Add a little spice to your life with this easy, Whole30-friendly BBQ Sauce with Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges. The wedges are perfectly dunk-able and delicious as a side dish to just about anything. And the homemade BBQ Sauce is naturally sweetened and makes enough to share (or stash a little in your freezer for later).
This post was created in collaboration with our friends at the FeedFeed and Vitamix.
BBQ Sauce: The darling of comfort food condiments
If you asked me to name THE most popular condiment in America I’d say it was BBQ sauce. I mean, why wouldn’t it be BBQ sauce? Sweet, smoky, umami, good on everything.
Unfortunately though, I’d be wrong because according to this article, sriracha is currently the most popular condiment in the U.S., followed by ketchup and mustard. Hmmmm, something tells me they interviewed the wrong people for that story because BBQ sauce rules – especially in the Whole30 world where it’s hard to find one with squeaky clean ingredients that actually tastes amazing and is easy on the budget.
Until now, that is.
Make it spicy or make it smoky… just make it.
Whether you like your BBQ spicy or not-so-spicy, I’ve got you covered with this easy recipe. You can also adjust the amount of smokiness with a few tweaks so it’s easy to please everyone.
Speaking of everyone, Labor Day is just around the corner here in the U.S. and what better way to celebrate than with a homemade BBQ sauce for all your dipping, dunking and slathering needs?
So gather up a crowd big or small next week and let’s make some memories over great food. Because life is short. And sharing a meal with those you love is truly living your best life.
And when summer is done and gone, come back to this recipe for BBQ sauce with roasted sweet potato wedges on a cold, dark day when you want some serious (but seriously healthy) comfort food. Or do like I do and keep a jar of this sauce in the fridge at all times for using on everything. Better yet, freeze a small jar so you’ve always got some in the wings and ready to go.
Budget-friendly homemade + Whole30-compliant BBQ sauce is just minutes away! #realfood Share on X
Make it easy
Deliciousness aside, what makes this recipe the apple of my barbecue-loving eye is the fact that you can make a pint in under 10 minutes with a high-powered blender like the new Vitamix Ascent A3500 that I’ve been kicking the tires on for the past few weeks. I was already a Vitamix super fan having owned a 5200 series for nearly 10 years, then a Venturist series (which is a workhorse when it comes to meal prepping and making gloriously smooth non-dairy cream sauces like this one), but this Ascent A3500 in brushed stainless has run away with my heart.
Not only is it gorgeous (you should see Stacie’s – that copper color made me momentarily consider a kitchen remodel!) it has five one-touch program settings for smoothies, hot soups, dips & spreads, frozen desserts, and self-cleaning so you can set it and walk away knowing you’ll have consistent results every time.
I love the new A3500’s super responsive touchscreen that allows me to select just the right program or manually set the timer and speed for the perfect blend. And because my husband and kids are notorious for leaving the speed dial on 10 (or the ‘high’ switch flipped on the old 5200), I really appreciate the fact that this new one automatically resets itself to ‘1.’ If you’ve ever gone from zero to ten with a Vitamix (with or without the lid), you can truly appreciate this.
And if you want even more, you can unlock the Ascent Series A3500‘s full potential with 17 programs and 500+ recipes with the Perfect Blend iOS + Android app and the new Perfect Blend Smart Scale.
About them Sweet Potato Wedges
I’m just going to put this out there, these are not fries. They’re big, thick, soul-satisfying wedges of sweet potato tossed with garlic and chili powder to give them just a bit of spice. And then they’re sprinkled with a generous amount of coarse salt.
I’d love to say that these are the crispiest sweet potato wedges you’ll ever make but the truth is, without adding a starchy coating of some type or a batter, then frying them, they’re just not going to be super crispy. But what they will be is fiercely delicious, hearty and perfect for serving alongside everything and dunking in this easy barbecue sauce.
