At Harmons, we are pretty passionate about food (to say the least). So now that grilling season is upon us, we couldn’t resist trying out some of the best BBQ sauces we have to offer. Different regions in the U.S. have distinctive and delicious BBQ sauces. We, of course, had to try some of our favorite Utah brands as well. We had 11 people try eight different sauces on pulled pork, share their thoughts on the flavor, and after much thought and scrutiny, tell us which one was their favorite.
Below you can read the reviews for each sauce we tasted and about all the regional sauce differences. But since we know you’re dying to know, we’ve listed the winner first.
Winner: Lillie’s Q Smoky
This sauce was the big winner out of all eight. The bottle says that it’s a Memphis-style sauce with hints of brown sugar and smoke. Lillie’s Q is an amazing brand with several regional BBQ sauce varieties. We only reviewed three and wish we’d also tried the Golden because it’s a South Carolina mustard sauce, but all three that we tried were delicious. Plus, they all look very high end in a glass bottle with a wax-sealed cap.
When we tried Smoky, our reviewers commented that it was smoky (obviously) and had a nice vinegar flavor. It was tangy but had a touch of sweet without being overwhelmingly so. It was the obvious favorite.
Reviews of other Gourmet BBQ Sauces:
Lillie’s Q Carolina
Another excellent sauce from Lillie’s is their Q Carolina, amazing and slightly spicy. Everyone agreed that this hickory smoked, vinegary, tomato-y Western Carolina sauce was excellent.
Lillie’s Q Ivory
Ivory is an Alabama white sauce with a little bit of Cajun spice. We were excited to try this, but felt it would’ve been better on chicken instead of the pulled pork we tried it with. If you like mayo, you may like this white sauce. Most reviewers agreed that they thought it was a lot different than your typical BBQ sauce.
Stubb’s
We tried Stubb’s Sticky Sweet sauce, a Texas-style sauce. Everyone agreed that it was A+ for a traditional flavor. Very classic, sweet, and with a good balance of flavor, all reviewers thought it was very tasty.
Hak’s Habanero Pineapple
A thick, dark sauce with a bite. With habanero, it’s spicy with a delayed hit. It has a good flavor with a little sweetness, vinegar, and slow heat.
Utah’s BBQ Sauces
Utah doesn’t have a distinct regional flavor, but we’re proud to offer delicious, locally-made BBQ sauces, including these three brands that you can find at Harmons.
Jeri’s Gourmet
The bottle says it’s a concentrate and chef approved. The flavor is nice and classic, but it was a very thick sauce. When it first came out of the bottle, it was almost solid, even after shaking. Once there was more room in the bottle and could shake better, the consistency got better. Everyone agreed it was tasty and sweet, but it was more like a jam when it came out of the bottle than a sauce.
Snap Daddy’s
This was one of the most unique flavors and tasted almost like an apple cinnamon. It had a nice kick and a little bit of vinegar (maybe apple cider vinegar). It was sweet and delicious, but had a lot more sodium than most BBQ sauces.
Big Daddy Hill’s
The owner Lee Hill grew up in North Carolina and lived in Arizona. The brand has several flavors to try, and we tried the competition blend: Bourbon Blues. Everyone agreed that it was very sweet—the sweetest of all the sauces we tried. A few reviewers thought it had a berry flavor or even a teriyaki flavor. It poured well and could make a versatile marinade, but we wouldn’t have guessed it was a BBQ sauce.
Regional Differences
Ever wondered what makes the different regional BBQ sauces unique? Learn more below!
- Kansas City – This is often what you think of when you hear BBQ sauce. Kansas City sauce is tomato based, sweet (with molasses or brown sugar), with some vinegar. Because it’s thick and tomato-y, it doesn’t penetrate meat well and you don’t need to use very much or it will overpower the meat.
- East Carolina– The base is generally vinegar and hot pepper flakes but with little to no sugar. Because it’s thin and has a strong flavor, it penetrates the meat well. You can baste or “mop” while your meat is cooking, and then use it as a finishing sauce.
- South Carolina – This is a mustard-based sauce, inspired from German immigrants, and also contains vinegar, sugar and spices.
- Lexington (Western Carolinas) – This is a mop-sauce or often called a dip. It’s a lot like East Carolina sauce but with a hint of tomato sauce or ketchup.
- Texas – The sauce has gotten redder and sweeter over time, influenced by Kansas City sauce. It mostly started specifically for beef brisket. Some of the best Texas BBQ sauces are made with beef drippings and can’t be bottled. Texans often season meat with dry rub and then top it with a thin brown mop sauce made with chili powder, hot sauce, beef drippings, onion and spices.
- Alabama white sauce – Developed specifically for chicken, Alabama white sauce is made with a mayo and vinegar base, but you can also use it on pork.
- Memphis – Some sauces claim to be Memphis style, which sometimes means a sauce similar to Kansas City but with more vinegar. Many people claim that Memphis sauce has no distinctive sauce style. A lot of Memphis grillers just do dry rubs and avoid sauce.
To read more from Harmons, check out their blog at harmonsgrocery.com/blog