Easy Homemade Orange Cranberry Sauce with Ginger

Name: Easy Homemade Orange Cranberry Sauce with Ginger
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Ingredients: 1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger; 2 large navel oranges; 1 (12-ounce) bag of cranberries (fresh or frozen); 2/3 cup granulated sugar; 2 Tbsp maple syrup; 1 cinnamon stick; 1 tsp vanilla extract

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This orange cranberry sauce is the easiest thing you'll make this holiday season, and it tastes a thousand times better than anything from a can. Now my dad is team canned stuff--you know the ringed, just-plopped-out-of-the-can kind. And I'm not going to yuck his yum so we have both versions on our Thanksgiving table.

But once you've had homemade? There's just no comparison. And I can proudly say this bright, tart, and lightly sweetened sauce has officially converted a few skeptics at our table.

Orange cranberry sauce in a pink glass bowl on a white linen with white pumpkins, fuzzy orange pumpkins, and a burgundy hot pad with white casserole dish on the side.

There are so many reasons to love this recipe. First, with all those rich casseroles and heavy side dishes, I look forward to a bite of the bright, tart flavor of that perfect cranberry sauce to help cut through everything without it being too sweet.

But what I think I like most of all is this recipe only takes about 15 minutes to make from start to finish and bonus: you can make it up to a week in advance. That's a relief when the planning begins and I realize how much cooking has to be done the day-of!

Guess what though? This cranberry orange sauce recipe isn't just for serving with Thanksgiving turkey. It's fantastic as a substitute for the fig preserves in my baked Brie in bread bowl recipe. It also makes a yummy sandwich spread when mixed with a little mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Or, use it in this cranberry sauce bread recipe.

I'll even serve it as a dip with my Cheddar cheese sausage balls without Bisquick recipe or as a schmear on my ham and cheese empanadas. Swirl a little into yogurt or oatmeal or spread it on a hot biscuit. Use it to jazz up grilled chicken or pork tenderloin--this classic cranberry sauce really can do it all.

So what do you say? Ready to make the most delicious homemade cranberry sauce? Let's do it.

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Ingredients
Instructions
Substitutions
Variations
Equipment
Storage
Tasty Tip
Frequently asked questions
Related
Pairing
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RECIPE GUIDELINES AND TEST KITCHEN TIPS
FOOD SAFETY

Ingredients

Before we get started, let's gather the ingredients we need for this easy cranberry sauce recipe:

whole fresh cranberries
granulated sugar
pure maple syrup
navel oranges
cinnamon stick
vanilla extract
fresh ginger

(See recipe card for quantities.)

Instructions

Now that we've got our ingredients, it's time to get cooking!

Peeling fresh ginger with a spoon on a wooden cutting board.

First, peel the ginger and grate to equal 1 teaspoon.

Grating orange zest on a wooden cutting board with a Microplane grater.

Then, grate the zest from the oranges, reserving some for garnish if desired. Cut the oranges in half and squeeze to equal 1 cup fresh orange juice.

Combining the ingredients for homemade cranberry sauce in a red handled Dansk pot.

Next, combine the cranberries, orange juice, fresh orange zest, ginger, sugar, maple syrup, and cinnamon stick in a medium saucepan.

Removing a cinnamon stick from cranberry sauce in a red handled pot.

Finally, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes or until almost all the cranberries have burst. Let stand until cooled. Remove the cinnamon stick before serving and stir in the vanilla. Garnish with the reserved orange peel if desired.

Hint: Oranges will vary on how much juice they produce. For me, 2 large oranges equal 1 cup of juice. If you find that you're a little shy of 1 cup, just add a little water until you reach the right amount. You can also use bottled orange juice to make up the difference.

Hint #2: The edge of a spoon makes easy work of peeling the fresh ginger.

Substitutions

Check out these substitution ideas in case you need to make some adjustments:

Cranberries - When I want to make this cranberry sauce another time of year besides at Thanksgiving or Christmas, I grab a bag of frozen cranberries and thaw them. You can also cook them from frozen but will need to add some time to the simmer step.
Granulated sugar - Cut half the white sugar with a little brown sugar for a more molasses-y flavor.
Maple syrup - Swap out honey or agave for the maple syrup if you'd like, or just add a little extra sugar if needed.
Fresh ginger - If you forget to get fresh ginger, you can use ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger in a pinch.
Cinnamon stick - Stir in ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon if you don't have cinnamon sticks.
Navel oranges - For this recipe, I grab the largest navel oranges I can find and I press them to determine how juicy they are--soft when pressed typically means they're full of juice. Tangerines, mandarins, or other orange varieties are also great to add that amazing citrus flavor.

Variations

Check out these additional ways to change up this orange cranberry sauce recipe:

Spiked Cranberry Sauce - Stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier (orange liqueur) or bourbon after cooking.
Apple Cranberry Sauce - Add 1 cup finely chopped and peeled apple along with the cranberries and cook until tender.
Jalapeño Cranberry Sauce - Want to give this sauce a little kick? Mince half a jalapeño for that delicious sweet-heat combo.

Equipment

Here's the equipment you'll need to make this recipe:

microplane zester
chef's knife
medium saucepan
dry measuring cup
measuring spoons
liquid measuring cup

Storage

To refrigerate: Transfer any leftover sauce to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 10 days.

To freeze: Let the sauce cool (if making ahead of time) and transfer to a freezer-safe container. Freeze up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.

Tasty Tip

Zest the oranges before you just them--it's much easier!

Frequently asked questions

Can I make this ahead?

Yep! This is one of the recipes I always make ahead of time to reduce the stress when making our Thanksgiving meal or Christmas dinner.

Can I reduce the sugar?

You can, but keep in mind that cranberries are very tart and you'll need some sweetness to reduce that pucker factor. Taste after cooking and add a little more sweetener to your taste. Honey or more maple syrup are great natural sweeteners if you want to stay away from white sugar.

How do I make this cranberry-orange sauce chunkier or smoother?

For a chunkier sauce, cook the cranberries less. For smoother sauce, cook them longer and mash lightly if you'd like. You can also blend the sauce.

How do I know when the sauce is thick enough?

That's a great question. You certainly don't want to end up with cranberry paste! Cook the cranberries until about ⅔ of them have burst, then let the mixture cool. It'll thicken up as it stands.

My sauce is still very tart. What should I add to fix that?

You can add a little more orange juice or just stir in a little more sweetener at the end. For the best results, I recommend more maple syrup--that way you don't have to worry about the sugar not dissolving.

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:

Pairing

These are my favorite dishes to serve with this fresh cranberry sauce:

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