Hibiscus is used in drinks throughout the African diaspora but most notably in Jamaica. Inspired by sorrel—a festive Caribbean punch—this sauce is sweet, tangy, earthy, and the perfect complement to the peppery profile of Jamaican jerk. Rum, allspice, and fresh ginger add a level of warmth and richness of flavor that is the signature of Caribbean cuisine. Serve with Jerk Turkey Sheperd’s Pie.
Ingredients
Makes 2½ cups
4
1
3
1
1⅓
1
2
Preparation
Step 1
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add ginger and allspice and cook, stirring occasionally, until butter foams, then browns, 5–8 minutes. Mix in cranberries, muscovado sugar, and ½ cup water. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until cranberries burst, 10–12 minutes.
Step 2
Uncover cranberries; stir in hibiscus powder, salt, and 1 Tbsp. rum. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring occasionally, until glossy and syrupy, 16–20 minutes. (Stir in about ¼ cup water if you like a thinner sauce.) Remove from heat and stir in remaining 1 Tbsp. rum. Let cool slightly.
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Reviews (16)
Back to TopSO good - I used bourbon because I couldn't find my rum, but it was delish. Also I used half the amount of sugar. Tart deliciousness. The timing and the temperature worked perfectly for me, but it could be because I have an electric hob.
K Valentine
Miami, FL
11/22/2023
The flavors here are excellent and will probably get an encore for Christmas, but the recipe is pretty off with regard to time and temperature. Medium-low heat isn't going to make your butter foam and brown in 5-8 minutes, if it does so at all. It sure as hell isn't going to burst cranberries in 10 minutes either. You'll need to up the heat a fair bit if you don't want to spend all day fussing over a cranberry sauce. Also, the recipe doesn't say anything about removing the whole allspice berries. I hope that's an oversight, since leaving hard spices in a food with this color and consistency is a great way to hurt someone's tooth.
Dan
California
11/29/2020
Best ever.. of course I can't leave anything alone so used less sugar, I had hibiscus dried pieces (I rehydrated with tiny bit of vermouth) which work better, less homogeneous sudden tart explosions which complement cranberries very well. Also added thin slices of fresh horseradish (1cm x 2cm x 1mm). couple drops of wasabi oil ... fantastic! Oh yeah, could't find any allspice so put in toasted fennel seeds
niconelko
Honolulu
11/28/2020
Delicious and straightforward. I had some dried hibiscus, so I steeped it in a 1/4 cup of hot water and added that in and cooked the whole thing down until it was the consistency I wanted. I didnt have muscavado, so I did half and half dark brown sugar and white granulated sugar. The Plantation 5 year rum I used adds just a little something to make it interesting. The additional flavors from the hibiscus and rum are pretty subtle and overall this is not a recipe that should shock anyone unless they've only ever had cranberry sauce from a can.
Anonymous
11/25/2020
This is definitely a winner and likely to go into my annual rotation. I made a half recipe for a smaller gathering, and it worked great. The butter and spices and rum flavors blended really well with the cranberry and hibiscus tang. I discovered I had used up all my dried hibiscus, so I had to substitute ground herbal tea (Red Bone blend by Ivys Tea - hibiscus, cranberry, lemon, cayenne) that brought a bit of extra flavor for a satisfying sauce.
Anonymous
Sacramento, CA
11/23/2020
Terrible. I have been a subscriber for 20+ years and this was one of the worst. I love cranberry sauce and while it sounded intriguing and I bought the hibiscus powder and muscavado sugar but I took one taste and threw it out.
Mariangela
San Francisco, CA
11/22/2020
Delicious! Easy to make and unique with the addition of hibiscus powder.
Rcmartone
Houston, Tx
11/21/2020