I am pretty sure a good plum sauce has the ability to take any meal to the next level. I know – plum sauce isn’t anyone’s first choice of condiment and I am here today to perhaps convince you that it should be. Why does ketchup get all the cred? Healthy homemade plum sauce is so easy to make, it’s incredibly delicious and thanks to the natural sweetness of ripe plums, you don’t need to add any sweetener to it.
Given that this is harvest season, at least here in Canada, everyone is hyped up about their tomato sauce making and even ketchup making. And when it comes to stone fruits, peaches get all the hype with all the peach pies and jams. But what about plums? This antioxidant powerhouse never gets its day to shine. Until today!
Way, waaaaaaay back in the day when I would venture into a fast food joint as a rare indulgence (usually while travelling far away overseas), I would always get the chicken nuggets with plum sauce. The plum sauce made it feel like a special treat. Ever since creating my grain-free chicken nugget recipe, whenever we ate them, we always talked about how good it would be to have a plum sauce to go with them.
This recipe has been a long time coming but I wanted to wait until the fruit was in season.
About The Sweetness
The first thing I noticed as I began researching traditional plum sauce recipes was the insane amounts of sugar being used. I decided I would give this one a go without any added sweetener and I found that by the time it was simmered and reduced and puréed, it absolutely wasn’t needed. If you’re just transitioning away from processed foods, you might want to add a little honey or maple syrup, but I would challenge you to give it a try with just the naturally occurring fruit sugars doing the work.
About the Spice
This sauce does have a bit of a bite which I love. It comes from the ginger and the chilli flakes. If you’re sensitive to spice, you may want to reduce the amounts of each or omit the chilli altogether.
Since making this, we’ve enjoyed it with my homemade chicken nuggets, on burgers and turkey lettuce cups.
Print
Healthy Homemade Plum Sauce
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 3 cups 1x
Description
A healthy plum sauce without added sugar.
Ingredients
- 6 medium plums (about 3 cups coarsely chopped)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup red onion finely chopped
- 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 2 Tbsp tamari
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- Sweetener of choice as needed (optional)
Instructions
- Slice plums in half and discard pits. Cut each half into about 6 chunks.
- Add plums, garlic, onion, ginger, tamari and chili flakes to a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally.
- Bring to a low simmer and continue to stir every 8 minutes or so to keep from burning the bottom. Continue for 30 minutes or until plums have broken down and sauce begins to thicken.
- Using an immersion blender, or allow to cool and place in your blender or food processor, mix until smooth.
- If using sweetener, add a little at a time and continue blending until you reach desired sweetness.
- Pour into jars and keep in the fridge for up to 6 days, or freezer for future use.
Notes
Recipe will thicken slightly as it cools.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Condiment
25 responses to “Healthy Homemade Plum Sauce Recipe”
Love this recipe, I make plum sauce almost the same way
★★★★★
Oh my goodness this looks so delicious. Can’t wait to make it and use it to add flavour to various vegetables. I’m eating a lot of them every day and this will be such a nice new way to enhance the taste.
Can’t wait to try this…
Thx
Oh my goodness! I just made plum sauce the other day! Although mine only had lots and lots of fresh plums from my dad’s garden with a little maple syrup and sea salt. I will have to try your version as it also sounds fantastic! And, you’re right a tasty plum sauce could beat out any old ketchup for sure!
Oh my goodness! This is amazing! I made it today and had it with dinner. I can’t have tomatoes, but even if I could, this is so much better. Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Are the plums peeled before cooking or removed before blending?
No need to peel them. They’ll mostly break down as they cook and then will get pureed during blending.
Can’t wait to try this with Italian plums from my tree. Can you preserve this via a water bath for longer shelf life?
Hi Kathleen! I don’t have canning expertise so I haven’t tested this recipe in that way. You can certainly freeze this.
There shouldn’t be an issue with canning, as long as you follow the proper steps. I can just about everything. Making this tomorrow and will be canning any unused sauce.
How long will this keep and what’s the best way to preserve it?
It will keep about 6 days in the fridge, or you can store it in the freezer.
Love this recipe! Thanks for sharing. The only thing I noticed I needed to add at the end was some acidity. I battled between whether to use lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and went with ACV. all in all. Super pleased :)
Rather than vinegar, consider some jus vert.
How much ACV did you use?
★★★★★
I didn’t add any ACV to this recipe, but if you want to add some start off with a small amount such as a teaspoon.
Thank you got sharing your ideas with all of us grateful recipients. Can we substitute something for the soy sauce/tamari. We want to eat as healthy and unprocessed as We Can. Thank you again
Hi Marian! You could try coconut aminos for a soy-free, similar flavour to tamari. Or you can use sea salt to taste.
Looking for a recipe for 15-20 lbs of plums?
I made this and it’s delicious except the spice. I love spicy food and slather hot sauce on everything but 1 tsp chili flakes was waaay too spicy for this sauce in my opinion. The plums I used were large. After it cooled and was super spicy, I made a second batch and blended the two together. It is okay but still quite spicy for plum sauce. I guess chili flakes can vary in heat. (I get crushed chilies from Costco, nothing unusual.) Next time I make this I would use maybe 1/4 tsp. Everything else was perfect. So much healthier than the sugary junk from the grocery store.
★★★★
It’s possible the chili flakes you used were way spicier than mine! Of course, please adjust the spice level for next time.
I have not made this yet, as I have a tree full of plums that I’d like to use to can some plum sauce.
I really get frustrated with recipes don’t use measuring cups for fruit. What is your idea of a “medium” plum compared to “large” for example? If you ask to pit the plums and cut in half, how many cups of plums should you end up with? Even if you stated “8 cups of prepared fruit (approximately 18 medium size plums)” would be really helpful.
Thank you for your feedback! It would be 3 cups coarsely chopped.
I echo Kelly Francis’ question. Fruit by cups (or weight) would be so much more useful. Six of my plums, pre-pitted, equal one cup and weigh 7 oz. Even with the other ingredients, and then cooked down, there’s no way this will result in 3 cups of finished sauce. (Maybe Canadian plums are much bigger? Grins.) I’m a beginning cook and not too confident but I may just wing it, following the above ingredients and procedure. The plums are picked. The fruit flies are gathering. Today’s the day! Thank you for the inspiration.
Hi Greta, it would be 3 cups of coarsely chopped plums.