A recipe for quick and easy vegan cranberry sauce flavoured with orange juice and balsamic vinegar made with frozen cranberries.

Easy Vegan Cranberry Sauce with Orange Juice (frozen cranberries)

Name: Easy Vegan Cranberry Sauce with Orange Juice
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Cuisine: vegan
Ingredients: 400g (14 oz) frozen cranberries; zest from 4 clementines (or 2 large oranges); 100g (7 tablespoons) clementine juice (or orange juice); 100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar; 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar; 1 pinch salt

Like everyone else I'm thinking about Christmas and what I will make for Christmas dinner this year.

I've been experimenting with a new Christmas main course (I'll share it this week) and I decided it needed to be served with cranberry sauce, so it was time to experiment with cranberry sauce too.

I'm blown away with just how delicious this easy vegan cranberry sauce is.

I've never been a big fan of cranberry sauce, but boy homemade cranberry sauce tastes completely different.

So, so delicious and very quick to make with frozen cranberries.

I hope you try it.

Frozen or fresh cranberries?

You can use either fresh or frozen cranberries when making cranberry sauce, but I prefer frozen cranberries.

Frozen cranberries retain more nutrients as they are frozen so quickly after picking, whereas fresh cranberries spend a lot of time travelling and aren't as fresh or nutrient-packed.

I also like the way frozen cranberries soften as they cook, leaving you with an unctuously soft cranberry sauce.

Frozen fruit is often cheaper too, although it really can depend on the supermarket you shop in.

Flavouring cranberry sauce with orange juice

Adding orange juice and zest when making cranberry sauce gives you an extra fruity sauce.

The orange juice also helps balance the bitterness of the cranberries and reduces the amount of sugar you have to add to sweeten your cranberry relish.

I used the zest and juice of 4 clementines, but you could use any small orange like easy peelers, mandarins or tangerines.

Of course, you could use large oranges too.

Can you use shop-bought orange juice?

A lot of flavour comes from the orange zest in this recipe, but you could use shop-bought orange juice if that is all you have.

It will still be very tasty.

I'm a big fan of tweaking recipes to use what you have, within reason of course.

Using like-for-like or something similar.

What you need to make easy vegan cranberry sauce

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this cranberry orange sauce.

Cranberries - frozen
Orange juice & zest - I used clementines for a seasonal twist but you can use any type of freshly squeezed orange juice or shop-bought orange juice
Sugar
Balsamic vinegar
Salt - just a pinch

Variations

Here are a few ideas for tweaks to this simple Christmas cranberry sauce.

Fresh cranberries - you can use them, but they hold their shape more, so for a soft cranberry sauce, you may need to mash them to break them down into a softer mixture
Mango juice - mango juice would make a good substitute for orange juice
Port - you can add a splosh of port to your cranberry sauce
Chilli - give it a kick and add some chilli flakes or fresh chilli

Shallot pastry crown served with cranberry sauce

How to serve homemade cranberry sauce

Here are some serving suggestions.

Spread it on top - spread it on lentil loaf or homemade vegan haggis, before slicing to serve
Christmas plait - serve with this butternut squash, red pepper & potato plait
Cheese board - serve it on a cheese board with vegan cheese, including soft cheese, olives, grapes and oatcakes
Retro cheese log - serve it with this delicious savoury cheese log with crackers
Burgers - serve on a spicy bean burgers in a bun with salad
Sandwiches - spread on a cheese sandwich
Wraps - spread on a wrap and fill with salad leaves, cucumber, flalafel and hummus.
Dip - swirl some cranberry sauce through greek yoghurt to make a tasty dip

How long will fresh cranberry sauce keep?

This quick cranberry preserve can be stored in an airtight jar or tub in the fridge for 3-4 days.

So if you're making it for a family dinner or for Christmas dinner, you can make it ahead.

Can you freeze homemade cranberry sauce?

Homemade cranberry sauce freezes really well and can be kept in the freezer for 2-3 months.

To defrost, take it out of the freezer and leave in the fridge overnight.

More vegan Christmas recipes

Here are few more easy vegan Christmas recipes for you to try.

Air fryer roast potatoes - no parboiling and a hint of garlic for flavour
Mini tomato pastry bites - good as an appetiser or as a starter with salad
Mushroom & chestnut sausage rolls - good for a light lunch on Christmas Day or Boxing Day
Slow cooker carrot & coriander soup - makes a great starter
Mushroom & chestnut pate - serve with oatcakes
Butternut squash, red pepper & potato plait - serve as a main course with cranberry sauce, roast potatoes and veg
Mushroom, lentil & nut wellington - serve with roast potatoes, roast parsnips, carrots and mushroom gravy
Vegan haggis - serve with mashed potatoes, neeps and creamy whisky sauce
Vegan 'turkey' roast - slices well to serve with gravy and all the trimmings.

For more vegan Christmas ideas, tips and recipes, check out my Vegan Christmas page.

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Christmas cranberry and clementine sauce.

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How to make Vegan Cranberry Sauce

Scroll down for step-by-step photos followed by a full printable recipe.
If you don't have a printer, hit print then save as a PDF.

Step 1

Finely grate the zest and juice clementines or large oranges (see the recipe card below for full ingredients list).
Add the balsamic vinegar to the orange juice.
Now add the cranberries to a pan.

Step 2

Add orange juice & zest, sugar and salt to the cranberries.
Once the sugar has melted, simmer and cook until thickened.
Serve when cooled.
Enjoy!

cranberry sauce, Christmas cranberry sauce, vegan cranberry sauce, vegan Christmas recipes

dinner

vegan

Yield: 4-6

Author: Jacqueline Meldrum