The $5 BBQ Hack That Starts With Sweet Baby Ray's

Great barbecue is a complete sensory experience. Different meats develop layers of umami flavor and a savory outer crust, all complemented by the sweet notes of barbecue sauce. Most importantly, great barbecue has a melt-in-your-mouth texture. If it isn't tender, we aren't interested. And we've discovered the easiest way to build a tenderizing marinade with all the barbecue vibes and almost no effort.

Spend a few bucks on a bottle of Sweet Baby Ray's Original barbecue sauce – it has nearly everything you need to create a base for an easy barbecue-style tenderizing marinade. It contains acids and enzymes in its recipe — pineapple juice and tomato paste — that break down protein fibers and tenderize meat. All you'll need is another $2 or $3 ingredient to make an effective marinade, or maybe you already have something acidic on hand, like apple or pineapple juice or vinegar.

A tenderizing marinade built on Sweet Baby Ray's saves you from juggling a bunch of different ingredients or simmering a from-scratch mixture on the stove. It'll create a succulent texture after a two to 12 hour soak, with the time depending on the size and tenderness of the cut of meat. Plus, with a touch more liquid (either from your acidic addition or something like chicken stock), it doubles as a mop sauce. Try it on steak, pork, or juicy grilled BBQ chicken.

The original version of Sweet Baby Ray's is an excellent cornerstone for big BBQ flavor, but other varieties work as well. Try adding red wine vinegar to the Sweet Vidalia Onion variety or pickle juice to the Sweet n' Spicy sauce. Beer can tenderize tough cuts of meat to some extent as well — combine Sweet Baby Ray's with Shiner Bock for an easy marinade that doubles as a sauce. Cola is another option for pairing with Sweet Baby Ray's in a tenderizing marinade thanks to the drink's carbonation and sugar content.

Elevate barbecue sauce from simple to smoky by adding some seasonings to Sweet Baby Ray's. Spices like cumin and paprika will kick the flavors up a notch. Some cooks reserve part of the rub to use as seasoning in the sauce. Others use bourbon, liquid smoke, apple juice, and stone-ground mustard for extra flavor. Mix some honey into the last round of mop sauce for an extra touch of caramelized sweetness to complement the Sweet Baby Ray's.