Maple Bourbon Glaze

8 reviews

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This Maple Bourbon Glaze is a sweet and sticky glaze that is perfect on ribs, chicken, and so much more. It’s a delicious and beautiful way to finish up any of your BBQ.

Maple bourbon glaze in a glass jar with spoon.

Maple Bourbon Glaze

Maple bourbon glaze is a great glaze that is thinner than a traditional BBQ sauce and is nice and sweet. It’s perfect to use as a finishing sauce, but I can attest from personal experience that this glaze is so good, you can use it as a dipping sauce too!

This glaze is totally awesome when it’s paired with smoked meat. Brush it on toward the end of the smoke and you’ll end up with a super shiny, sticky, finger-licking experience. It’ll taste especially awesome on ribs and chicken, but one great way to use it would be drizzling it on a juicy burger or basting on grilled salmon. My recipe for Maple Bourbon Smoked Ribs uses this exact glaze, and lemme tell ya, those were some of the best ribs I’ve had in a long time.

Overhead view of sliced smoked ribs, topped with maple bourbon glaze.

Ingredients for Maple Bourbon Glaze

This glaze is a breeze to make, and you only need 6 ingredients and a saucepan to cook it up! Here’s what you’ll need to make this glaze:

  • Maple syrup
  • Bourbon
  • Ketchup
  • Brown sugar
  • Hey Grill Hey Signature Sweet Rub
  • Apple cider vinegar

How to Make Maple Bourbon Glaze

This glaze is ridiculously easy to make, and it will be ready in 40 minutes or less. I like to prep this glaze ahead of time so I have it ready to go whenever I’ll need it.

  1. Assemble the ingredients. Grab all your ingredients for the glaze, and pull out a medium-sized saucepan.
  2. Combine and boil. Combine all the ingredients in the saucepan over medium heat. Bring the glaze to a boil.
  3. Simmer until syrupy. Simmer the glaze for 15-20 minutes until the glaze reaches a nice syrupy consistency. You don’t want this to be too thick, but it should have a little stick.
  4. Glaze, save, and enjoy! This glaze can be used immediately, or it can be stored in a glass jar or container for up to two weeks in the refrigerator.

Overhead view of maple bourbon glaze in a glass jar with silver spoon.

More Maple Recipes

Maple and BBQ make a fantastic combination. I love adding maple syrup to my glazes and ingredients when grilling and smoking up some good BBQ. Check out these other delicious recipes that use maple syrup to bring a rich, sweet flavor to the mix.

Smoked Salmon with Maple Orange Glaze
Bacon Wrapped Maple Glazed Carrots
Maple Bacon Shortbread Cookies

Maple Bourbon Glaze Recipe

Follow the recipe, and I’ll teach you the simple steps to making your own maple bourbon glaze at home. Hey Grill Hey is dedicated to help you make better BBQ, feed the people you love, and become a backyard BBQ hero. You can find more of my smoking and grilling recipes and videos on YouTubeInstagram, or our Facebook Page.

Maple Bourbon Glaze

By: Susie Bulloch (heygrillhey.com)
5 from 8 votes
This Maple Bourbon Glaze is a sweet and sticky glaze that is perfect on ribs, chicken, and so much more. It's a delicious and beautiful way to finish up any of your BBQ.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Servings8

Ingredients
 

  • ½ cup maple syrup
  • ½ cup bourbon
  • ¼ cup ketchup
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • 4 teaspoons Hey Grill Hey Sweet Rub
  • 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Instructions
 

  • Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil.
  • Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15-20 mins until the glaze reaches a syrupy consistency.
  • Use right away or store in a glass jar. Will last at least 2 weeks tightly sealed in the refrigerator.

Nutrition

Calories: 124kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 72mg | Potassium: 78mg | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 38IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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About

FOUNDER/BBQ BOSS LADY

Susie is the BBQ Brain behind the Hey Grill Hey website. Her passion for smoked meats and developing fun, new recipes have landed her on the Food Network, cooking turkeys with Shaq, and on a couple of Guinness World Records. When she’s not grilling, she is hanging out with Todd and their three kids, preferably outdoors!

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Recipe Rating




Reader Reviews

16 Reviews

  1. David Claxton says:

    I made smoked chicken thighs with your maple bourbon glaze for my sister and brother in laws. I used your recipe for everything. They thought it was fabulous and you now have a new fan in my brother in law. Thank you!

  2. Cathy says:

    Instead of regular ACV, I used Bragg’s Honey Cayenne flavor. This glaze is incredible!

  3. Mandi Jo says:

    Yum!!! I used Knob Creek Burbon and my homemade rub! It’s soooo good! Can’t wait to try the ribs!!

  4. Dennis says:

    Used it today on a pork tenderloin. This is a great glaze and dip. Can’t wait to try it on some ribs.

  5. Jordan | The BackyardBrisket says:

    I made this glaze at the cottage recently with some Buffalo Trace, and it was a huge hit with the family! Used it on a full chicken, chicken wings, a rack of ribs,

  6. Dave says:

    Made it with “Four Roses” and a dark bourbon barrel maple syrup. A touch sweet for me so I added a bit more cider vinegar. PERFECT! Used it on some reverse seared chops, and it works really well for wings too! I have been a firehouse cook for over twenty years and your site is one of our go to sites when we are looking for something new. Thanks for all the great recipes!

    1. Jim says:

      Also added a little extra vinegar to balance the sweet.

  7. Mario Luna says:

    So I just finished making a batch with Jim Beam Black and used molasses with a few squeezes of honey and glazed my twice smoked ham, turkey breast and turkey legs and they were a hit.. Nothing but thumbs up

  8. Matthew Bykowski says:

    Excellent glaze. I used Jack Daniel’s and dark brown sugar, but I’m guessing a lot of variations would work fine (different booze like rum, and or different syrups/honey). It yielded about 10oz for me, but it just depends how much you reduce it/how thick you want it. I used it to glaze a ham and it was awesome. I think it would work well on any kind of pork, chicken or salmon. Try it!

  9. April says:

    I’ve made this recipe a couple of times now for a sous vide pork belly but didn’t include the sweet rub when I made it. Once I served with just a smear of chipotle aioli on the plate and some pea shoots. The other was with a warm apple slaw and it was amazing. This will now become my go-to glaze for pork.

  10. Brandon says:

    I have some knob Creek smoked maple bourbon. I am thinking bout using that. Should I reduce the amount of maple syrup?

    1. Hey Grill Hey says:

      I wouldn’t reduce the maple! That sounds like it’ll be amazing!

      1. Tom Schaefer says:

        I made it today using the Knob Creek Smoked Maple Bourbon. I followed the recipe as listed. Lacquered it on some chicken…awesome! I will definitely make this again for pork loin or ribs.

      2. Gregory Woodcock says:

        Agreed