Slow Cooker Homemade Cranberry Sauce

This slow cooker homemade cranberry sauce only has 5 ingredients but will impress any crowd. Holiday season is here and cranberry sauce is a staple at most holiday dinners. Making fresh cranberry sauce is easy when you use your crockpot! Starring fresh cranberries and bosc pears, this simple cranberry pear ginger sauce recipe is the perfect blend of sweet and tart. Make this holiday side dish with minimal effort due to the wonders of the slow cooker or Instant Pot! 

How do you like your cranberry sauce? Sweet or tart? Smooth or chunky? There are tons of different homemade cranberry sauces out there; this recipe is very dear to my heart – it’s my Mother’s recipe. My Mom makes her version of this cranberry sauce on the stove-top. All I did was clean her recipe up a bit (her uses sugar, mine maple syrup) and converted it to the slow cooker. Thanks Mom!

Ingredients For Slow Cooker Homemade Cranberry Sauce

• Cranberries
• Bosc Pears
• Fresh Ginger
• Maple Syrup or Honey
• Water

How To Make Homemade Cranberry Sauce In The Crockpot 

Rinse & pick over cranberries, discarding any blemished berries.

Slow Cooker

1. Add all the ingredients to the slow cooker. Stir to mix well.
2. Cook HIGH 2-3 hours or LOW 4-6. 
3. Remove the piece of ginger before serving.

Instant Pot

1. Add all the ingredients to the pressure cooker. Stir to mix well.
2. Close lid and seal valve. Set high pressure for 3 minutes. When cook time is complete, natural release 10 minutes then quick release remaining pressure. 
3. Remove the piece of ginger before serving.

Holiday Side Dishes 

• Sweet Potato Casserole

• Curry Pumpkin Bisque

• Mac & Cheese

• Healthy Green Bean Casserole with Cauliflower Sauce

• Cranberry BBQ Cocktail Sausages

FAQs

Should you use fresh or frozen cranberries?

Use fresh or frozen cranberries in this recipe, it does not matter. I always use fresh because I find them to be cheaper this time of year but frozen works perfectly well. If you are using frozen whole cranberries, no need to thaw them first you can add them directly to the slow cooker or Instant Pot frozen. Just do not use canned, jellied cranberries.

Can you make this ahead of time?

Yes! Prepare it a day or two in advance and store in the refrigerator.

What type of pears should you use?

I understand if you are skeptical about adding pears and ginger to your homemade holiday cranberry sauce. I was too but trust me, it works. Bosc pears have brown skin and a spicy-sweet flavor. They’re also firm with makes them the pear of choice when it comes to cooking. Their firmness allows them to hold their shape better during the cook time compared to other pears. If you’re going to substitute another pear I would recommend using Anjou pears.

Can I substitute the maple syrup?

My Mother’s original recipe along with most cranberry recipes I have seen online include white sugar. In place of granulated white sugar, I almost always use a all-natural sweetener like maple syrup or honey. You can use either in this recipe; having made it both ways, I honestly believe it all depends on your personal preference. 

What consistency will this homemade cranberry sauce be?

This homemade cranberry sauce should come out chunky. For smooth cranberry sauce, let it cool and then blend it down with blender, food processor, immersion blender, or even a potato masher. If you find that your cranberry sauce is too thick, you can thin it down with a bit of water.

How do you serve this?

I prefer to serve my cranberry sauce at room temperature however you can also serve this chilled or warm. Keep in mind that the sauce will thicken as it cools.

What can you do with leftover cranberry sauce?

Do you always have leftover cranberry sauce after the holidays? I do. I hate wasting food here are some things you can do to re-use your leftover sauce. 

1. Use it as a topping – this cranberry sauce is great on top of pancakes, waffles, crepes, or ice cream.
2. Add it to your smoothies – since all the ingredients in this cranberry sauce are all natural, a couple of tablespoons of this cranberry sauce to your morning smoothie will quickly provide a sweet touch.
3. Pair it with meat – cranberries pair well with poultry, red meat, and seafood. Mix some leftover cranberry sauce with bbq or make a quick marinade using some.

How do you store leftovers?

Store leftover homemade cranberry sauce in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. 

What size slow cooker did you use?

I used a 3.5 quart slow cooker.

Turkey Recipes 

• Turkey Breast

• Turkey Tenderloin

• Whole Turkey

• Air Fryer Turkey Breast Tenderloin

• Turkey Legs

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