Loaded with health benefits and requires only five ingredients, this Slow cooker cranberry sauce is the perfect make-ahead side dish for your table.
We were never a big cranberry sauce family growing up and to be honest, after seeing creepy images of the plum colored gel sliding out of a can and being sliced (??!), I never felt deprived.
As I became more interested in health and nutrition, I’ve learned that cranberries are bursting in health benefits so I wanted to create an easy, fresher, less-sweet version of the holiday staple.
Health Benefits of Cranberries:
- Phytonutrients: Whole cranberries are an excellent source of flavonoids and other phytonutrients which are more powerful in their whole form (vs juice.)
- Anti-Inflammatory: Love the gorgeous color? You can thank anthocyanins, a powerful phytonutrient found in cranberries which, along with others, help reduce the risk of unwanted inflammation.
- Digestive Track Benefits: Cranberries have been shown to help ward off everything from stomach ulcers to colon cancer to periodontal disease.
The verdict: I am completely blown away at how easy and flavorful cranberry sauce is when made from scratch. Skill level required? Zero. Simply add a few ingredients into a crock pot and walk away.
Make extra to stir into oatmeal, sweeten Greek yogurt, blend into smoothies and more.
Your family is waiting.
Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
- 12 oz bag fresh cranberries rinsed
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons sugar or more to taste
- 1 teaspoon orange zest optional
- 1 teaspoon ginger grated
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into a slow cooker and cook on Low heat for 3 hours.
- Using a wooden spoon, gently mash the cranberries until desired consistency is reached.
Chef's Notes
Nutrition
Check out my Pinterest board for more healthy side dish recipes!
Martha Nystrom
Today was my first time ever making cranberry sauce and I am hooked! Delicious and simple recipe that I will make again and again. Thanks!
Liz DellaCroce
I’m so glad you enjoy it!!!!
cathy
how do you store it? how long will it keep? Canning? fridge? freezer?
Lea
This sounds and looks so good! Thank you!! I’m going to make this. I just found your blog and have been looking around and you have so many delicious recipes.
Liz DellaCroce
Oh I’m so glad you found me ! Let me know what recipes you try!! Happy Holidays!
Kinnari
So I made this last night for our Friends-giving, and I wasn’t a fan of the orange. I think its a little too orangey for me. Can i leave the orange out next time and put in something else instead?
Liz DellaCroce
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy this, Kinnari! You can just leave the orange out. :)
Tina
What a great idea! I love cranberry sauce on chicken sandwiches in the summertime! It’s a wonderfully cool condiment! Thank you!
Liz DellaCroce
It really is!! Enjoy Tina!
Jennifer
Do you serve this warm, or should I chill it after the 3 hours in crockpot?
Liz DellaCroce
You certainly could serve it warm but I prefer it chilled. :-) Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving!
Levin
Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!
Finally found an easy cranberry sauce for this Thanksgiving (for an idiot like me)!
To tell the truth, I hardly cook anything. And this Thanksgiving I’m willing to do something to surprise everyone. This sauce seems easy enough for me.
The Lemon Bowl
It’s so easy and so tasty!!! Let me know how it turns out!!
Kimberly (Badger Girl)
Happy Cranberrylove! Wow, I LOVE this recipe. And I especially love that you did not add a ton of sugar. Thanks for much for sharing with the bloghop. :)
The Lemon Bowl
My pleasure – so glad you appreciate the lack of sugar! :)
Mary @ Fit and Fed
My family always made our own cranberry sauce and I loved it. I was rather grossed out when as a young adult I discovered that you could get it in a can and serve it with ridges from the can still on it (shudder). I’ve experimented with changing up the basic cranberries-and-sugar recipe but haven’t found a variation that I love, and my younger set complained about my lessening the sugar in the recipe. I’m allergic to oranges so this particular variation doesn’t work for me. I tried using cider in it last year– I might or might not keep experimenting with it this year.
The Lemon Bowl
Let me know what you come up with Mary – I’m always looking for new ideas!
Shanni
I just made this with apple cider instead of orange juice. My mom cannot eat orange.
Chung-Ah | Damn Delicious
Cranberry sauce made in a slow cooker? How did I not know this?!
The Lemon Bowl
That’s the same thing I said to myself when I thought of it – haha!!! :-) Glad I’m not the only one late to the party. ;-)
katie
I’ve never thought to make it in a crock pot! This looks fab. I grew up eating that canned gelatin stuff until I got older and realized I could make my own and it wouldn’t resemble gelatin! lol.
The Lemon Bowl
I’m realizing more and more I’m not the only one who discovered the wonders of real cranberry sauce as an adult – haha. So funny!! Better late than never I guess. :-)
EA-The Spicy RD
Yummy sauce, and I love that you made it in your slow cooker! I was never a fan of cranberry sauce growing up either, but definitely a fan now! Sending #cranberrylove your way!!
The Lemon Bowl
It’s so funny – poor cranberry sauce gets such a bad rap!! :-) Cheers to #cranberrylove!
m gurney
I agree, I never went back after making cranberry sauce from scratch….there is no comparison. Also the color is so different.
The Lemon Bowl
It truly is amazing – the color is stunning!!
Ashley - Baker by Nature
I only became a fan of the cranberry sauce a few years ago, but now it’s LOVE! I’ve never made homemade cranberry sauce before – must try it!
The Lemon Bowl
Same here!!! It’s amazing how much tastier it is homemade! And this recipe couldn’t be easier. ;)
addie | culicurious
This looks delicious, Liz! I wouldn’t have thought to add it to oatmeal but it makes so much sense. Great fall ideas!
The Lemon Bowl
Thank you so much Addie! I’m always looking for ways to naturally sweeten foods so it just came to me. :-)