Barbeque’n With Bobby Seale

Although there are recipes for barbecue sauce in his book, Barbeque'n With Bobby Seale, Bobby Seale considers it to be a “secondary condiment.” Marinades are the secret to great-tasting barbecued meats, he says, and the following recipe is for a heart-healthy one that can be used with pork, beef or chicken. The meat should be soaked in the marinade overnight in the refrigerator, and then be basted with it frequently while grilling. Seale advises using a spray bottle to baste the meat, and cooking over either hickory or mesquite wood that has burned down to coals. There should be no flames.

Hickory-Herbal Barbeque Sauce
(salt-free, sugarless)
The recipe emphasizes the use of herbs, fruits, vegetables and spices.

Vegetables and Fruit:
1/2 cup each: onions, scallions, bell peppers, carrots, celery, finely chopped
4 medium-size tomatoes, chopped
1 medium-size green cooking apple, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 cup hot green chili peppers, chopped [or less to taste]

Staples
1 tablespoon each: onion powder, garlic powder, spicy dry mustard, black pepper, ground red chili pepper, celery flakes, parsley flakes, crumbled or powdered bay leaves, rosemary
1 teaspoon each: ground clove, ground ginger, basil
2 tablespoons or 3 cubes beef bouillon

Liquids
1 cup [8 ounces] pure hickory liquid smoke
1 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup each: lemon juice and lime juice, seeded
1/4 cup salt-free prepared mustard
1/2 cup dry cooking sherry
3 cups water

Blender puree all vegetables and fruit together, rinsing blender contents with the 3 cups water into a quart pot on high heat (include water). Add staple and liquid ingredients. Stir thoroughly and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium. Boil gently uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring every few minutes, and covered for another 30 minutes, stirring frequently, for a total cooking time of 1 hour. Sauce should have thickened a little by then; cook longer if needed. Remove sauce from heat until ready to use, or store in refrigerator.

Yields 1½ to 2 quarts

Kitty Bennett is a news researcher and writer based in St. Petersburg, Fla.