Creamy & Tangy Alabama White Barbecue Sauce
Alabama White Barbecue Sauce is a regional specialty that has received national acclaim for good reason! Uniquely sweet yet tangy, this sauce takes just 5 minutes to make and tastes great on everything from juicy grilled chicken and pulled pork to crispy French fries. Let me show you how to make it for yourself at home. One bite and you’ll be serving it with every meal!
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Alabama White Barbecue Sauce
- Ready In: 5 minutes
- Serves: 4
- Main Ingredients: mayonnaise, salt, black pepper, white vinegar, lemon juice, white sugar
- Why You'll Love It: Uniquely sweet yet tangy, serve this homemade recipe for nationally-acclaimed Alabama white barbecue sauce with main meat dishes and sides.
The Sweet & Tangy Sauce You’ll Put on Everything
Today, I’m bringing you a real rarity. In fact, it is pretty much unheard of outside of North Alabama. Even my husband (who is from a town in Georgia only four hours away) had never heard of it. A lot of folks in South Alabama have never heard of it.
I’m talking about Alabama white BBQ sauce. This is truly a regional thing, but also… a regional requirement. You’ll find white BBQ sauce on every menu, table, and piece of meat at every BBQ joint in North Alabama. Locals eat it with everything, from French fries and juicy smash burgers to chicken and tender BBQ ribs. My husband loves to smother his chicken with this stuff, and personally, I like to use so much that my food is always swimming in it!
This homemade white BBQ sauce has a uniquely sweet yet tangy flavor, thanks to the combination of mayonnaise, lemon juice, white vinegar, and sugar. Let me tell you, it truly is the perfect compliment to just about everything.
Reader Rating
“I’m an Alabama girl through and through, and I’ve got news for you. THIS IS FANTASTIC. No need for additional ingredients. It’s as good as any white BBQ sauce I’ve ever had. THANK YOU!!!” – Jenna
Recipe Ingredients
- Mayonnaise
- Black pepper
- Salt
- Lemon juice
- White vinegar (apple cider vinegar can be used as a substitute, or a mix!)
- Sugar (you can also use brown sugar, or a mix of both)
Mix It Up: Your Sauce, Your Rules!
- Horseradish: For a classic twist, add a couple of teaspoons of prepared horseradish.
- Mustard: Add 2 teaspoons of yellow, dijon, spicy brown, or Creole mustard for a tangy kick.
- Seasoning: For an extra pop of flavor, add 1/2 teaspoon of Cajun or Old Bay seasoning.
- Lighter Version: Replace half the mayo with sour cream or Greek yogurt to make a lighter sauce without changing the taste.
- Make it Spicy: For some heat, use hot horseradish, 1/2 teaspoon of hot sauce, and 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper.
How to Make Alabama White Barbecue Sauce
To start, add your mayonnaise to a mason jar or small bowl. Then add the salt and pepper.
Next, add the sugar, vinegar, and lemon juice.
Mix all ingredients together with a whisk. Or if you’re using a mason jar with a lid, you can just give it a really good shake!
That’s all there is to it – you have just made Alabama white barbecue sauce!
Before you go wow your friends, get a French fry or a piece of chicken and give it a good dunking so you can be the first to taste it. YUM!
I could just live on this y’all, honest!
Storage
Pop the sauce in a mason jar or an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 4 days. But we all know it’s not gonna last that long! Luckily, it only takes 5 minutes to whip up another batch (or you can always simply double the recipe).
Alabama White Barbecue Sauce FAQs
Alabama white BBQ sauce is creamy and tangy with a good peppery kick. I make mine with a mayonnaise-and-vinegar base, so it starts off rich and cool. Then you get this sharp, zesty punch from the lemon juice and black pepper that just keeps you coming back for more. It’s truly one-of-a-kind!
Alabama white BBQ sauce originated in Decatur, Alabama. We have Robert “Big Bob” Gibson, founder of Big Bob Gibson’s Bar-B-Q, to thank for creating this unique sauce way back in 1925!
Alabama white sauce tastes fantastic with any grilled or barbecued meat, like this North Alabama-style pulled chicken, pan-seared pork chops, roasted beef brisket, crockpot beef ribs, and air fryer chicken wings. You can baste it on the meat two or three times towards the end of cooking, or simply pour it over the top when serving.
It also tastes great as a dipping sauce with fries and veggies, like my baked zucchini fries, parmesan oven fries, and roasted sweet potato wedges. Another option is to use it as a salad dressing. It tastes absolutely amazing with potato salad, coleslaw, and roasted vegetables!
