Bobby Flay's 3 Additions For Better Store-Bought BBQ Sauce

Celebrity chef Bobby Flay may be a New Yorker, but his passions lie in Southwestern cuisine. It's fitting, then, that his three additions for better store-bought BBQ sauce bring zesty, spicy, Southwestern flair. In a video for Food Network's BBQ Brawl, Flay adds Worcestershire sauce, pureed chipotles in adobo, and lime juice to elevate a simple store-bought barbecue sauce.

Worcestershire sauce is decidedly not Southwestern but instead a rendition of a fermented fish sauce from India composed by English colonists. It's a complex condiment consisting of a trifecta of tart, sweet, and umami flavors that's often used in meat marinades. A few drops is all it takes to enhance a bottled barbecue sauce's own sweet and tangy flavor profile while also bringing a unique pop of umami. Flay describes chipotles as smoked jalapeños, and the adobo sauce in which they're bottled as a vinegary tomato sauce. Chipotles in adobo could be a barbecue sauce in and of themselves as evidenced by chicken tinga, the beloved Mexican dish. The tomato and vinegar of the adobo mirror the vinegar and ketchup common in many barbecue sauce recipes, while the chipotles will add a spicy, smoky complexity. Finally, a squeeze of zesty lime is the best way to finish off a barbecue sauce. It may be yet another vinegar-adjacent acidic component, but citrus has a way of brightening any sauce or marinade.

Chef Bobby Flay makes a convincing argument for adding chipotles in adobo, Worcestershire sauce, and lime juice to store-bought barbecue sauce and subsequently demonstrates how to add these ingredients. He combines everything in a saucepan, gives it a quick stir with a whisk, and brings it to a simmer. Heat helps to emulsify the newly added ingredients and bloom their flavors. Flay covers the sauce as it simmers to avoid any spray and to keep the barbecue sauce from getting any thicker.

To a bottle of barbecue sauce, Flay adds just a dash or two of Worcestershire sauce, which speaks to its powerful taste. He adds a heaping spoonful of pureed chipotle, and finishes with the juice of half of a lime. This personalized barbecue sauce will provide a unique flavor to any grilled meat you plan on barbecuing. Brush the sauce over pork ribs in the smoker, stir it into a pulled pork sandwich, or use it as a condiment for your next burger. You could even add it to a pot of spaghetti.