Caramel Sauce
Updated
Updated
Follow this easy recipe to make homemade caramel sauce – salted or not. It only takes 10 minutes and a few pantry items. Then enjoy it drizzled over ice cream, cakes, pancakes, cheesecake, stir it into iced coffee, or use as a dessert dip for apples or other fruit!
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5 STAR REVIEWS
Right next to my homemade chocolate sauce, this homemade caramel sauce has got to be the easiest recipe ever. And it is pure nirvana! Sure, you can buy caramel sauce at the store, but as with most foods, homemade tastes so much better and doesn’t have any added unnecessary ingredients. Plus, in the time it would take you to drive to the market, this caramel sauce would be done! It’s sweet and buttery and going to rock your world, trust me! It takes this ice cream sandwich cake completely over the top.
Helpful Tips
- The utensils you use do matter. It is important to use either a wooden spoon or a heat-resistant silicone spoon to make the sauce.
- Resist the urge to stir! As the sugar and water bubble, if you stir them, you’ll cause sugar clumps to form and it will not be smooth and creamy. Once it starts cooking, do not stir. And be sure not to let the caramel go high up the sides of the pot or this will make the caramel sauce crystallize and become grainy, as well.
- What if my sauce does crystallize? Luckily, you don’t need to start over. Whew. Add a scant 1/4 cup of water and bring the sugar back to a gentle bubble. (Heating it up with the water should dissolve the crystals. Then proceed with the recipe until you get color on the sugar.)
- Use unsalted butter. Even if you want salted caramel sauce, I recommend using unsalted butter. This gives you better control over the saltiness of the finished product. For salted caramel sauce, I like to add 1/2 teaspoon of salt, but I recommend starting with 1/8 teaspoon and adjust to taste.
- Stay put and be patient. Do not step away from the stove while the caramel is cooking. This sauce is super easy, but it can take anywhere from 8-15 minutes to thicken and turn that gorgeous dark gold color. Since you don’t know where your sauce will land in that window, you need to be paying close attention.
- Can I use this caramel sauce for caramel apples? Unfortunately, no. This caramel is not thick enough to coat apples for caramel apples. But it sure makes a great dessert dip for apple slices or other fruit. It’s also perfect drizzled over ice cream or cheesecake, or stirred into coffee!
Easy Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, , cut into pieces
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Add the sugar and water to a 3-quart heavy bottomed pot; stir just slightly so it's combined and sits in a flat even layer, and try to avoid it going up the sides of the pot.
- Warm pot over medium heat and cook until the sugar dissolves, turns from cloudy to clear, and starts to bubble – this can take a few minutes. (At this point, do not stir again – simply allow to bubble and cook – and keep your heat at medium.)
- If the sugar forms clumps around the perimeter of the pot, using a spatula, you can gently brush down the sides occasionally, to prevent crystallization. But just continue cooking, without stirring, until the mixture thickens and turns a deep gold color like honey (this can take anywhere from 8-15 minutes), keeping a watchful eye so the mixture doesn’t burn. SEE NOTE BELOW.
- Carefully add the butter and whisk until completely melted. (The caramel will bubble up rapidly, so be careful and continue to whisk.)
- Remove the pot from the heat. Slowly pour in the heavy cream, whisking continuously until all of the cream has been incorporated.
- Whisk in the vanilla and salt.
- Set aside to cool in the pot for 10 minutes.
- Then pour into a lidded glass jar and allow to cool completely. (The caramel will be liquid at first, but will thicken up and solidify into a chewy texture as it cools.) Once it's completely cooled, it needs to be stored in the fridge because of the dairy. Reheat to use again – see note below.)
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and any changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are very important to you, I would recommend calculating them yourself.
Did you make this? Leave a rating below!
Do I need a Candy Thermometer?
You definitely don’t need a thermometer. If you have a thermometer and want to be very precise, the target temperature you’re after is between 225−230F which creates a sauce that has proper color and caramelization, and is thick enough to drizzle but still fluid when cool. (Making candy, requires a higher temperature.) If you follow this recipe exactly, without deviation, all you really need is a good nose and set of eyeballs!
Does homemade caramel sauce need to be refrigerated?
Yep! Because it has dairy (cream and butter), it will need to be refrigerated once it cools. You’ll reheat it, as necessary.
How to Store Caramel Sauce
- Fridge. After the caramel cools down, you’ll pour it into a lidded glass jar or container. Store in the refrigerator, tightly sealed, up to 3 weeks.
- Freezer. This caramel sauce can also be frozen in a freezer-safe jar for up to 2 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature before using.
- Reheat. Caramel solidifies in the refrigerator so it needs to be reheated, either on the stove or in the microwave, until desired consistency is reached – usually just 10 seconds or so. Note: reheating the caramel will make it thinner and runnier.
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and YouTube!
