This 3-ingredient cranberry sauce is so easy and takes just 15 minutes from start to finish. Once you try this simple cranberry orange sauce it will become a family favorite on your holiday table!
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This 3-ingredient paleo cranberry sauce is incredibly simple. It's made with fresh whole cranberries and orange juice - and it's one of the easiest Thanksgiving dishes to make from scratch. Fresh cranberry sauce takes just 15 minutes to make. You can make it the day before. And it's naturally gluten-free, grain-free, and dairy-free.
How to make cranberry sauce
How do you make homemade cranberry sauce? It really couldn't be easier---just add the ingredients to a saucepan and simmer until the cranberries start to burst. If you've never made it before, just watch my cranberry sauce video below to see how easy it is to make!
I always make fresh cranberry sauce for the holidays. It is so fast and easy, there's no reason to buy it. And the great thing about making your own is that you can control the ingredients. Make it as sweet or as tart as you like by adjusting the amount of honey. Make a vegan version by swapping out the honey for maple syrup. Or stir in your favorite holiday flavors to make your own signature cranberry sauce.
Cranberry sauce three ways
Cranberry Orange Sauce - This simple 3-ingredient cranberry sauce is great on its own, or as the base for different flavor variations.
Here are a couple of different flavors to try:
Dijon Cranberry Sauce - Stir in a tablespoon of Dijon mustard once the sauce is cooked. This is a great variation for sandwiches the next day.
Spiced Cranberry Sauce - Add a cinnamon stick and a few whole cloves to the sauce while cooking. Cut a strip of orange peel and poke the cloves through it so it will be easy to remove the whole spices once the sauce has cooked.
The possibilities are endless for this easy homemade cranberry sauce. However you make it, add fresh cranberry sauce to your Thanksgiving menu. (And if you have any leftovers, try this super-easy cranberry salad dressing.)
3-Ingredient Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fresh cranberries
- ¾ cup fresh orange juice
- ½ cup honey or maple syrup to taste
Instructions
- Combine cranberries, orange juice, and honey or maple syrup in a saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, until berries pop and sauce thickens, about 10 - 15 minutes.
- Cool completely and refrigerate.
- Serve at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
More Thanksgiving dinner recipes
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jesusdiedandlives says
Been wondering how to do this. Thank you for posting how to make cranberrry sauce paleo style. Jesusdiedandlives
Lisa says
You're welcome. It's really easy - hope you enjoy it!
christie says
Can we substitute anything for honey?
Lisa says
I haven't tested it with any other sweeteners, but this recipe is pretty flexible so you should be able to substitute. I would add the sweetener to taste, and add extra liquid if it's too thick, or simmer it a little longer if it looks too thin. It may take a little experimenting to get it right.
Ruth Peach says
Lisa, I understood that we can't use any sweeteners in a paleo eating plan, including honey or agave etc. Can you explain? Because I love cranberry sauce and have missed it. Thank you.
Lisa says
Hi Ruth, that's a great question. Stick to limited use of natural sweeteners, like raw honey, for treats or special occasions. Here's a link to a great guide to sweeteners from Diane Sanfilippo's Practical Paleo: http://www.balancedbites.com/PDFs/BOOK_EXTRAS/PracticalPaleo_GuidetoSweeteners.pdf.
Pamela Carneal says
I was in a pinch. I'm the only one in the house that likes cranberries and usually just forget them. I grabbed a bag of fresh ones on my last trip to the store, but it had been years since I cooked any, so thanks for posting this. I didn't have any OJ in the house (just grapefruit juice). So I peeled 2 oranges and popped them into my a Breville Hemisphere blender then hit liquify. Worked out great, I used 1 cup (I wouldn't necessarily want this in a glass to drink, but the added pulp is fine in relish 😉 I also used SugarLeaf (SweetLeaf stevia/cane sugar blend, I didn't have enough honey), about 1/4 cup and two droppers of Lemon Drop liquid stevia. Perhaps not Paleo perfect but it scratched my cranberry itch just enough.
Lisa says
Pamela, I'm so glad you got to have your cranberry sauce - the pureed whole oranges sound like a great option!
Amy says
Great recipe. How long does this last in the fridge? Thanks
Lisa says
Amy, I have kept this in the fridge up to a week.
