Church hosts fundraiser featuring famous Cornell BBQ sauce

Nothing says Fourth of July weekend like a good old fashion barbecue and there is none quite like the one at Old Steeple Community Church on Main Road in Aquebogue.

Dozens gathered for the church’s annual fundraiser Saturday featuring a meal that included a baked potato, corn on the cob, roll, coleslaw, iced tea, watermelon and chicken, made complete by a famous BBQ sauce recipe created by the Cornell scientist who invented the chicken nugget.

The unique sauce is a combination of oil, cider vinegar, seasonings and even an egg. The recipe was developed more than 60 years ago by the founder of Cornell University’s Institute of Food Science and Marketing, Robert Baker.

Dr. Baker’s instructions for the sauce involve cooking the chicken on an outdoor broiler, which produces a hot, but non-flaming fire. He advised that the full flavor of the sauce could not be achieved using a gas grill

At Old Steeple the BBQ sauce is used as a basting material, brushed on the chicken every few minutes as it roasts over the broilers.

“It’s fabulous,” said Coleen Lowe. “We come from Massachusetts every year for this barbecue. We love it!”