Rich and toasty and completely decadent, nothing feels quite as indulgent as caramel sauce! Despite its fancy appearance, caramel is actually quite easy to make. It takes a handful of ingredients and a little patience (and quite a bit of self-doubt the first time.) But once you have mastered caramel sauce, you will feel like you can make anything!
Here’s what you need:
The first time making caramel sauce can be a terrifying experience. Because of this, I recommend going with the ‘dry method.’ It’s less popular than the ‘wet method,’ but I prefer it because it allows me to have more control over the process.
With the wet method of making caramel, sugar is dissolved into water as it heats. Then, once it is dissolved, you leave it alone. The water will evaporate out as the sugar cooks and begins to caramelize. Then, you finish making your sauce from the caramelized sugar.
With the dry method, sugar is simply heated until it begins to melt. As it caramelizes, you stir continuously until all of the sugar has melted. Then you make your sauce. This is what I am going to be showing in this post.
How to make caramel sauce with the ‘dry’ method.
Pour granulated sugar into a medium saucepan over medium heat.
It will take a minute for the bottom layer of sugar to begin to melt, but once it does, give it a stir a few times a minute. As the melted sugar mixes with the unmelted sugar, it will form golden brown crystals, which is perfectly normal.
I prefer making a dry caramel because it allows me to have control over the process. I’m too much of a micromanager to leave my caramel alone and hope for the best!
The main risk with making dry caramel is burning it. You have to keep stirring it so that the bottom layer of sugar that is touching the surface of the pan doesn’t brown before the top layer has begun to melt.
Keep on stirring the sugar until it has all melted and is a rich amber color. If there are some crystals remaining that won’t melt, just smoosh them into the caramel with a silicone spatula.
Add dairy to finish the sauce.
With the heat still on medium, pour in the cream. It will bubble pretty violently and the caramelized sugar will seize up.
The cream is cooler than the caramelized sugar. Adding something cooler to the sugar causes it to return to its solid form. But as the cream heats, the sugar will melt once again.
For this reason, it’s best to use room temperature cream. The closer it is in temperature to the melted sugar when it goes in, the less violently it the sugar will seize up, which will then make it easier to melt back into the sauce.
Keep stirring until the sugar has melted back into the sauce, then turn the heat off. This can take a few minutes, but just keep on stirring. When the sauce is smooth, add the diced butter and stir it to emulsify it with the caramel. Lastly, add the salt and vanilla extract.
Keep your delicious homemade caramel sauce refrigerated in a glass jar or container for up to two weeks. The cold temperature of the fridge will cause it to harden just a bit. When you need a drizzle of caramel, simply spoon out the amount needed and microwave it in 5 second intervals until the desired consistency is reached.
Salted caramel sauce is perfect for fall drizzled over Rustic Cinnamon Apple Cake!
I make a homemade caramel sauce for the base of my Salted Caramel Ice Cream. It’s so delicious!
Other recipes to try:
- Salted Caramel Ice Cream
- Salted Caramel Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting
- Salted Coconut Caramel Sauce
Homemade Salted Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup heavy cream room temperature
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, diced room temperature
- salt to taste
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pour the sugar into a heavy bottomed medium saucepan and spread it out into an even layer. Turn the heat to medium. After a minute or so, the bottom layer of the sugar will begin to melt. Stir the sugar a couple times a minute with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula to combine the melted with the solid sugar. It will clump up and turn a slightly golden color. As more of the sugar melts, stir it constantly until no clumps remain and it becomes a rich amber color. Immediately pour in the cream. It will bubble violently at first and the melted sugar will seize up. Continue to stir until the caramelized sugar and the cream become a smooth, thick sauce. Turn off the heat and add the butter. Stir until the butter is emulsified into the sauce.