Sizzlin’ sauces

With 85 percent of American households owning one or more grills, there’s a good chance something is being cooked on the barbie this very moment. It also means that a whole lotta barbecue sauce is being dabbed, brushed or poured.

And, with an estimated 750 commercial sauces at stores, online and in catalogs — not to mention special family and restaurant recipes — there’s a good chance that no two people are slathering on the same stuff.

Some prefer a sauce based on mustard, while others like a base of tomato, vinegar or even (get this) mayonnaise. Some want a puckery sensation over something that’s sticky sweet or tearfully hot. Preferences often depend on what part of the country you are from and which meats you want to spice up.

“When most people talk about barbecue sauce, what they are really talking about is Kansas Citystyle sauce: tomato-based, sweet and spicy, with some bite,” says Paul Kirk, aka The Baron of Barbecue and author of “Paul Kirk’s Championship Barbecue Sauces — 175 Make-Your-Own Sauces, Marinades, Dry Rubs, Wet Rubs, Mops and Salsas.”

But if you grew up in Texas, you likely prefer a thinner, lesssweet tomato-based sauce made with molasses and Worcestershire. Those from west of Raleigh, N.C., would go for a combination of Kansas City- and Texasstyle sauces, kicked up only with vinegar and brown sugar. Eastern-style Carolina sauces are vinegar-based, with sugar, crushed red peppers, salt and pepper. Mustard-based sauces shine in South Carolina and Georgia.

Alabama has a whole different approach, says Steven Raichlen, author of “Barbecue! Bible: Sauces, Rubs and Marinades, Bastes, Butters and Glazes.” “In Alabama they make a white sauce with mayonnaise base rather than tomato sauce, vinegar or any of the other traditional barbecue sauce ingredients.”

Barbecue sauce manufacturers have branched out to reflect these regional tastes, but most sauces from major labels, such as Kraft and KC Masterpiece, are Kansas City style — much as they were when they were introduced decades ago.

Even those can become specialty sauces, if you’re adventurous and do what Barbeque Mercantile owner Kathy Bousquet did before she became a barbecue sauce snob: Doctor up Kraft Hickory Smoke Barbecue sauce.

“Years ago, that was all we had,” she says. “I like a sauce to have a little more vinegar tang, so I’d add vinegar and booze, like bourbon, to Kraft. It’s not bad.”

How things have changed. She stocks more than 200 barbecue sauces at her Old Colorado City store and keeps about 10 open for sampling. To get an idea of how some of the lesser-known sauces taste, we asked her to pick her favorites, as well as some best-sellers.

Here’s the list, with her tasting notes.

1. Uncle Pete’s Hickory BBQ Sauce. This is so good that I’ve used it on cold ribs in the morning. It won in the Fiery Food Challenge this year, a contest put on by Chile Pepper Magazine. It’s a medium-thick, tomato-based sauce that is sweet and smoky with a little vinegar tang and a kick of heat on the finish. (Cost: $8.75 at the store, or visit www.unclepetesbbqsauce.com.)

2. Smokin’ Willie’s Classic BBQ & Grilling Sauce. It’s Bousquet’s husband’s favorite sauce in the store. She says this sauce is more traditional, with a deep, sweet, caramellike flavor. It’s not too spicy. (Cost: $8.75, or visit www.smokinwillies.com.)

3. Head Country Bar-B-Q Sauce. This is the best-selling sauce in the store. We have people from Oklahoma (where the sauce is made) come in looking for it who are so happy to find it here. It’s not over (the) top of anything in flavor — not too hot and not too sweet. (Cost: $6.95, or visit www.headcountry.com.)

4. Grumpy’s Private Reserve Bar-B-Que Sauce Goodnight Loving. This one took first place for American-style barbecue sauce in the 2007 Scovie Awards by Fiery Foods & BBQ Magazine. It’s popular because of its sweetness, kicked up with just the right jolt of spice. It’s made in Thornton. (Cost: $7.50, or visit www.grumpysbbq.com.)

