Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Orange and Ginger
Whole cranberries simmered down with orange zest and fresh ginger until they burst — the one holiday side that takes fifteen minutes and improves for sitting.
- Serves
- 8
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Written
Method
-
Combine the cranberries, sugar, orange juice, orange zest, ginger, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat.
-
Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar.
-
Cook until most of the berries have burst and the liquid has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, 12 to 15 minutes.
-
Remove from heat and cool to room temperature — it thickens further as it sits.
-
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
Don’t cook it past the point where the berries burst on their own — a hard boil turns the sauce gluey instead of loose and jammy. The sauce is at its best made a day or two ahead; the ginger mellows and the whole thing sets up into slices instead of a puddle.
Swap the orange juice for apple cider if you want it less sharp, and leave the ginger out entirely for the plain version — everything else about the ratio holds.