Chocolate Chile Barbecue Sauce

This concoction clearly has nothing whatsoever to do with Southern barbecue sauce traditions, but it has a lot to do with modern American cuisine: novel combinations that sound shocking, but somehow work. This sauce has the classic taste profile of all the most popular barbecue sauces—sweet, tart, and slightly spicy—but with a wonderful twist: the seductive taste of chocolate balanced with the mild bite of smoked chile peppers.

I love it on pork ribs and meat loaf. If you put it on pork ribs, skip the herb and spice rubs. Paint it on your ribs just before they are done. Then, for a festive touch, grate some orange zest on top.

Makes a generous 2 cups

Takes 45 minutes

• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ cup water
• ¾ cup rice vinegar
• ½ cup tomato paste
• ¼ cup orange juice
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (see Note)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ⅛ teaspoon chipotle chile powder

In a saucepan, combine the sugar and water and bring to a simmer over low heat. Simmer until the sugar has dissolved, then add the remaining ingredients, stir well, and simmer for 30 minutes more.

Note: I use Hershey’s Natural Unsweetened Cocoa.