauce in a bowl with a spoon.

What To Serve And Eat With Cranberry Sauce

Cranberries are very tart which is why you need the sugar and I like to use apples as well to balance out the tartness with some more sweetness.

Cranberry sauce for turkey is of course delicious but It is equally as good with a chicken and stuffing dinner or a pork dinner. It’s great as a condiment with meat recipes all year long!

Ingredients

Fresh or Frozen Cranberries – fresh cranberries suddenly pop up in the produce section around Thanksgiving and Christmas
Apples – chopped apples is my secret ingredient to further help balance the tartness of the cranberries, tart apples are better like Granny Smith
Cinnamon
Granulated sugar
Water

Substitutions & Variations: Instead of apples use sliced pears or both apples and pears for cranberry apple sauce or a cranberry pear sauce recipe. For an adults only version add a splash of brandy, rum or a bourbon to the cranberry sauce. You can adjust the sugar or sweetness level to suit your preferences.

How To Make The Best Cranberry Sauce Recipe

Step One – In a medium-sized heavy bottomed saucepan, combine water, sugar and ground cinnamon. Stir to dissolve sugar.

Step Two – Gradually bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Step Three – Add cranberries and apples and return to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Cranberries, apples, water and sugar in a saucepan with a wooden spoon. The pot is sitting on a wooden cutting board.

Step Four – Reduce heat to medium and boil gently for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Step Five – Cool completely before storing in a refrigerator container.

It’s only 15 minutes from start to finish!

Cranberries apple and water in saucepan with a wooden spoon.

Handy tips:

The key to this recipe to please even the most ardent cranberry sauce in a can lovers, is allowing it time to cool and set for at least a couple of hours. Sort quickly through the cranberries first and remove any soft or blemished ones. Have extra bags of cranberries around to make if needed for leftovers

Can cranberry sauce be made in advance?

Yes it can be, this is one of the best parts of making homemade cranberry sauce. Make ahead for 7 to 10 days before serving.

Storage & Freezing Instructions

Store cranberry sauce in an airtight container for up to 10 days in the fridge.

Cranberry sauce freezes very well in a freezer-safe container for 4 to 6 months.

Thaw in the fridge or at room temperature before serving.