While a vegan seitan steak may taste heavenly on its own, it’s rarely eaten without the BBQ sauce. Whether it’s a family get-together or you want to spice things up with beans and rice, having a variety of BBQ sauces to choose from makes dining more delectable.
So, is BBQ sauce vegan? Let’s find out today!
Barbecue Sauce - Vegan or Not?
Yes, BBQ sauce is vegan. However, some varieties aren’t vegan, such as the spicy honey BBQ sauce.
Popular brands, such as Heinz, Kraft, Stubb’s, and Bull’s, are vegan. To be more precise, the original flavors are.
The most common ingredient derived from an animal is honey, but a few other ingredients stay in the grey area. It’s important to check the ingredients before purchasing as there are brands that don’t indicate whether it’s a vegan-friendly BBQ sauce or not.
Potential Non-Vegan Ingredients
Not sure if your local brand of honey is vegan?
Here are some of the ingredients you need to check out:
Anchovies
Anchovies are found in specific sauce flavors of Heinz, and they’re not vegan at all. These are small-sized fishes, which is against the values of vegans.
However, some people refer to themselves as ostrovegan who are okay with consuming oysters to be comfortable with anchovies.
Honey
As mentioned earlier, honey is the top ingredient that makes BBQ sauces non-vegan friendly. While there are vegans who believe it’s okay to consume honey, you may want to avoid it altogether.
If you see honey as part of the ingredient list, you’re better off with a homemade BBQ sauce!
Worcestershire
Worcestershire sauce is a savory umami sauce flavored with fish sauce, or as mentioned previously, anchovies disqualify any sauce with this ingredient as non-vegan.
Dairy Products
Luckily, dairy products, such as milk or egg, aren't a common ingredient for BBQ sauces.
However, these may make their way to the recipe, depending on the variety
Most of the time, these are only used in exotic or unusual flavors, so the signature products of your favorite brands are most likely vegan BBQ sauce.
Artificial Colors
While some artificial colors are derived from plants, there are plenty that comes from animal sources.
These are color additives, and they can be derived from fruit, vegetables, spices, yeast, and herbs. (1) On the other hand, the colors can be from meat, seafood, and dairy products.
Make sure you know where the company’s source is before you make a buying decision.
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Natural Flavoring
Natural flavoring involves heating the plant or animal source, so when you see natural flavoring on the ingredient list, it’s best to steer clear of it.
You may have to go out of your way to ask the manufacturing to be more specific with their source for the smoke flavoring. For some brands, there are hints of the original source in the label.
A lot of people believe that plants are a predominant source of natural flavors, but you may encounter flavors, such as Castoreum.
While it is considered vegan, the substance is extracted from the beaver’s anal secretions.
Processed Sugar
There are BBQ sauces that have sugar as one of their ingredients. The sugar has likely been processed using bone char, which is the bones of cows.
Unless specified, I recommend buying BBQ sauces that are certified vegan.
Popular Brands of Barbecue Sauce
Heinz
Here are some of the varieties you want to avoid:
- Heinz Kansas City Style BBQ Sauce
- Heinz Memphis Style BBQ Sauce
- Heinz Texas Style BBQ Sauce
Choose any of these vegan sauces:
- Heinz Carolina Mustard Style BBQ sauce
- Heinz Carolina Vinegar Style Sweet and Tangy BBQ sauce
- Heinz Original Sweet and Thick BBQ sauce
- Heinz Hawaii Style Sweet and Fruity BBQ sauce
- Heinz Kentucky Bourbon Style Rich and Savory BBQ sauce
Kraft
Here are the non-vegan sauces to avoid:
- Sweet Honey Barbecue Sauce & Dip
- Spicy Honey Barbecue Sauce & Dip
- Mesquite Smoke Barbecue Sauce & Dip
- Honey Barbecue Sauce
Here are the vegan options:
- Original Barbecue Sauce and Dip
- Hot and Spicy Barbecue Sauce and Dip
- Thick and Spicy Barbecue Sauce and Dip
- Sweet Brown Sugar Sauce and Dip
Bull’s Eye
Here are the non-vegan sauces to avoid:
- Smokey Bacon BBQ Sauce
- Tennessee Style Sweet Whiskey Glaze
Here are the vegan-friendly varieties:
- Original BBQ sauce
- Hickory Brown Sugar BBQ sauce
- Dark Beer
- New York SteakHouse BBQ sauce
- Red Hot Chilli Hot sauce
- Roasted Onion BBQ sauce
