An easy cranberry sauce recipe made with fresh or frozen cranberries, port, and clementines.
The perfect festive accompaniment to your Christmas or Thanksgiving turkey!
Homemade is always best when it comes to cranberry sauce, and the best thing about this recipe is that it only takes 15 minutes to make!
The port gives the sauce a luxurious and rich flavour, making it perfect for a special Christmas lunch!
👩🍳 Don't forget to check out my easy bread sauce recipe too!
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✔️ Why you'll love this recipe!
Here's why this is the best cranberry sauce recipe for Christmas!
- Quick and easy to make.
- Only 4 ingredients.
- Use fresh or frozen cranberries.
- Vary the tartness according to personal taste.
- Delicious with Christmas turkey.
- Freezer-friendly.
🛒 Ingredients
Ingredients you will need to make this cranberry sauce recipe;
- Cranberries - fresh or frozen. There is no need to defrost frozen cranberries first.
- Port - use a good quality port for the best flavour.
- Clementines - juice and zest. The clementines can be substituted with 1 large orange.
- Sugar - white caster sugar is best but you can use light muscavado sugar instead.
- Water
🔪 How to make cranberry sauce
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
Step 1: Thoroughly rinse your cranberries if using fresh ones.
Step 2: Place the cranberries, port, water, clementine zest and juice, and sugar into a pan and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the sauce is glossy and syrupy.
Step 3: Give the sauce a taste, and if you prefer a sweeter taste add more caster sugar accordingly (1-2 tablespoons should be enough).
Step 4: Allow to cool (the sauce will thicken on cooling so don't worry if it looks a bit thin whilst it's still hot), and then place in an airtight container and store in the fridge until needed.
💭 Top tips
- Rinse fresh cranberries well to remove any debris or grit. The easiest way to do this is to place them in a colander and rinse under fresh running water.
- If you are using frozen cranberries there is no need to defrost them first.
- Remember the sauce will thicken upon cooling so don't worry if it seems a bit thin, to begin with.
🍴 Serving suggestions
Serve with Christmas turkey, ham, or beef, roast potatoes, pan-fried brussels sprouts, cauliflower cheese, honey roast parsnips and carrots, sausage meat stuffing, and bread sauce!
It's also great with pork or chicken, in a bacon, brie, and cranberry toastie, or why not serve it as a relish with my homemade puff pastry sausage rolls?
📖 Variations
- For extra flavour add a cinnamon stick to the pan during cooking.
- Add 4 finely chopped juniper berries for a richer tasting cranberry sauce.
- Swap the clementines for one large orange.
- Make a double batch if you're serving a crowd.
- I like my cranberry sauce on the tarter side, but if you prefer a sweeter tasting sauce add 2 more tablespoons of sugar at the beginning of cooking.
🥡 Storage
- To Store. Place the cooled sauce into an airtight container and store it in your fridge for up to 7 days.
- To Freeze. Place the cooled sauce into a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature for 12 hours before serving.
❓ FAQs
Traditionally cranberry sauce is served at room temperature. Take your cranberry sauce out of the fridge at least an hour before serving.
Yes, homemade cranberry sauce will thicken upon cooling.
😋 More Christmas recipes to try!
Recipe
Easy Cranberry Sauce with Port
Ingredients
- 300 g Cranberries fresh or frozen
- 2 Clementines juice of 2, zest of 1
- 50 ml Port
- 50 ml Water
- 5 tablespoon Caster Sugar plus extra 2 tablespoon if you prefer your sauce sweeter
Instructions
- Thoroughly rinse your cranberries if using fresh ones. There is no need to defrost frozen ones.
- Place the cranberries, port, water, clementine zest and juice, and sugar into a pan and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the sauce is glossy and syrupy.
- Give the sauce a taste, and if you prefer a sweeter taste add more caster sugar accordingly (1-2 tablespoons should be enough). Stir it in thoroughly while the sauce is still hot.
- Allow to cool (the sauce will thicken on cooling so don't worry if it looks a bit thin whilst it's still hot), and then place in an airtight container and store in the fridge until needed.
Notes
- Rinse fresh cranberries well to remove any debris or grit. The easiest way to do this is to place them in a colander and rinse under fresh running water.
- If you are using frozen cranberries there is no need to defrost them first.
- Remember the sauce will thicken up on cooling so don't worry if it seems a bit thin to begin with.
- For extra flavour add a cinnamon stick to the pan during cooking.
- Add 4 finely chopped juniper berries for a richer tasting cranberry sauce.
- Swap the clementines for one large orange.
- Make a double batch if you're serving a crowd.
- I like my cranberry sauce on the tarter side, but if you prefer a sweeter tasting sauce add 2 more tablespoons of sugar at the beginning of cooking.
- To Store. Place the cooled cranberry sauce into an airtight container and store it in your fridge for up to 7 days.
- To Freeze. Place the cooled sauce into a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature for 12 hours before serving.
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Biana
What a great idea to add even more flavor to cranberry sauce! Perfect for the holidays.
Gina
Love the idea of adding port! I can't quite get into port by itself as a drink but I do love it in sauces and such. Will be giving this a go this year!
Amanda Wren-Grimwood
Homemade cranberry sauce is so much better and I love the addition of clementines in this one.
Toni
I love how easy this is!! Can't wait to make it for the holidays!!
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
Such a delicious cranberry sauce! I am definitely going to be making some for Christmas (if it lasts until then, I might need to make more!)