The best store-bought barbecue sauces, according to pitmasters

"We all have that nostalgic barbecue sauce we ate growing up. For me, it's Open Pit (and I experienced a lot of not-so-great barbecue sauces growing up in Cleveland). I love that it's not too sweet and not too thick — without any smoky flavoring added. It's great to brush on the grill and is easy to doctor up with things like caramelized onions and whiskey. Open Pit is a pretty mean burger sauce too." — Rick Mace, owner and executive chef of Tropical Smokehouse in West Palm Beach, Fla.

"Lillie's Q offers a great selection of flavors for a variety of uses. I love the Ivory sauce, which is a take on the classic Alabama white sauce that's famous for a mop finish for chicken. The richness of the mayo and the acidity from the vinegar gets the party started every time! Another reason I love using this product is because it looks so pretty and seems to always get everybody excited and hungry. It also makes a great salad dressing." — Burt Bakman, owner and pitmaster of Slab barbecue restaurant in Canoga Park, Calif.

Adds Mace: "Anything from Lillie's Q will put a smile on your face. [Founder] Charlie [McKenna], a classically trained chef, is a Memphis in May champ and great friend of ours, having cooked with us at Smoke & Sunshine. I love Lillie's Q ENC (East North Carolina) for that vinegar twang, and Lillie's Q Gold is perfectly balanced and craveable."

"My favorite sauce takes me back to my childhood. Growing up in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, we were raised on vinegar-based barbecue sauces, but every now and then, my mom would treat us to KC Masterpiece Original Barbecue Sauce when she didn't have time to make her own. I quickly fell in love with its bold, tangy flavor, which blends thick tomato sauce with sweet brown sugar, molasses and a hint of smoke and spices, and is perfect not just for dipping all kinds of delicious proteins, but also for glazing smoked or grilled meats. 

This sauce was actually the inspiration for a trip to Kansas City to try some of the best barbecue in the country, which inspired my brothers and I to eventually start our own barbecue restaurant and bottle our own award-winning barbecue sauce." — Jamie Farella, co-founder of Brothers Barbecue in New Windsor and West Nyack, New York and Brothers Smokehouse in Ramsey, New Jersey

"Cattlemen's gold barbecue sauce has been a staple in my house since I was a kid. I love to grill Roger Wood sausages for a quick meal. I create a sear, then place the sausages on indirect heat until they blister slightly. Then, I brush Cattlemen's barbecue sauce all around until it starts to caramelize. During that time on indirect heat, it creates a nice smoky ring around the sausage and gives a great grill flavor (especially if you're a charcoal guy like me). I use this same method for chicken, hot dogs, burgers, pork/beef ribs (even better after the ribs are smoked). I highly recommend this barbecue sauce for any occasion!" — Corey Glover, owner and chef of Sift and Season, a personal chef and catering company serving North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida

"This thin sauce packs a vinegar punch, with plenty of black pepper and a hint of mustard. Though it has a tomato hue and some sweetness, even North Carolinians (those who voraciously vouch only for vinegar, salt and crushed pepper in a sauce) would still likely approve of this tangy, classic creation. 

It goes best on a hickory-smoked pulled pork sandwich topped with pickles and sliced onions, or to accompany dry-rubbed ribs or smoked sausage. Also, a tablespoon or two never hurts in the base of deviled eggs or potato salad." — Matt R. Moore, serial griller and author of Butcher on the Block and South's Best Butts

"Stubb's is great because you can use it for any barbecue sauce application — cold on a sandwich, mixed into pulled pork — and it's well-balanced for a store-bought sauce. It doesn't have that cloying, overly sweet taste most commercial sauces have and doesn't contain any high-fructose corn syrup. Another local favorite for me is Long Island-based Mantis BBQ Sauce — so tasty and proceeds go to a great cause." — George Motz, burger scholar, author and owner of Hamburger America in New York City

"Blues Hog Tennessee Red Sauce is great on chicken, as well as for dipping chicken tenders. I have used it on chicken sandwiches and it's very good — just the right amount of heat with vinegar taste for the perfect blend. It also tastes really great on buffalo wings. People often ask me how I made the sauce even though I didn't!" — Raul Luis, owner of Birrieria Chalio (@BirriaWorld) in Texas and California

"When I decided I wanted to smoke barbecue professionally, I knew that I wanted to create my own sauce, and I did: Texas Q Original and Texas Q Sweet Heat. However, my all-time favorite, go-to store-bought sauce is … spicy Sweet Baby Ray's. It goes, much like my own sauce, equally well with beef, pork, poultry and seafood." — Sloan Rinaldi, pitmaster, cookbook author and guest on Netflix's Barbecue Showdown

"Bachan's is a game-changer when it comes to barbecue sauce. Their original sauce adds a perfect amount of umami flavor to any protein, making it a great all-round sauce. The new Sweet Honey sauce is another favorite with my followers on social media. My favorite way to use Bachan's is by marinating some chicken thighs, and then grilling them over open fire. The sauce works amazing as a marinade and it infuses a ton of flavor into the meat, leaving the meal prep super easy." — Nick Nesgoda, founder of Burnt Pellet BBQ food blog

Adds Scott Gubitose, a chef at Blue Ribbon BBQ in Time Out Market Boston: "I'm really into Japanese barbecue sauces right now, specifically Bachan's. Not a big fan of the sweet and sticky corn syrup/molasses-based sauces. Bachan's has a small handful of flavors released. I'm a big fan of the original."

Mace loves it too: "I've been using Bachan's Japanese Barbecue Sauce at the house a lot. It's a great finishing sauce and glaze. We've been doing a fun weeknight dinner, scallops over rice, made simply by searing small scallops on a hot cast iron pan on the grill and then glazing the scallops in the pan with the Bachan's. Serve this over warm sushi rice with cucumber and avocado."