- Memphis Style Sweet and Spicy Hot Sauce
- Smoky Chipotle Hot sauce
Sweet Baby Ray’s
Here are the non-vegan sauces to avoid:
- Honey BBQ Sauce
- Maple Barbecue Sauce
- Honey Chipotle Barbecue Sauce
- Honey Hot Sauce & Marinade
- Honey Barbecue Wing Sauce
- Honey Teriyaki Marinade
- Sweet Red Chili Wing Sauce
- Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce
- Creamy Buffalo Wing Dipping Sauce
- Ray’s Secret Sauce
Here are the vegan-friendly varieties:
- Sweet Vidalia Onion Barbecue sauce
- Buffalo Wing sauce
- Kickin’ Bourbon Wing Barbecue sauce
- Sweet Teriyaki Marinade
- Steakhouse Marinade
- Original BBQ sauce
- Sweet ‘N’ Spicy BBQ sauce
- Hawaiian BBQ sauce
- Sweet Golden Mustard Barbecue sauce
- Hickory and Brown Sugar Barbecue sauce
Stubb’s
Here are the flavors for the non-vegan constituents:
- Smokey Mesquite Bar-B-Q Sauce
- Sweet Honey & Spice Bar-B-Q Sauce
- Smokey Mesquite & Honey Pecan
Here are the vegan-friendly varieties:
- Dr. Pepper Bar-B-Q sauce
- Hickory Bourbon Bar-B-Q sauce
- Original Bar-B-Q sauce
- Spicy Bar-B-Q sauce
- Sticky Sweet Bar-B-Q sauce
- Sweet Heart Bar-B-Q sauce
Choosing the Right Sauce
Check the Ingredients
Make sure to check the ingredients first before purchasing.
If the ingredients contain honey, anchovies, Worcestershire, dairy products, natural flavorings, and processed sugar, it’s best to avoid purchasing them.
There are plenty of alternatives to plain white sugar, such as maple syrup. Cane sugar is the most controversial vegan ingredient as it may be filtered with bone char. Normally, for bigger companies like Heinz, at least one of their suppliers might be using sugar that was refined with bone char.
The ingredients should be all plant-based, such as tomato paste, especially when you’re looking to purchase sugar-free BBQ sauce. If you’re after low-sugar barbecue sauces, then avoid purchasing high-fructose corn syrup to keep it strictly vegan.
Find Your Flavor
You can find plenty of vegan-friendly flavors to help you in your vegan journey, including Mustard, Sweet and Tangy, Smoky Flavor, Sweet and Fruity, and many other natural flavors.
If you prefer Texas-style BBQ sauces or the original flavor, then go for those. You may want to see the popular BBQ sauces as well.
“A recipe has no soul. You, as the cook, must bring soul to the recipe” - Thomas Keller, Chef
Let’s Make Our Own Vegan BBQ Sauce!
Here’s how to make your own BBQ sauce with no animal products involved:
Ingredients
- ½ cup organic ketchup
- 3 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon white distilled vinegar (or lemon juice)
- 1 tablespoon coconut sugar (or organic brown sugar)
- 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire
- 1 tablespoon mustard (prepared, not dry mustard)
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ⅓ cup water
Directions
Use a small saucepan over medium-high heat, mix all of the ingredients, beginning from the ketchup and ending with water.
Mix it, then bring it to a boil and lessen the heat to a simmer. Wait for it to simmer for fifteen to twenty minutes or until the liquid has decreased. You’ll see a thick sauce form.
Once it forms, set it aside to cool down. Transfer it to a glass jar and place it in the fridge for up to three weeks.
FAQs
No, the Mcdonald’s BBQ sauce isn’t vegan. It contains honey.
Yes, HP Barbecue is vegan.
Yes, Award-Winning BBQ Sauce is vegan.
So, Is BBQ Sauce Really Vegan?
The answer to the question, "is BBQ sauce vegan?" is generally yes. Most of the products you find are from vegan BBQ sauce brands that use natural flavor, especially their original barbecue sauce.
However, certain flavors make use of non-vegan ingredients, so make sure to be on the lookout for those.
If you’re having trouble looking for a sugar-free sauce in the vegan world, you can make your own BBQ sauce.
With tomato paste, pineapple juice concentrate, natural smoke flavor, modified food starch, and other ingredients, you're ready to make vegan BBQ sauces! All in all, it’s about finding a completely vegan sauce for your taste.
References:
- https://www.fda.gov/industry/color-additives/color-additives-history
About Author
Hi! My name is Kathy, I am a retired high school English teacher & vegan enthusiast and blogger. My entire blog is fully plant-based vegan. I truly believe what we eat & how we live determines our health & the preservation of our planet! 🙂
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