Best Homemade Cranberry Sauce

The best Homemade Cranberry Sauce recipe you will ever make, and a must-have recipe for your holiday celebrations! This cranberry sauce with orange juice is made with only 5 ingredients in under 30 minutes, and it can be prepared ahead of time! You'll never buy canned cranberry sauce in a can again!

This is the best cranberry sauce recipe ever. I have been making it for over a decade. I usually make a triple batch on Thanksgiving (check out our Thanksgiving recipes) because everyone in my family loves it so much that one batch isn't enough.

This year, I implore you to ditch the gelatinous canned gloop (yes, I said gloop) that masquerades as cranberry sauce, and make your own homemade cranberry sauce.

Don’t be intimated! This cranberry sauce recipe is easy to make with 5 ingredients in under 30 minutes.

Cranberry Sauce with Orange Juice: Ingredients & Substitutions 

• Fresh cranberries. This cranberry sauce recipe tastes best when it's made with fresh cranberries. I have used frozen cranberries and while it still tastes great, it is a little "seedy" meaning the seeds don't break down as well during cooking. 
• Orange Juice. Opt for a pulp-free variety for the best texture.
• Brown Sugar. Both light and dark brown sugar work well in this recipe. Just be aware that the dark brown sugar will impart a slight molasses taste. 
• Granulated Sugar. Any granulated sugar works great. I usually use organic cane sugar. 
• Cinnamon. Ground cinnamon really takes this cranberry sauce from good to phenomenally great. I don't recommend omitting it, but it can be left out with equally delicious results. 
• Water. Feel free to substitute water with more orange juice if you'd like a more pronounced citrus flavor. 

I have tried playing with the ratio of orange juice and water, decreasing the amount of sugar, etc. and have landed on this recipe every. single. time. I do have a healthy cranberry sauce recipe (with a video) here! 

How to make homemade cranberry sauce

This homemade cranberry sauce is easy to make, but we'll walk through the steps together to ensure your success!

Whisk together ingredients & bring to a boil

The first step in this cranberry sauce recipe is to whisk together all the ingredients, except the cranberries & cinnamon. Then bring the mixture to a boil. 

Add cinnamon and cranberries

Once the mixture is boiling, whisk in cinnamon and then add the cranberries and stir to combine. Turn the heat down to simmer to let the berries cook in the sugar/orange juice mixture. 

One of my favorite parts of making this Homemade Cranberry Sauce is that the cranberries "talk" to you as they cook. As they warm up they start popping and snapping. Keep cooking until most of the berries have burst.

Mash or Blend Sauce

Next, there are two ways to turn this cranberry mixture into a delicious sauce. 

1. Mash with a potato masher. As pictured below, this is how I choose to make cranberry sauce with orange juice because we like our cranberry sauce a little on the chunky side! Simply use the potato masher to mash the cranberries until you reach your desired consistency. 
2. Use a Blender. If you enjoy your homemade cranberry sauce extra-smooth use a blender! Simply put the mixture into the container of a blender (Vitamix) after it's fully cooked, and blend to the consistency you like.

Let it cool

This cranberry sauce recipe thickens as it cools. So Let it cool to room temperature in a pan, then transfer it to an airtight storage container and store it in the refrigerator until you are ready to enjoy it.

Make-Ahead Cranberry Sauce

I always make this recipe a day or two before Thanksgiving and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. You might even argue that it tastes better after siting for a couple days because the flavors become richer as they have time to blend!

Store

Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or freezer for up to 2 months.

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More Delicious Thanksgiving recipes:

Obviously I recommend making this cranberry sauce recipe as part of your Thanksgiving feast! Here are some of the recipes we make on Thanksgiving:

• This Roast Turkey and the best Turkey Gravy.
• The BEST homemade sausage stuffing.
• Brussels Sprouts! This recipe for Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts will turn a sprouts-hater into a sprouts-lover! Also try this Brussel Sprout Salad!
• Sweet Potatoes. This is the best sweet potato casserole ever, or try this healthy sweet potato casserole! If you like crisp potatoes (as opposed to mashed) try these maple roasted sweet potatoes!
• This butternut squash soup makes a great appetizer! 
• Green Beans. I always make these apple cider sautéed green beans on Thanksgiving! These Parmesan roasted green beans are also a huge hit! 
• Apples. These sautéed cinnamon apples always make an appearance on our holiday table. Or you can combine them with sweet potatoes and make roasted sweet potatoes and apples!
• Pie! Try this apple pie, pumpkin pie (from scratch), dairy-free pumpkin pie, apple crumble pie, or this chocolate peanut butter pie!
• Apple crisp is also a favorite dessert!

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