The best homemade cranberry sauce recipe to compliment any holiday meal! Make it fresh, or can it for a quick side dish any time!
You can make this cranberry sauce to eat fresh or follow the canning directions to have home canned cranberry sauce without dirtying a single dish.
Learn how to make homemade cranberry sauce this holiday season and wow everyone at the table! This cranberry sauce recipe can be made as a single batch for just one meal, or make it in bulk for canned cranberry sauce!
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For me, one of the biggest joys of any season is canning with my mom.
From the time that I was 15 my mom and I have always canned together. It's always such an enjoyable experience that I look forward to as each crop comes into the height of its season. Potatoes, apples, green beans, peaches, strawberries...
Recently she joined me for a full day of canning cranberries.
We canned 22 pints over the course of about 5 hours (though there were many breaks in there to rest our backs and enjoy a glass of tea) and now we are all set for holiday meals.
Homemade Cranberry Sauce Recipe with Port Wine and Cinnamon Sticks
This cranberry sauce recipe features port wine and whole cinnamon sticks in every jar. It's very fast to make, and the canning is quick as well!
It's been a staple at every holiday meal for the last 6-7 years. One taste and you will be absolutely hooked!
Step One:
First, make sure you have everything. Even with 7 years of making this recipe under our belts, we still forgot that we needed red wine vinegar. (You really do need it as it makes the PH level of this recipe appropriate for canning).
Next, combine the sugar, water, and red wine vinegar in a large pot. Make sure the pot is large enough that when the sauce boils and doubles in size (briefly) it won't overflow.
Step Two:
Set the pot to high heat, stirring the sugar to avoid burning while it dissolves.
Once the sugar is at a rolling boil, add the cranberries.
Turn the heat to medium and set a timer for 5 minutes. Stir occasionally.
Note: The berries pop as the cook and you may get splattered a bit. Splatter is hot. So, you may not want to let the kids help with this step.
Step Three:
If the timer goes off and your sauce doesn't look like the next picture, wait until it does!
It should have this nice thick pink foam bubbling up all around the berries. If you skip this important step, your sauce will not set up! Ask me how I know ;-)
Step Four: If you ARE Making Canned Cranberry Sauce
If you've made a large batch of cranberry sauce for canning, you'll prepare the jars as outlined in my Water Bath Canning Guide.
Once those are ready, ladle the sauce into the clean jars and process in a water bath canner for 15 minutes.
Remove from pot and place on a folded towel on the counter. Allow to cool fully before moving.
Once they are done processing, step back and enjoy your hard work! I tried to get a picture of all 22, but nothing seemed to look as nice I wanted! So, here is just a taste...
Step Four: If you're NOT Canning the Cranberry Sauce
Your cranberry sauce is now ready to chill and serve.
If you are not canning your cranberry sauce, allow the sauce to cool a bit so it doesn't break the container you are using, then pour it into the dish you wish to serve in.
Chill for at least 4 hours, overnight is better. Serve and enjoy!!
Cranberry Sauce with Port Wine and Cinnamon Sticks
This easy cranberry sauce recipe for whole berry cranberry sauce can be made as a small batch, or in bulk for home canned cranberry sauce!
Ingredients
Fresh Batch (2 cups):
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1/4 Cup Water
- 1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
- 2.5 Cups Cranberries washed and sorted
- 1/2 Cup Port Wine
- 2 Cinnamon Sticks
Canning Batch (4-6 pints, 8-12 Cups):
- 4 Cups Sugar
- 1 Cup Water
- 4 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
- 10 Cups Cranberries washed and sorted
- 2 Cups Port Wine
- 8 Cinnamon Sticks
- 4-6 Pint Canning Jars
- 4-6 Lid and Ring Sets
Instructions
- Combine water, sugar, and vinegar in large pot.
- Heat on high, stirring the whole time.
- Once sugar is at a rolling boil, add cranberries.
- Reduce heat to medium, return to boil, boil for 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, add port. Stir well.
To Can:
- Add two cinnamon sticks to the bottom of each jar.
- Follow water bath canning instructions to prepare jars and process sauce for 15 minutes in a water bath canner. Leave 1/2 inch headspace.
If You're NOT Canning:
Allow the sauce to cool a bit so it doesn’t break the container you are using, then pour it into the dish you wish to serve in.
Chill for at least 4 hours, overnight is better. Serve and enjoy!!
Recipe Notes
If you are not canning, add the cinnamon sticks to the bottom of the container in which you will be storing or serving the cranberry sauce.
This is one of my favorite ways to save time on big holiday days, what's yours? Tell me all about it!
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Sue says
Can I substitute orange juice for the vinegar?
Victoria says
Hi Sue! Not for canning, but for making and eating fresh, yes! Enjoy!
Brenda says
What a fantastic Cranberry Sauce recipe! I just tried it this evening and canned 4 jars. It worked out exactly as you described and the Port really did make it extra special. All set now for Thanksgiving!
Thank you for sharing !
Victoria says
Hi Brenda! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I can’t wait until cranberries start showing up in our stores!! 😍🙌
Kim says
Here are dumb questions from a newbie! I think that this would be a lovely addition to the hostess baskets I make at Christmas so I am going to give this a try but I am wondering why we need the red wine vinegar? Do the cinnamon sticks stand vertical in the jar?
Victoria says
Hi Kim! Not a dumb question at all :-)
The vinegar is simply to bring the fish to a safe PH level for canning, making it shelf stable for many years.
If you were just making it to serve right away, the vinegar could be omitted.
BUT, it absolutely does not change the taste, so don’t worry about that whole canning!
And yes, the cinnamon sticks generally go upright unless they are very short. Let me know if you try it!!
Suzanne Teleha says
Newbie here as well. Can I add ground cinnamon instead of the cinnamon sticks?
Victoria says
Hi Suzanne! Welcome to the wonderful world of canning! You can make the switch to ground instead, however, I find that I don’t love the texture as much. But either way, it should be delicious!