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Crockpot Cranberry Sauce

Crockpot cranberry sauce made in a slow cooker for a glossy, spoonable texture with burst cranberries. Cook on HIGH until the berries pop, then lightly mash and chill for a thick, bright finish with orange zest and cinnamon.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Calories: 310
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 24 oz fresh cranberries
  • 1.5 cup sugar
  • 1 cup orange juice
  • 0.5 cup water
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 tbsp orange zest
  • 1 pinch salt

Equipment

  • 1 slow cooker

Method
 

Cook the cranberry mixture
  1. Add fresh cranberries, sugar, orange juice, water, cinnamon sticks, orange zest, and salt to the slow cooker. Stir to coat the berries in the sweet citrus mixture (visual cue: everything looks evenly combined).
  2. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 1/2-3 hours, stirring once halfway. Continue until the berries burst and the sauce turns glossy and thick (visual cue: you see burst cranberries throughout).
  3. Uncover and mash lightly to your preferred texture. Cook 15-20 minutes more if you want it thicker (visual cue: sauce bubbles and thickens around the edges).
  4. Remove cinnamon sticks and cool the sauce. Chill for serving, or keep it on WARM if you plan to serve right away (visual cue: sauce sets slightly when chilled).

Notes

Pro tip: for a smoother spoonable sauce, mash more after the first cook; for more texture, mash lightly. Refrigerate in a covered container for up to 7 days. Freeze up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge). For a lower-sugar option, replace sugar with a 1:1 baking-style sweetener designed to caramelize in slow-cooker recipes.