• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Low Carb Maven
  • About
  • Recipe Index
  • Amazon Shop
  • Low Carb Diet Beginners Guide
  • Low Carb Keto Food List
  • U.S. to Metric Baking Chart
Home » Recipes » Condiments, Dips & Sauces

Alabama White BBQ Sauce

By Kim Hardesty

Great on chicken or pork, this tangy-peppery mayonnaise based white BBQ sauce is popular in Alabama with BBQ enthusiasts. Easy, Low carb and keto!

Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
Alabama White BBQ Sauce is a tangy mayonnaise based BBQ sauce great on grilled chicken. #bbqsauce #BBQ #whitebbqsauce #alabamasauce #grilledchicken #lowcarb #keto

THIS POST INCLUDES AFFILIATE LINKS TO SHARE THE THINGS I LOVE.

In the summer months home cooks everywhere pull out all the stops to dazzle friends and family with their mad bbq skills. It’s grill season, baby, and having a great dry rub for chicken and a killer BBQ sauce can bring that fire kissed goodness to the next level.

Speaking of BBQ sauces, most people are familiar with the sweet tomato based sauce popular in their region. My husband grew up with a thin or vinegar based Carolina BBQ Sauce. I grew up with a little thicker and sweeter ketchup based Texas BBQ sauce variety which included ground chiles and carried a subtle smoldering heat.

Alabama white BBQ sauce with smoked chicken quarters.

But there is another sauce in town: WHITE BBQ SAUCE, often referred to as Alabama white sauce. This mayonnaise based BBQ sauce is popular in Alabama. The first time I saw it, I thought was ranch dressing. Ranch dressing is great on grilled or smoked chicken, but trust me, the two are not the same.

What is Alabama White BBQ Sauce?

Alabama white sauce, sometimes called “Alabama white”, is a mayonnaise based sauce with a peppery tang, used on chicken, pork, seafood and turkey. I like it on chicken, best. Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ (Decatur, Alabama) is credited with developing the recipe, where it’s slathered on chicken just before plating.

Alabama white BBQ sauce with smoked chicken quarters.

What is in Alabama White BBQ Sauce?

Recipes for Alabama white sauce vary slightly in ingredients but they’re all mayonnaise based. Other common ingredients are vinegar or lemon juice, horseradish, creole mustard, and custom seasonings and spices. It’s utterly delicious!

Authentic Alabama White Sauce Recipe

The recipe I am sharing with you is not an authentic recipe for Alabama white BBQ sauce. I tried several recipes and then doctored one up based on my own personal tastes. Mine is thicker and has more ingredients.

A reader recently shared a more traditional recipe for white sauce for those of you who want the real thing. This is from a reader, Vicki, who is from north Alabama. She says it is great on hushpuppies.

  • 1 ½ cups Mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup white vinegar
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon coarse black pepper
  • 2 teaspoon of salt

The Perfect Keto BBQ Sauce!

Being mayonnaise based, this Alabama white bbq sauce recipe is great for low carb keto diets. Low carb and keto diets rely on high fat foods as an energy source while minimizing sugars and carbs.

Try it on smoked chicken leg quarters or beer can chicken. You won’t be sorry.

Alabama white BBQ sauce with smoked chicken quarters.

Alabama White BBQ Sauce

Great on chicken or pork, this tangy-peppery mayonnaise based white BBQ sauce is popular in Alabama with BBQ enthusiasts. Easy, Low carb and keto!
5 from 1 vote
Print Pin Rate
Course: Basics
Cuisine: American
Keyword: alabama white bbq sauce
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 206kcal

Ingredients

  • ½ cup Mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 2 tablespoon chipotle mustard (or Creole mustard)
  • 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
  • 1 teaspoon dill pickle juice
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper (or more to taste)
  • ⅛ teaspoon granulated garlic (or more to taste)
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
  • thin with water to desired consistency

Instructions

  • Mix all ingredients together and thin to desired consistency with water. Adjust seasoning to personal taste.
  • Makes about ¾ cup of white BBQ sauce. Serving size is 2 tbsp. 

Notes

Serving size is 2 tbsp. If you thin the sauce with water, then the serving size will be a little larger or it will serve more.
Nutrition Facts
Alabama White BBQ Sauce
Amount Per Serving
Calories 206 Calories from Fat 216
% Daily Value*
Fat 24g37%
Sodium 303mg13%
Carbohydrates 0.2g0%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition

Calories: 206kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.2g | Fat: 24g | Sodium: 303mg
Smoked chicken leg quarters on a tray.

Juicy Smoked Chicken Leg Quarters

BBQ Dry Rub For Chicken and Pork

BBQ Dry Rub for Chicken and Pork

About Kim Hardesty

Kim is a self taught cook with over 30 years experience in the kitchen. She develops and tests low carb and keto recipes in her California home. She began her low carb journey in 2009 and at the urging of friends, started blogging in 2014. Kim shares delicious low carb and keto recipes no one would believe are sugar-free. Her recipes are featured in newsstand publications and on sites all over the internet.