5. J. Dogg Phair’s Who’Da Man? Gourmet Blend Bar-B-Q Sauce. Made with mango, kiwi and rum, it’s a yummy sauce, and the name is a lot of fun. It’s very spicy, and I think you could use it as a cooking sauce for a stir-fry. But it’s great on grilled pork and chicken. (Cost: $8.95, or visit www.jdoggphair.com.)

6. Big Daddy Jake’s Pappo’s High In The Saddle Barbecue Sauce. This one is good because it doesn’t have too much sugar, so you can use it to baste with while grilling and it won’t burn. (Cost: $8.25, or visit www.bigdaddyjakes.com.)

7. Black’s Thick N’ Sticky BBQ Infusion. It is, indeed, thick, sweet and spicy. It really does stick to whatever you are cooking. (Cost: $8.99, or visit www. thicknstickybbq.com.)

8. Madd Joe’s Bonafide Barbeque Sauce. This took third place in the 2007 Scovie Awards for American-style hot barbecue sauces. It’s made by a company in Minnesota, which might sound surprising until you’re told the family with the recipe are transplanted Texans. So this Texas-style tomato-based sauce has a great sweet heat. (Cost: $7.95.)

9. Kackies Sweet Chili Mustard Honey Bear-B-Cue Sauce. Comes in a plastic bear-shaped bottle. This has pork written all over it. The mustard makes it marry well with pork or ham. (Cost: $7.50 or visit www. bear-b-cue.com.)

10. Ole Ray’s Kentucky Red Bourbon Barbeque Sauce. Won the 2006 Best of Best BBQ Sauce competition; was grand champion in the National Barbecue Festival. Use it straight from the bottle or mix it with equal parts apple cider vinegar and use as a marinade or mopping sauce. (Cost: $7.95 or visit www.olerayssauces.com.)

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SAUCY SUGGESTIONS

- Because most barbecue sauces contain a lot of sugar or sugar-based ingredients, they tend to burn if you put them on meats too soon during grilling. Most sauces should be applied in the last few minutes of grilling.

- To extend the shelf life of a bottle of sauce, Steve Raichlen, author of “Barbecue! Bible: Sauces, Rubs and Marinades, Bastes, Butters and Glazes,” suggests covering the mouth of the jar with plastic wrap before screwing on the lid. This prevents the fumes from the vinegar and salt in the sauce from corroding the inside of the lid — even a lid coated with rubber or plastic.

MOP TILL YOU DROP

Here are a few gadgets to help you slather your sauces. They’re available at Barbeque Mercantile, 2619 W. Colorado Ave., unless otherwise indicated:

John Henry’s Lil Tater’s Soppin Mop: A short wood handle with a cotton mop head is just the ticket for mopping a pork butt ($7.55).

Rosewood-handled silicone basting brush: The silicone is safe to 475 degrees and pulls off the handle to go in the dishwasher ($14.95). Sur La Table (www.surlatable.com) sells a silicone brush with a rosewood and stainless steel handle that’s heat-proof to 550 degrees and 15 1/4-inches long for $16.95. If you’re really worried about heat resistance, Le Creuset’s Silicone Basting Brush is good to 800 degrees. $8.95-$9.95 at www.surlatable.com.

Angled Silicone Barbecue Mop: Williams-Sonoma says the angle of its mop allows for optimal control, and the bristles are designed to hold the sauce. 15 inches long. $19 at www.williams-sonoma.com.

Professional quality injector: It is made of stainless steel and has a 3-inch injector needle. To use this, sauces would need to be thinned and strained, but injecting adds a lot of flavor ($32.25).

Steven Raichlen Sauce Mop & Bucket: The mop has a detachable cotton head; the metal bucket comes with a food-safe insert. $7.95 for the mop and $9.95 for the bucket at www.surlatable.com. Chefs (www.chefs catalog.com) also has a mop and bucket set for $19.99.

Barbecue-Basting Bottle Brush: Pour your sauce into the 9-ounce bottle, give it a squeeze and use the silicone bristles at the end to baste. $9.95 at www.surlatable.com.