From my kitchen to yours, I hope you enjoyed this recipe. Let me know by leaving a comment and a star rating!
Ingredients
- 2 cups mayonnaise
- 1 ½ tablespoons salt
- 2 tablespoons black pepper
- 6 tablespoons white vinegar
- 6 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 tablespoons white sugar
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients together and stir well.2 cups mayonnaise, 1 ½ tablespoons salt, 2 tablespoons black pepper, 6 tablespoons white vinegar, 6 tablespoons lemon juice, 4 tablespoons white sugar
Notes
- If you don’t have white vinegar, apple cider vinegar can be used as a substitute, or a mix of them together.
- You can also swap white sugar for brown sugar, or use a combination of the two!
Nutrition
Once again I have the same day to day struggle(whats for dinner).This looks like it will do us just fine.
Thanks for always helping me solve my (Whats for dinner?)
Mamie
~GRINS~ And thank YOU for always being so incredibly sweet to me and making me feel so good!
Gratefully,
Christy
Chicken with white BBQ sauce was always my favorite dinner at the sorority house at U of AL. I have hunted for the recipe online to make my own down here in FL. Can’t wait to try it out!
Isn’t the Bama campus just gorgeous? I’m so glad I could help bring a bit of it back! hope you enjoy it!
Gratefully,
Christy
This is soooooooooooo Awesome! i knew about how to make but wasn’t really sure! so glad i found this! I moved to Illinois from Alabama an I SO TOTALLY VERY MUCH miss the down home BBQ an the Sauces tooo! You ask for White Sauce here an they look at ya crazy an offer mayo or ranch dressing! LOL,. Ummm NO People!
an thank you sooooooo very much we LOVE you recipes!
oh thank YOU!!!!
lol!
Yeah, I’ve heard people say they think its like ranch dressing on more than one occasion and that always throws me!
I have lived in Michigan all of my life, but my Dad grew up in Falkville, Alabama and I can remember him making “white sauce” for his bbq chicken. We all loved it. I am going to try this recipe. It has been a long time since I had it.
Thanks!
Aww, bless your sweet daddy! I hope you like this!
Jeff,
MY dad, Bob Phillips, grew up in Falkville, as well, graduated from Falkville High School in the early 1950s, I think…anyway before he went in the Navy and was in the Korean war. My mom grew up in Hartselle. Wonder whether your dad was in the same generation as mine, and if they knew one another. It’s not a huge place!
My great-grandparents were James and Audrey Liles; he was a mail carrier; both are buried there.
Dad’s in TN now; I’m living in Northern Va. after 30+ years in North Carolina (NE NC, then Chapel Hill, Raleigh and Cary, NC), but I’m missing the SOuth!
I am wondering if anyone has the recipe for a White marinade? When I lived in the South I had this great chicken off the grill. All I remember is it has 3 equal parts of white ingredients. Don’t know if it was vinegar, sugar, oil, salt but it was three things in equal parts. I do know there wasn’t any mayonnaise in it. It was the best chicken I have ever had. If anyone has the recipe I would love to know it! Anytime I search for white barbecue I get the one with mayo in it. I do know this one did not have mayo. Thanks!
Taryn,
Maybe this is what you are looking for:
WHITE MARINADE
Yield: Makes 1 3/4 cups sauce for 4 barbecued chicken quarters
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon Creole mustard
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon coarsely ground pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons prepared horseradish
1 (3-pound) whole chicken, cut into quarters
Preparation
Whisk together first 8 ingredients until blended. Reserve 1/2 cup sauce to serve with chicken.
Place chicken in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag, and add remaining sauce. Seal and turn to coat chicken; chill 4 hours. Remove chicken, and discard marinade.
Grill chicken according to directions below. Serve cooked chicken with reserved 1/2 cup sauce.
My sister lives in Madison AL and introduced me to the white BBQ sauce. We grew up in Madison TN, suburb of Nashville, and never heard of such. Only 2 hours away. But Honey, it is great! I can’t believe it isn’t at all the BBQ joints. I’m glad to have a recipe to make my own.
Hey, I grew up in Gardendale Alabama, (now live in Baltimore)…definitely North ‘bama, and I had never heard of white sauce until I was with my family at our place in Cullman on Smith Lake. There was this little place called the Smokehouse, that makes the most kickin’ smoked ribs, chicken and put in your order little cartons of white sauce. Had never seen it or heard of it, but wow…it was fantastic. It compliments the meat, but never overwhelms it like a sweet sauce can. Count me a fan.