Tami says
We made this recipe using 32 oz of cranberries, 1/2 cup honey and 2 1/4 cup orange juice, 1t cinnamon, 1t allspice, 1/4t ginger and 1/4t cloves and it was great! Not sure if the spices helped sweeten the cranberry sauce, but I think we could have used less honey. Thanks for the recipe!
Beej3 says
As a side note, I have used frozen or fresh rasberries in a cranberry relish as well for sweetness/tartness. It's fabulous.
Melissa B. says
I just made this and it is awesome! Last year I tried a recipe that used maple syrup which I didn't care for, so this is my new go-to recipe! Thank you so much!
Lisa says
Yay! It's my go-to recipe too, Melissa!
Lisa says
Thank you for a simple yet tasty recipe!
Becky says
Awesome, perfect, easy! Thanks!
Sabrina says
love this and a great reminder that it can be made ahead, no excuse to use a canned recipe, not with this, thank you!
Mary says
This is my go-to cranberry sauce recipe for Thanksgiving now. I do add zested orange peel, 3 cloves and a cinnamon stick and left out the honey since the oranges were very sweet. Thank you!
Kaley Wied says
If you are on the brink of trying this recipe, JUST GO FOR IT!! 3 ingredients and 15 minutes is all you need to make an AMAZING cranberry sauce! I used frozen cranberries and it turned out too delicious for words! Thanks for the recipe!
Ume says
Hey! I'm looking forward to trying this recipe out but, I would just like to know how much one serving is, (in like Tbsp or tsp) thanks!
Lisa says
Can dried or frozen cherries be added to this? Im not concerned about keeping it paleo but just keeping it healthy. Thank you!
Lisa says
Hi Lisa, I think you could do either. You may want to use a little less honey or maple syrup if the cherries are sweet. Let me know how it turns out!
Chris says
I discovered this recipe when preparing for Thanksgiving many years ago. I switched it to the vegan version about 5 years ago, and I still continue to use the recipe EVERY Thanksgiving...so thank you!!
Lisa says
Yay! I'm so glad you love it, Chris!
Debora Dodson says
I made it at Thanksgiving and it was perfect. I have again twice.amd it will not thicken up. I havefollowed the recipe exactly. I know it is something I did wrong
Please help
Lisa says
Hi Debora, the pectin from the cranberries is what thickens the sauce. Be sure you are cooking it long enough for all the cranberries to pop and release the pectin. If you're still having trouble, you can always simmer it a little longer to reduce the liquid. Hope this helps!
Susan Morgan says
This is my very, very favorite cranberry sauce recipe! It has just the right amount of tartness, plus I love that it's healthy with no refined sugar. I always make it for our family's Thanksgiving & Christmas dinners & also usually have a bowl of it made up in my fridge--it really adds extra flavor to a lot of meals. I keep cranberries in the freezer so we can have it year round since we enjoy it so much!
Jackie says
I'm on the Whole 30. Can I substitute dates for the honey?
Lisa says
Hi Jackie, I haven't tested this recipe with dates but it sounds like it would work (although the flavor may be different). I would puree the dates before adding to the sauce and add a little bit at a time until it's sweet enough. If you try it let me know how it turns out!
Maria says
Hi, Would love to try it but In Australia we don't have fresh cranberries, can I use dried cranberries instead. Managed to find organic dried cranberries sweetened with apple juice and 1% of sunflower oil. And would it be nice over porridge?
Lisa says
Hi Maria, I have not tested this recipe with dried cranberries so not sure how it would turn out. Making it with fresh or frozen cranberries it has a sweet-tart flavor and jam-like consistency so it might be nice over porridge.
Melissa says
I have made this once before and it was delicious! I will be making it again this year for Thanksgiving. Would this be good cold?
Lisa says
Hi Melissa, you can serve it cold but I like to let it come to room temperature. So glad you like it!
Adam says
I’ve been making this recipe for years and it’s great. In recent years I started blending it for a smoother texture and that’s even better. This year, I’m considering apple juice in place of orange juice for a little change. Have you tried this before?
Lisa says
Hi Adam, I have not tried it with apple juice. Since apple juice is pretty sweet, I would probably reduce the honey or maple syrup a bit - you can always add more to taste after it's done, but you can't take it out if it's too sweet. If you try it, let us know how it turns out!
Chantel says
This has been my go to cranberry recipe the last few years.