Recipes » Condiments

Cranberry Orange Sauce

Yumna Jawad

Updated Aug 29, 2025

5 from 33 votes

Cranberry orange sauce made from fresh cranberries, orange, and sugar in about 15 minutes. An easy make-ahead Thanksgiving cranberry sauce.

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Prep Time 2 minutes mins

Servings 8 servings

Comments

15

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I’m a huge cranberry sauce with Thanksgiving turkey person, but it’s gotta be made with fresh cranberries! I know people love the canned stuff with the ridges and everything. I’m just not one of them. And I really like fresh orange with cranberry, so I make a cranberry orange sauce that gets both the juice and the zest.

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I usually make cranberry orange sauce a day or two before Thanksgiving. There’s really no reason to wait, because on Thursday all I have to do is put it in a bowl and get it on the table.

 Recipe testing notes

For the past 10 years, I’ve tested every recipe multiple times before sharing it! These notes give you a peek into my process of developing and testing.

This cranberry orangse sauce is on my Thanksgiving table every year now, but I remember the first few times I made it, I kept staring at the pot thinking, there is no way this is thick enough. So I let it cook longer. It looked right while it was hot, and then I put it in the fridge and basically had cranberry jam. The sauce thickens so much once it gets cold that I’d rather have it look a little loose on the stove. As long as the berries have burst and it’s starting to thicken, I’m good.

And the orange juice by itself did not have enough organge flavor for me. I made it that way, chilled it, tasted it the next day, and thought, where did the orange go? It was barely there. Once I added the zest, I could actually taste orange with the cranberry, even after the sauce had been sitting in the fridge overnight. So the zest is not something you want to skip in here.

Happy Cooking!
– Yumna

Cranberry Orange Sauce Ingredients

• Cranberries: I love to use fresh cranberries at Thanksgiving because they’re in season. Rinse them and discard any that are soft or shriveled. You can use frozen cranberries, but be sure to thaw them first.
• Orange: A naval orange, blood orange, or mandarin orange works. Zest the orange before cutting and juicing it. Take off just the orange layer, stopping before the bitter white pith.
• Sugar and water: I use granulated sugar to sweeten the sauce. You can also use coconut sugar, maple syrup, honey, or agave, and adjust the amount to taste. The amount of water depends on how much juice your orange gives you: add enough to bring the combined liquid to 1 cup.

How to Make Cranberry Orange Sauce

These step-by-step photos walk you through how to make homemade Cranberry Orange Sauce. For the full ingredient list and detailed instructions, head to the recipe card below, or skip straight to the → Cranberry Orange Sauce recipe below

1. Add Ingredients to the pot

Place the cranberries and sugar in a saucepan, then zest the orange directly over them. Stop zesting each spot once you reach the white pith.

2. Pour in the Liquids

Juice the orange into a measuring cup and add enough water to reach 1 cup total. Pour it into the saucepan and stir everything together over medium heat.

3. Simmer the organge cranberry sauce

Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer once the cranberries start popping.

4. Check the consistency and cool

Simmer until the sauce thickens. It should look thick enough to spoon, but it will firm up more as it cools. Transfer it to a container, let it cool, and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Recipe Video Tutorial

Full Cranberry Orange Sauce Recipe

Cranberry Orange Sauce Recipe

Author: Yumna Jawad

5 from 33 votes

Homemade cranberry orange sauce with just 4 ingredients: fresh cranberries, orange juice and zest, sugar, and water.

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Prep Time2 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time22 minutes mins

Servings8 servings

Video

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Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 12 ounces cranberries
• ▢ ½ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 orange zested and juiced
• ▢ ½ cup water

Instructions

• Place cranberries and sugar in a saucepan. Zest the orange over the cranberries. Cut the orange in half and juice it into a measuring cup. Add water to the measuring cup until you have 1 cup total of liquids. Pour the liquids into the saucepan, turn the heat to medium, and stir to combine.
• Bring to a boil. When the cranberries start to burst, reduce to a simmer. Simmer until most of the cranberries are popped and soft and sauce begins to thicken, about 15–20 minutes.
• Transfer to a storage container and allow to cool on the counter. Store in fridge until ready to serve.

Equipment

• Ceramic Nonstick Cookware Set
• Measuring Cups and Spoons
• Glass Measuring Cup

Notes

My Top Tip: Measure the orange juice before adding water. Oranges vary in size and juiciness. Using 1 cup of combined liquid keeps the starting amount consistent.

Storage: Store leftover cranberry orange sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 7 days. Note that if you use a plastic container, the cranberries may dye it pink and/or pick up flavors that seeped in from previous use, like garlic.

Freezing: You can freeze this cranberry orange sauce for up to one month. The texture may be slightly watery when you thaw it, so I recommend reheating it on the stovetop.

Nutrition

Calories: 72kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 0.3g, Fat: 0.1g, Saturated Fat: 0.01g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.03g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.01g, Sodium: 2mg, Potassium: 50mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 15g, Vitamin A: 48IU, Vitamin C: 11mg, Calcium: 8mg, Iron: 0.1mg

Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.

Did You Make This Recipe?

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Recipe Variations

• Cinnamon. Add 1 cinnamon stick with the juice and water, then remove it before storing. If you don’t have fresh cinnamon sticks, you can substitute about 1/8–¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon.
• Fresh ginger. Stir in 1 teaspoon of finely grated ginger before cooking.
• Jalapeños. Add 1–2 tablespoons of finely minced jalapeño to the saucepan before cooking. Remove the seeds for less heat.

Recipe Tips

1. Stir occasionally, especially toward the end. As the sauce thickens, it can stick to the bottom of the saucepan.
2. Let the sauce rest at room temperature. It will continue to thicken as it cools.

Serving Ideas

• On a sandwich: Try spreading some cranberry sauce on a turkey panini, roasted vegetable grilled cheese sandwich, or turkey salad sandwich.
• As a breakfast topping: Cranberry sauce is delicious at breakfast, too! I like spooning it over easy overnight oats, pumpkin pancakes, or air fryer French toast.
• For Thanksgiving: This cranberry sauce is so good on the table with classic Thanksgiving turkey, Thanksgiving stuffing, and olive oil mashed potatoes.

Troubleshooting

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