strawberry rhubarb sauce

Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce is a quick 20-minute recipe that requires just 10 minutes of hands on time! This delicious sauce is bursting with fresh, sweet strawberries and tart rhubarb. Spoon it over ice cream, spread it on your morning toast, fill hand pies with it, or stir it into yogurt. It makes a delicious homemade gift, too!

this recipe

Why You’ll Love Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce:

• Fresh Summer Ingredients – Sweet strawberries and tart rhubarb are meant to be! Combine them with simple ingredients and you have my favorite way to enjoy these summer fruits.
• Easy Recipe – This sauce comes together in just one pot on the stovetop. It takes about 15 minutes to cook, and most of that time is totally hands off.
• Perfectly Sweet and Delicious – My recipe includes a burst of bright lemon flavor and a hint of vanilla, for a delicious, complex flavor.
• Versatile – You’ll want to use this fruit sauce on eeeeverything from baked good to frozen treats, and SO much more! (See few of my favorite suggestions for what to do with strawberry and rhubarb sauce towards the bottom of this post!)

Ingredient Overview:

As always, the full recipe with measurements & directions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Use the table of contents (back at the top, below the first image, to navigate).

• Strawberries – Fresh strawberries or frozen both work. Don’t thaw if using frozen fruit.
• Rhubarb – You can use fresh rhubarb or frozen. Don’t thaw if using frozen. You can find it in some grocery stores, but it’s most commonly found at farmer’s markets or in your neighbor’s yard (it basically grows like a weed in the Midwest!). This recipe is the perfect way to use up all that rhubarb your neighbor probably just handed you, haha!
• Butter – I always use salted buter because in my experience, it lends the best flavor, but feel free to use unsalted butter if that’s what you prefer.
• Vanilla Extract – Use real vanilla extract.
• Lemon – This recipe calls for both lemon juice and zest for a hint of citrus to brighten the fruit flavors.
• Sugars – I use both granulated and brown sugar. Together they have a nice balance of sweetness that compliments the fruits.
• Corn Starch – This is the thickening agent that keeps your sauce from being a watery mess.

Recipe Variations:

• Gluten-free – This recipe is naturally gluten-free!
• Dairy-free & Vegan – Use any vegan or dairy-free butter to make this recipe dairy-free and vegan.
• Strawberry – Want to make an all strawberry sauce? Try my strawberry compote recipe!
• Rhubarb – If you want to make this an all rhubarb sauce, swap rhubarb for the quantity of strawberries called for. Then, once the sauce is cooked, taste and stir in additional granulated sugar 1 tbsp at a time until it’s sweet tart enough to your liking.

How to Make Rhubarb & Strawberry Sauce:

Step 1: Prep the Sauce. First, roughly chop up your strawberries and rhubarb, and add to a medium saucepan with butter, sugar, vanilla, a little corn starch (or tapioca starch), and a dash of lemon juice and lemon zest.

Step 2: Cook the Sauce. Give the sauce a stir, then throw a lid on your pan, & let the mixture simmer for 10-12 minutes! That’s right – you don’t need to check on it while it cooks. Thank you Strawberry Rhubarb sauce, for doing our work for us.

Step 3: Cool. When time is up, remove the pot from the heat and stir in an extra handful of chopped strawberries here to add back a bit of texture, as the fruit breaks down quite a bit. The sauce will thicken as it cools.

Serving + Storing:

Spoon warm sauce over biscuits, ice cream, or anything else you like! Or, enjoy it once cooled. Store cooled sauce in an airtight container (or mason jar) in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Or, freeze in a freezer-safe container once cooled, & freeze for 1-2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before using.

Uses for Homemade Rhubarb Sauce:

• Rhubarb strawberry sauce is perfection spread on a slice of buttered challah, bagels, muffins or brioche bread for breakfast! Stir it into your vanilla yogurt, for a fun treat.
• Blend it with milk and ice cream to make a shake, spoon it over a scoop of no churn vanilla ice cream, eat it out of the jar with a spoon (not that I have experience doing that, heh).
• Use as filling in these Strawberry Rhubarb Hand Pies.
• Spread it on some freshly-baked Maple Biscuits!
• Spoon over pound cake or angel food cake slices.

Expert Success Tips:

• Evenly Chop Fruit – Cut the strawberries and rhubarb stalks in uniform pieces for even cooking and the best texture.
• Keep Ingredients On Hand – I love having extra fruit in my freezer so I can make this even once rhubarb season is over. I highly recommend getting a little extra fruit, chopping it, and freezing it! Then, you can have this sauce year-round.
• Leave Frozen – Don’t thaw the fruit first when you go to make it with frozen fruit. Fruit releases extra moisture as it thaws, which will throw off the recipe.
• Do Not Disturb – I know it’s hard but, seriously, step away form the pot! You need to let the sauce cook undisturbed for the right consistency.
• Cool Completely – Let the sauce cool at room temperature before transferring to glass and refrigerating. If it’s too hot, the glass could break.

FAQs:

Special Tools:

• Large Saucepan – You’ll need a medium or large saucepan.
• Immersion Blender – If you want a completely smooth fruit sauce (more like a rhubarb butter instead of rhubarb compote), use an immersion blender (or food processor) to puree it after it’s cooked.

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More Strawberry Rhubarb Recipes:

• Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble
• Strawberry Shortcakes
• Rhubarb Upside Down Cake
• Strawberry Rhubarb Hand Pies

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