Like a big soft pretzel, it’s the salt that makes these wedges all that so don’t skip it. It’s pretty much non-negotiable. Just like sharing a meal with friends. #itsgoodforyoursoul
BBQ Sauce with Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges
Ingredients
For the BBQ Sauce:
- 6 ounces no-salt-added tomato paste
- ¼ cup pitted dates* (I used deglet dates so that was about 7 dates)
- 1 Tbsp. spicy brown mustard (may substitute yellow mustard)
- ½ tsp. onion powder
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. smoked paprika (use Hot Smoked Paprika for more heat)
- 3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional, adds heat)
- 1 cup water or bone broth (+ 2–3 Tbsp. more to achieve desired consistency)
- ½ – 1 tsp. salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp. black pepper, or to taste
- ½ tsp. liquid smoke* (optional)
For the Sweet Potato Wedges:
- 3 medium sweet potatoes, washed and patted dry
- 1 Tbsp. melted coconut oil or avocado oil
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ½ tsp. chili powder
- Coarse salt and chopped parsley for sprinkling
* If your dates are not super soft, place them in a bowl and cover them with a bit of hot water to soften while you cut the sweet potatoes.
**For Whole30, be sure to choose a liquid smoke that does not contain molasses or other non-compliant ingredients (I use this one).
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400℉. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- While the oven preheats, slice sweet potatoes (with skins intact) into wedges about ½-inch thick. Place sweet potato wedges on baking sheet.
- In a small bowl, combine oil, garlic powder, and chili powder. Drizzle over sweet potatoes and toss well to coat.
- Arrange sweet potatoes in a single layer on the baking sheet and bake for 25-35 minutes, flipping only when the undersides have begun to brown and crisp up a bit. Baking time may vary based on the thickness of your potatoes, the oven temp (not all ovens are true to temp so an oven thermometer is always a good idea) and the amount of moisture in the sweet potatoes.
- While sweet potatoes are baking, make the BBQ sauce.
- Place all BBQ sauce ingredients in the blender. Turn blender to ‘On,’ gradually increase the speed from 1 to 8 (medium-high) and blend for 1 minute. Stop, scrape down the sides of the blender container and process for 20 more seconds, if needed.
- Taste sauce and add additional salt to taste.
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Notes
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Dietary
If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only have one condiment, what would it be? Share in the comments below!
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I notice you like to use sweet potatoes in almost all of your recipes. Are sweet potatoes better for you are is it just a flavor preference?
Hi Ashley,
We use sweet potatoes both for their taste and their nutrition profile. They’re higher in fiber than white potatoes and also contain generous amounts of beta-carotene (a vitamin A precursor).
Do you have any tips for getting sweet potato wedges to come out perfectly as seen in your pictures? Every recipe I’ve followed as well as every time I’ve winged it – they came out either soft and floppy or burnt. There’s never been a glorious middle. Is it the amount of oil? Is it the pan? Is it the oven temp?
Hi Katie,
I believe it may be a few things – some of which you can’t necessarily control, like how much moisture is in your sweet potato. It could also be that you’re slicing the potatoes too thick or too thin. These were about 1/2-inch thick.
It may also be your oven. MANY ovens are not the temperature inside that the dial or display say they are. I recommend picking up a $7 oven thermometer to see how your oven compares to the temperature you set it for. Mine runs about 15 degrees cool – so I always need to increase the temp a bit (or sweet talk my hubby into researching how to calibrate the temperature sensors). And don’t forget to rotate your pan and flip the wedges halfway through baking – do this with the pan OUT of the oven, not with the oven door open or you’ll lose too much heat.
Also, always make just one pan at a time and never crowd the pan – this is a recipe for sogginess as the sweet potatoes give off a considerable amount of steam when baked. I hope that helps!
Sorry–I may feel dumb for asking this, but what is “6 ounces added tomato paste”?
Hi Jan,
Sorry about that, it should read “6 ounces no-salt-added tomato paste”. I’ve corrected the recipe accordingly.
I made your your bar b que sauce minus one ingredient, liquid smoke. It is wonderful. Great flavor and next time I will add the liquid smoke and it will be even more amazing. Thank you for all your recipes and your heart to share.
You are soooooo welcome!
I made your bar b que sauce without the liquid smoke because I didn’t have any at the time, but it was so delicious. Next time I will add the liquid smoke and I can only anticipate that it will be greater yet. Thank you for creating this recipe.
Thank you! I’m so glad you loved this sauce.