Whole-Berry Cranberry Sauce: vibrant, sweet-tangy sauce packed with whole cranberries-made in minutes with just sugar, water & fresh fruit.
There is nothing like making your own cranberry sauce from fresh, whole cranberries. While canned cranberry sauce has a scant number of whole berries, this sauce is packed with them. It is delicious with both savory dishes and sweet desserts, and it keeps for several days in the refrigerator.
For more delicious cranberry recipes, don't miss my Cranberry Jello Salad, Cranberry Pretzel Dessert, and Cranberry Sugar Pie.
🔍 Quick Look: Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce Recipe
- Ready in: 40 minutes
- Servings: 8
- Calories: 116 kcal per serving
- Main Ingredients: Fresh cranberries, sugar, & water
- Elements of Taste: Sweet & Sour
- Cook Method: Simmer
- Difficulty: Easy, making it great for Holiday dinners
- Why You'll Love It: Beautiful whole cranberries are cooked two different ways in a simple syrup - tart, sweet, and perfectly delicious as a side dish for roasted and braised meats.
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What are Cranberries?
Cranberries are highly acidic, small, red berries that grow on small, creeping shrubs. The shrubs grow in bogs in the cooler areas of the northern hemisphere.
Because of their high acidity, hard texture, and tart flavor, cranberries require sugar to be palatable. Highly sweetened juices and sauces are the most common use of cranberries. However, they are also used in baking.
Why This is The Best Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce!
Essentially, cranberry sauce is made by simmering cranberries in a simple syrup of water and sugar. Most recipes call for 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar, which yields a sweet but thin sauce.
If you cook the cranberries longer in this syrup, the sauce will thicken. But all of the berries will have burst. This is not a bad thing, but if you want some of the berries to remain whole, you need to shorten the simmering time.
However, I have a secret method to make fruit sauces like this, and I use the same secret in this sauce as in my Red Wine Sauce with Berries, which is to add additional whole berries to the sauce after it has cooked.
For this whole-berry cranberry sauce, additional whole cranberries are added after the sauce has simmered. The residual heat of the cooked sauce is enough to cook the whole berries until they are tender but still whole.
I have also experimented with the proportions of water and sugar and found that a heavier, rich simple syrup will give me a thicker sauce, which I think is perfect.
So for this recipe, I use ¾ cup of water to 1 cup of sugar. With this proportion of water to sugar, the sauce does not run on a plate. The cranberries are sweetened and the sauce is chunky with burst berries and whole berries.
Although cranberry sauce is the definitive must-have condiment for a turkey dinner for Thanksgiving and Christmas, this sauce is so good you might want to make it year-round! And you can!
Just freeze whole cranberries while they are in season, and you can make this brilliantly colored, delicious sauce anytime.
So, let's cook!
Ingredient Notes
Here's what you need for this whole-berry cranberry sauce:
- Fresh Cranberries - Fresh cranberries can be found in the produce department from October through December.
- White Granulated Sugar - To keep the cranberry flavor bright, only use white granulated sugar. Sugar tames the acidity of the cranberry and, in general, is essential in making fruit sauces, preserves, and jams.
- Water - You must add water to the cranberries and sugar to make a sauce and not a jam.
Please see the recipe card for the exact quantities.
Cranberry Sauce Variations
Fruit Flavored Variations
- Cranberry Orange Sauce - Add a 1-inch x 3-inch strip of orange zest to the sauce as it cooks. Remove the zest before storing and serving.
- Cranberry Sauce with Pineapple - Add ½ cup canned crushed pineapple.
Tipsy Variations
- Red Wine Cranberry Sauce - Substitute red wine for the water. Choose a red wine that you enjoy drinking and don't use "cooking wine". Good choices are merlot, malbec, and fruity zinfandels.
- Cranberry Sauce with Grand Marnier - Substitute 2 tablespoons of Grand Marnier for part of the water.
- Bourbon Cranberry Sauce - Substitute 2 tablespoons of your favorite bourbon for part of the water.
