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There is no rival for homemade strawberry sauce. It has just 3 ingredients and this is the easiest strawberry sauce recipe. Adding a few spoons of this glossy fresh strawberry topping will make any dessert feel fancier. This is a great recipe to have in your arsenal for entertaining or to make your family’s eyes light up as you spoon it over a bowl of vanilla ice cream.
This strawberry topping is completely wonderful over pancakes, waffles, pie, cheesecake, this trifle, you name it! This is our favorite and easiest way to make strawberry sauce. The lemon juice balances the sweetness and makes the strawberry flavor more pronounced. Truth be told, it’s dangerously irresistible stuff – consider yourself warned ;).
We’re using this sauce in our next recipe post so I hope you are all kinds of excited!!
Make-Ahead Tip: You can make this strawberry topping 1 to 3 days in advance, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Easy Strawberry Sauce Ingredients:
1 lb Strawberries, rinsed, hulled and thickly sliced
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp lemon juice (from 1/2 Lemon)
How to Make Easy Strawberry Sauce:
1. In a medium saucepan, combine sliced strawberries, 1/3 cup sugar and 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice. Place over medium heat and bring the mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. The strawberries will release juice without any mashing required.
2. Reduce heat and simmer 20-23 minutes or until sauce is thickened, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Keep in mind sauce will thicken up slightly as it cools and even more after refrigeration.
Pro Tip: Do not blend strawberries before cooking. I have tested coarsely blending strawberries in a food processor and even though they taste great, the color of the sauce was foggy and not glossy as shown in the photos above. We had best results with slicing strawberries by hand.
It really is as good as it looks – bursting with fresh strawberry flavor!
⬇Print-Friendly Strawberry Sauce Recipe:
Strawberry Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
Strawberry Sauce Ingredients:
- 1 lb Strawberries, rinsed, hulled and thickly sliced
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice, from 1/2 Lemon
Instructions
How to Make Strawberry Sauce:
- In a medium saucepan, combine sliced strawberries, 1/3 cup sugar and 1 Tbsp lemon juice. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Strawberries will release juice without any mashing required.
- Reduce heat and simmer 20-23 min or until sauce is thickened, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Keep in mind sauce will thicken up slightly as it cools and even more with refrigeration.
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
I hope this becomes your new favorite strawberry topping. Let me know how you serve your strawberry sauce. Or maybe it’s just you with a spoon in your hand? Remember I called this dangerous for a reason!
If I make this strawberry sauce a day before I need to use it, how do I liquify it to drizzle over my muffins the next day? Would I microwave it, and if so for how long, or liquify it some other way?
Hi, the strawberry sauce should still be thin enough the next day to use as a topping over muffins. You can warm it up lightly in the microwave or in a saucepan if desired but it doesn’t solidify like a caramel sauce would in the refrigerator.
Super yummy 😋 I thicken it and use for cake filling too. thank you
That’s nice! Thanks for your great feedback, Shanda.
Would I be able to can this?
Hi Brenda, I haven’t tested that but here is what one of our readers wrote citing it freezes well, “I freeze mine and it turns out great. I use for our nightly ice cream” I hope that helps.
I always return to this recipe whenever I’m making strawberry sauce!
I’ve since added a stick of cinnamon while the sauce is simmering to give it a little spicy kick. I also mix in a glob of butter at the end to make it a little richer
Never gone wrong with this recipe! It’s so simple.
That’s just awesome Ras!
Up to how many days or weeks can I store this?
Hi Maria, I have stored it max 4 days and it was still great but I haven’t tested it beyond that. Freezing it should work just fine.
Hi! Does this sauce freeze well?
Hi Judy, I haven’t tested that but here is what one of our readers wrote citing it freezes well, “I freeze mine and it turns out great. I use for our nightly ice cream” I hope that helps.
My strawberry sauce isn’t a vibrant red color .., kinda dull in color .. what can I do to brighten up the color ?
Hi Wanda, I haven’t had that experience but that could be if they are boiled for too long (or not long enough). It could also be due to using less sugar or omitting lemon juice. Real lemon juice will help them keep their vibrant color.
I just made the sauce and had the same problem. Let me know if you found a fix, so I can apply for the next time 🙂
I want to make the strawberry sauce for your Lemon Ricotta pancakes, can you use pink Himalayan salt or regular sea salt?
Hi Wanda, I haven’t tested this with pink Himalayan salt but sea salt should work.
Absolutely delicious. Made the strawberry sauce to go with your NY-style cheesecake (which also came out perfectly, with no cracks, woo-hoo!). Thanks for another great recipe.
You’re welcome, Sharon! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Hi! I’m planning to make your strawberry cake with the sponge base today and plan to refrigerate overnight to be served tomorrow. Can I make this as a filling for your strawberry cake recipe instead of the blended fresh strawberries? Thank you! Love your recipes!
Hi K, that may work although I haven’t tested that myself to advise really. I’d love to know how you like this recipe if you test that.
Natasha, I love your recipes. Especially the cinnamon rolls. My question today. The strawberry sauce, can I use that with strawberry short cake with coolwhip ?
I bet that would work Tami!! I would love to know how you like this recipe!
Served this over cheesecake for company and was a big hit…very easy and tasty. Thanks Natasha for this recipe!
You’re welcome, Connie! I’m so glad you enjoyed this!
Connie! My exact question! I cook my cheesecake then in fridge for 4-8 hours. Did you add after it’s cold; right before serving or immediately? Thanks in advance for help!
Could you please make a video of this recipe? I’m still new to cooking, and your videos are what keep me coming back to your page!
Thanks for your suggestion, Claudia.
Made this sauce today for my cheesecake that I had baked earlier. The sauce turned out awesome! Nice red color and not too sweet! Just perfect!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Hi Natasha I follow you on FB.. so enjoy your funny sense of humour and your awesome recipes..
I made a cheese cake and your strawberry mix to pour over the cake tomorrow for a picnic.. will it thicken more in the fridge tonight.. its not really very thick right now.. thank you..
Hi Sherrie, you could simmer a few minutes longer to get it to thicken a little more.
Sauce turned out like jam, way too thick and not sweet enough
Hi Samantha, it should not be a jam-like consistency although we have comments from readers asking how to achieve this. Was anything altered in this recipe?
If I am making this sauce tonight and serving it tomorrow does it have to go in the refrigerator?
Yes, that would be recommended, just to be safe.
I make a batch of this sauce every week! It’s quick, easy and delicious! It pairs beautifully with banana bread and creme fraiche! 😋
Sounds awesome! I’m so happy to read your comments and feedback, thank you!
Hi Natasha! How long can i keep this sauce in the refrigerator? Thanks!
Hi Maegan, I have stored it max 4 days and it was still great but I haven’t tested it beyond that. Freezing it should work just fine.
Strawberrys loosing color as they are cooked .How do you prevent this?
Hi Jai, I haven’t had that experience but that could be if they are boiled for too long (or not long enough). It could also be due to using less sugar or omitting lemon juice. Real lemon juice will help them keep their vibrant color.