What is the purpose of vinegar in a barbecue sauce recipe?

Is it for tanginess, or is there another purpose? I tried a new barbecue sauce recipe last night – and it turned out that the recipe called for way too much vinegar. It still smells like the night before Easter in my house. Is there something else I can substitute and still get the same apparent flavor? Or, can I reduce it without compromising the sauce?
gojenni: You asked how much vinegar the recipe calls for — for one batch, the total amount of liquid in the recipe (including the ketchup) is 1 1/2 cups, with 1/2 of THAT being cider vinegar. I doubled the recipe and there was WAY too much vinegar. Thanks for your help!

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6 comments a "What is the purpose of vinegar in a barbecue sauce recipe?"

It moistness the meat so it wont be so tuff.

It adds a little tang and allows more sugar without being overly sweet.

Try this recipe. I developed it after years of trial and error.

Norm’s Sweet & Sour BBQ Sauce

1-40 Oz Bottle Catsup
1-Cup White Vinegar
1-Cup Water
2-Cups White Sugar
1-Cup Brown Sugar
4-Tsp Onion Salt
2-Tsp Celery Salt
1-Tsp Ground Cinnamon
1-Tsp Ground Cloves
1-Tsp Ground Allspice
1/4-Cup Liquid Smoke

Mix all together in saucepan and heat to boiling. Reduce heat & simmer 1 hour.

Yield about 7 cups.

Vinegar adds acidity to the sauce, which ultimately helps tenderize. What type of vinegar are you using? I would suggest an apple cider vinegar as it will add a little bit more flavor instead of the harshness of ordinary vinegar. Also, how much are you putting in? You shouldn’t need more than a few tablespoons at the most.

Taste and another thing is that vinegar can tenderize the meat as it cooks, marinates or however you are using vinegar(sauce it is in)

It gives it a tang and it helps to tenderize the meat too.

the acid in it helps to make the meat tender. Just cut the vinegar back to a couple tablespoons. It will not taste right if you don’t put it in.

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