It took me a few tries of getting it wrong to finally get it right. I used and enamel pot first and then a nonstick pan—both never turned brown and the sugar crystallized. I used a basic stainless steel pan and it was perfect brown caramel in under 10 minutes.
turned out perfectly in less than 10 minutes. used it warm over a kind of dry 😂bundt cake with whipped cream!
Made the recipe and followed exactly including tips. Came out perfectly. Left for a one week trip after making it and it is still tastes great after 10 days. Thanks for sharing this recipe! It’s a keeper.
Ok i finally got it to work i guess the.medium heat setting on my stove didnt give it enough heat.
Awesome flavor and easy… thanks for sharing ❤️❤️
I finally gave in and made this easy, but extremely delicious caramel! Taste identical to Werther’s original, which I replaced for cigarettes 32 years ago; I quit cold turkey and started sucking on the Werther’s Instead.Thank you for sharing this amazing caramel sauce Amy….I’m hooked!!!
Loved this! Super easy and tastes just like werthers! Thank you!
This caramel turned out great! I would suggest to anyone! Great for beginners
This is the best tasting caramel sauce I’ve ever had or made. Made it as instructed, but ignoring the build up of crystals on the side of the pot. Keeping an eye out on color. This did take a bit…about fifteen minutes and the result was amazing. Thank you for this delicious and easy to follow recipe.
Made it twice: First time the colour was great but I didn’t put in enough water so I ended up having to strain it before I put it in the jar. The second time I tripled the recipe and the texture and flavour were great but I don’t think I cooked it quite long enough because the colour was a little pale for caramel. But that’s an easy fix!!
This is a simple recipe and makes the most delectable caramel sauce! I literally want to eat it by the spoonful.
This recipe is super easy and fun to make! Remember to have patience!!
I drizzled it over slices of German Chocolate Bundt cake, everyone loved it!
I made this and it was good, but didn’t have the dark golden brown color of carmel.
Just follow the steps exactly and it turns out perfectly… Taste is impeccable and it’s soft enough for cake, ice cream, or popcorn. I highly recommend 10/10.
So I doubled the recipe not knowing you’re not supposed to (saw it in the comments). It crystallized/clumped/looked like a crumbled mess, but I found that if you turn up the heat, stir the crystallized sugar, it will start to melt and brown (watch it carefully). Once it started to brown I continue to stir until the sugar melted completely. Make sure to turn the heat down. I added butter, and stirred until incorporated then added the hwc. Sooo, if your sugar clumps, I recommend turning the heat up, continue to stir, watch the color and follow through with the rest of the recipe once it melts. Like another commenter, I too, had to strain it, but it turned out fine.
I just made this caramel sauce and it turned out perfect which is a victory for me!
Thank you for this great recipe.
I followed the directions and it came out fantastic!
Love this! First time making caramel sauce and I’ll never buy from a store again. I’m not sure I cooked it correctly because it really clumped but I added a little water and stirred it, which helped. I also strained the sauce and it was perfection.
So easy and delicious! Everyone loved it! Perfect caramel sauce!
Excellent and SO easy. Never made anything like this before and wanted to serve over cheesecake for the holidays. DELICIOUS!
I had some problems with this recipe, but I was prepared to attempt it until I got it right. I think this helped me in the long run. Through my three attempts, I found the following tricks to be helpful.
First, I used a frying pan instead of a pot. The wider base helped things cook more evenly (according to Reddit). Second, I stirred the sugar until the mixture just started to roll tiny bubbles. This seemed to help it dissolve. But most importantly, the temperature did not matter. I focused on it too much and the temperature was significantly higher than I anticipated. On my final (and third) attempt, it turned out perfectly!
I also had to switch to a pan and add another 1/4 cup of water. Took me 1 attempt the first time, 3 the second and 2 this last time. I tried a double batch as my nephew loves this (and the chocolate sauce which is amazing and I didn’t have to deviate at all) but was unsuccessful in both attempts, tried once more lastnight and did an extra 1/4 of water amd 2 less ounces of butter and it finally worked also with a pan and not a pot….It is a really good caramel and worth all the attemps
Made quite easy, just follow recipe
Turned out fantastic! First time making caramel sauce, instructions were perfect! Thank you!
I’ve made it 4 times. It’s crystallized 3 of the 4. The one time it worked it was delicious. I used different pots, I do not stir it, I keep heat on medium. It won’t turn any color and it just crystalizes after 10 mins. I make a lot of candy, I just can’t figure out why this won’t work for me. 🤷
I have had the same issue. I do not stir it, and follow the recipe to a T. Also, mine often separates after it cools in the fridge. It’s like the butter isn’t getting mixed in all the way. But, the flavor is great, and I’ll keep making it.
I’ve made this a few times too and have had oil separate from the mixture. It still tastes amazing, just not sure how to keep it from getting that oily layer. Any suggestions?
This happened to mine as well but I just turned up the heat a little and it melted back down into a perfect honey colored syrup