Looking for The BEST Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce? Look no further. This cranberry sauce is made in less than 20 minutes and is full of all the familiar flavors of the holiday season. Our family loves this sweet, yet tart cranberry sauce to go along with our Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey.

overhead shot of a light blue bowl full of homemade cranberry sauce for thanksgiving

Homemade Cranberry Sauce Ingredients

This recipe uses just a few simple ingredients that all can be found at your local grocery store, especially during the holiday season. Here is what you will need:

Fresh Cranberries
Apple Cider
Brown Sugar
Orange Zest
Ground Nutmeg
Salt

silver pot full of fresh cranberries, orange zest and brown sugar for homemade cranberry sauce with sliced oranges and orange zest lying next to it

How Do You Make Cranberry Sauce From Scratch?

Making homemade cranberry sauce is very easy. I will warn you though, once you have fresh homemade cranberry sauce, you will never go back to that canned stuff again! Here is how to make cranberry sauce from scratch:

First, combine all of your ingredients together in a pot on your stovetop and bring it to a boil
Reduce your heat and let it simmer, stirring occasionally until the cranberries pop and the mixture reduces. This should take about 10 - 12 minutes.
Lastly, remove from the heat and allow the sauce to cool completely before serving.

After cooking, it's important to let the cranberry sauce cool in the refrigerator. This allows time for the sauce to thicken and also give the flavors more time to infuse together. I recommend letting it cool for at least 2 hours, but overnight is best. This will also make one less thing for you to worry about on Thanksgiving or Christmas day!

overhead shot of a light blue bowl of cranberry sauce with orange zest

I hope you enjoyed this easy homemade cranberry sauce recipe. For more Thanksgiving recipes, check out these ones below:

Lastly, if you make this recipe for The BEST Cranberry Sauce for Thanksgiving, be sure to leave a comment and give this recipe a rating. I love to hear from each and every one of you! Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram as well, if you make any of my recipes. It makes my day to see all of your photos of the food you have made. Please make sure you comment below and let me know your favorite. Enjoy!

Happy Cooking!

light blue bowl filled with fresh cranberry sauce with a serving spoon on a copper serving tray

The BEST Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce

This is The BEST Thanksgiving Cranberry Sauce that is made with fresh cranberries and goes perfectly with roast turkey for the holidays.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 137 minutes
Yield: 8 servings 1x
Category: Side Dish
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

12 ounces fresh cranberries
1 cup apple cider
¾ cup light brown sugar
1 medium orange, zest only
¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 pinch kosher salt

Instructions

Combine all of the ingredients into a medium sauce pot and stir to combine.
Bring mixture to a boil over medium high heat and then reduce to a simmer over medium low heat. Continue to simmer, stirring and mashing the berries occasionally for about 10-12 minutes. Once all of the cranberries have popped and the sauce is reduced down, remove it off of the heat.
Cool completely in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours or overnight for best results.

Notes

**Recipe yields approximately 8-10 servings or 2 cups

Nutrition

Calories: 91

Keywords: cranberries, dairy free, gluten free, holidays, vegetarian