- Cranberry Sauce with Port Wine - Substitute 2 tablespoons of port wine for part of the water.
Spiced Variations
- Winter Spiced Cranberry Sauce - Add 1 cinnamon stick and a spice sachet of 4 allspice berries, and 2 whole cloves.
- Gingered Cranberry Sauce - Add 1 inch of fresh ginger root that is peeled and finely chopped.
- Cranberry Sauce with Horseradish - Stir in 2 teaspoons of prepared horseradish, not cream-style horseradish, to the prepared sauce.
- Spicy Chipotle Cranberry Sauce - Stir in ½ teaspoon of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle peppers to the cooked sauce.
How to Make The Best Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce!
- Prepare Cranberries. Wash the cranberries well and remove any discolored, soft, or shriveled berries. Set aside 1 cup of cranberries for later.
- Combine Ingredients & Simmer. Put the remaining cranberries, sugar, and water in a 2-quart pan. Cover the pan and bring the cranberries to a boil over medium heat. Then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes until the cranberries burst.
- Skim. Remove the pan from the heat and skim any foam from the top of the sauce.
- Add Additional Cranberries & Cool. Stir in the reserved cranberries. Cover the pan again and let it cool for 10 minutes. The residual heat of the sauce will soften the added whole berries without bursting them.
- Transfer to Container & Chill. When cool, transfer the cranberry sauce to a covered container and refrigerate.
My Top Tips
♡ Choose cranberries that are deep red in color for the best flavor.
♡ Although many recipes do not state to remove the foam, skimming the foam from the sauce makes it more beautiful.
Make-Ahead & Storage
This sauce lasts up to 3 weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator. So, cranberry sauce can easily be made several days before you want to serve it.
More Cranberry Recipes You'll Love
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📖 Recipe
Whole-Berry Cranberry Sauce
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Ingredients
- 12 Ounces Fresh Cranberries
- 1 Cup White Granulated Sugar
- ¾ Cup Water
Instructions
- Prepare Cranberries. Wash the cranberries well and remove any discolored, soft, or shriveled berries. Set aside 1 cup of cranberries for later.12 Ounces Fresh Cranberries
- Combine Ingredients & Simmer. Put the remaining cranberries, sugar, and water in a 2-quart pan. Cover the pan and bring the cranberries to a boil over medium heat. Then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes until the cranberries burst.1 Cup White Granulated Sugar, ¾ Cup Water
- Skim. Remove the pan from the heat and skim any foam from the top of the sauce.
- Add Additional Cranberries & Cool. Stir in the reserved cranberries. Cover the pan again and let it cool for 10 minutes. The residual heat of the sauce will soften the added whole berries without bursting them.
- Transfer to Container & Chill. When cool, transfer the cranberry sauce to a covered container and refrigerate.
Notes
Nutrition
Per 1 serving. All nutritional information on this site is an estimate. Your results may vary.
Encharted Cook™ or Jan Nunes shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on this website or actions you take as a result.
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Danielle says
this looks perfect I'm going to try it I've never tried cooking The cranberries. if I use frozen berries should I thaw them first?
Jan Nunes says
Hi Danielle,
Thank you for your question. I have only made this sauce with fresh cranberries. However, you can use frozen berries.
Do not thaw the cranberries. Open the package of frozen berries and select the darkest red, best looking berries for the whole berries you add after cooking the sauce. Then make the sauce as directed with the remaining frozen berries to make the sauce base.
You will need to cook the sauce a few minutes longer to compensate for the icy cold of the frozen berries. After the sauce is cooked, add the reserved cranberries. They will have thawed slightly as the sauce cooks. When added to the sauce base they should soften, while staying firm, in the hot cooked sauce for the whole berry look of this sauce.
Have a wonderful day! ~Jan 😊
Kathy says
Such a perfect compliment to mild flavors of turkey and mashed potatoes and dressing... a wonderful contrast and so easy to make!
Jan Nunes says
Hi Kathy,
I'm so glad you have enjoyed my cranberry sauce! It's one of my favorite holiday recipes.
Have a wonderful day! ~Jan 😊