Kick your cranberry sauce game up a notch with this flavorful orange cranberry sauce with cardamom! People will be asking what your secret ingredient is.
This is the year of the cranberry sauce. At least on Rachel Cooks. Just go with it. It could be because Costco sells fresh cranberries. I may or may not have bought a lot. So that’s why we had the apple cinnamon cranberry sauce and now this classy orange cranberry sauce with cardamom. Cardamom makes everything instantly classy – didn’t you know? For example, my rhubarb cardamom shortbread bars – classy. It’s such a warm, flavorful spice. Cinnamon gets overused, cardamom gets neglected. Do us all a favor – don’t neglect cardamom.
Also – can we all agree that if for nothing else, we need to make cranberry sauce for the leftovers? Your dry turkey sandwich is calling for cranberry sauce. It looks beautiful, but it tastes even more beautiful. Beee-uuuu-teeee-fullll.
So now you have two choices, apple cinnamon cranberry sauce or this orange cranberry sauce with cardamom. Which will you choose?
While you’re thinking over cranberry options…
Make sure to check out some other Thanksgiving recipes:
- 5 Ingredient Maple Dijon Ham
- Crock Pot Cheesy Potatoes
- Slow Cooker Stuffing Recipe
- Two Ingredient Cranberry Salsa
- Green Bean Casserole (No Canned Soup!)
- Herb Roasted Turkey Breast
- Turkey Tenders with Cranberry Barbecue Dipping Sauce
- Sweet Potato Bread Pudding with Marshmallow Topping
- Scalloped Sweet Potatoes
- Brussels Sprouts Salad with Apples and Cranberries
- Twice Baked Sweet Potatoes
- Butternut Squash Mash with Smoked Paprika
- Cauliflower, Potato, and Cheddar Bake
Cranberry Orange Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 12 oz. fresh cranberries, rinsed and drained (about 3 heaping cups)
- ¾ cup tightly packed brown sugar
- 1 large orange
- water
Instructions
- Add cranberries and sugar to a large saucepan.
- Zest the orange. You should have about 1 teaspoon of zest. Add zest to saucepan with the cranberries. Cut the orange in half and juice it. Pour juice into a measuring cup. Add enough water to make ½ cup total; pour the juice/water into the saucepan (see note).
- Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, and then reduce heat to medium-low heat.
- Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring frequently, until cranberries are soft and sauce has thickened.
- Cool before serving. Garnish with additional orange zest, if desired.
Notes
- You can also use frozen cranberries for this recipe. Do not use dried cranberries.
- Sauce is very thick, similar to a canned sauce. If you’d like a softer consistency, increase the amount of liquids (water + orange juice) to a total of 1 cup. You'd probably want to use the juice from 2 oranges.
- Optional flavor variations (add one of the following ingredients):
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon ground cloves - Recipe card updated 11/2023.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!Verdict: Loved the bright citrus flavor and the hint of cardamom. It’s a keeper!
Husband’s take: He’s not a huge fan of anything cranberry. His loss!
Changes I would make: None are necessary.
Difficulty: Easy.
Would adding a cinnamon stick or ground cinnamon be good? It looks tast!
Yes, I think that would be delicious!
LOVED this! Definitely my favorite recipe for cranberry sauce!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave a comment!
hmm… cardamom? I’d be willing to try it
Oh, cardamom. Great idea! I bet that really amps up the flavor.