View all posts by Kim Hardesty | Website | Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest

More Keto Low Carb Sauces, Dips & Condiments

  • Keto teriyaki sauce dripping from spoon into sauce filled bowl with ingredients behind.
    Keto Teriyaki Sauce (Sugar-free, Gluten-free)
  • Keto Tomato Sauce (3 easy recipes with variations)
  • keto coleslaw
    Creamy Keto Coleslaw Recipe
  • sugar free keto pizza sauce in a jar
    Easy Keto Pizza Sauce Recipe
FREE EMAIL BONUS

How to Love Your Low Carb Keto Diet

Secrets, tips & recipes to keep you on track!

Reader Interactions

Comments

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  1. Joe

    September 09, 2022 at 4:23 pm

    Can you put this on your chicken or pork and cook it in oven or is it only used after cooking

    Reply
    • Kim Hardesty

      September 21, 2022 at 4:37 am

      Use it after cooking, Joe. Some people dunk the whole piece of chicken in the sauce and serve it. It is a runny sauce, but I thickened it up just a little so it looked more appealing in the photos. Enjoy. -Kim

      Reply
  2. Jodi Dill

    July 01, 2019 at 12:29 pm

    Thanks I LOVE white BBQ sauce I can't wait to try this recipe

    Reply
    • Kim

      July 01, 2019 at 3:36 pm

      Enjoy! -Kim

      Reply
  3. Miranda

    February 22, 2019 at 11:32 am

    This looks amazing!!! I wanted to know your opinion of using pickle brine that's spicy? Do you think that'll change the flavor profile too much? I only have spicy dills in the fridge.

    Reply
    • Kim

      February 22, 2019 at 11:36 am

      Hi Miranda. I see you are from Bubbies. I love Bubbies products! I think the pickle brine (or even sauerkraut brine) would be great. My recipe is not authentic and I think spicy pickle brine would give it a fantastic modern twist. I don't often choose to work with brands (I'm choosy), but I would love to partner with Bubbies some time. Have a nice day. -Kim

      Reply
  4. Debby Crawford

    September 07, 2018 at 11:22 am

    Love me some white barbq sauce....it is a table sauce, not plated and it is runny.
    My recipe is NOT the Bob Gibson recipe, it is more like Whitt's in Decatur Alabama [which is scores better than Big Bob!!!] I have had the recipe for almost 50 years, and it was from the gentleman's mama's mama.
    It has sugar in it,
    Mayo, vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar, cayenne and lemon juice. NO garlic, no horseradish or mustard
    it is good on chicken, turkey sandwiches, grilled corn [I know - Keto] and pulled pork barbq from the same area, along with the requisite vinegar/pepper combo.
    Big Bob likely didn't put horseradish in his until about the time he went on TV...and it went downhill from there!!! Heck, in the 60's and 70's you probably couldn't even GET horseradish in that part of Alabama!!!!

    to Leslie - I"m from Trinity, AL - but in Tx - anytime anyone is headed this way I need some Whitt's pork - these Texan's do not know barbq

    Reply
  5. Leslie

    August 10, 2018 at 6:47 pm

    From the pics, your white sauce is way, way too thick. It’s not supposed to sit there atop the meat like gravy. It’s supposed to be the consistency of milk or, at most, heavy cream. This is because the white sauce needs to be able to run down into the meat and help make it juicier. I live 25 miles from Big Bob Gibson's and his family members had barbecue places all over my town. I eat it on pork barbecue, too. It’s great. But you gotta thin that down or it won’t do what it’s supposed to do.

    Reply
    • Kim

      August 12, 2018 at 10:40 am

      Hi Leslie. Thank you for your feedback. Aren't you lucky to be so close to the real deal?! Yes, the sauce is a little thicker than how I served it, although I liked it a little thicker than it's traditionally served. I tried taking pictures with a runnier sauce and it coated the chicken so fast, that it was hard to get good photos - I'm just a mom and not a professional photographer! Lol. Also, as mentioned in the post the recipe is how I liked it - with my own twists. Please tell me if the "traditional recipe" that was shared with me from Huntsville resembles what you are familiar with? Thank you again! -Kim

      Reply
      • Sue

        May 13, 2019 at 9:36 am

        Classy

        Reply
  6. Kim

    July 24, 2018 at 5:20 am

    Looks yummy, can’t wait to try!

    Reply
    • Kim

      July 24, 2018 at 7:50 am

      Thank you, Kim! -Kim

      Reply

Primary Sidebar

Footer

As featured on: The Feed Feed, Men's Health, Bulletproof, Huffpost, Health, Delish, Brit + Co, County Living, BuzzFeed, The Diabetes Council, BuzzFeed, Greatist, Shape, Parade, Women's Health, Keto Summit

INFORMATION

Terms and Privacy
About
Contact
Low Carb Maven is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Copyright © 2025 Low Carb Maven on the Foodie Pro Theme