Follow this Easy homemade caramel sauce recipe to make sweet and bittersweet versions; they taste much better than store-bought. You need 5 simple ingredients and 15 minutes top to make them. Enjoy silky and smooth caramel sauce on your Vanilla Cheesecake, Chocolate cake, or even drizzle some on an apple pie slice. You won’t need a candy thermometer to make this delicious caramel sauce!
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Please, don’t hesitate to try this recipe. Many choose the easy way and buy caramel sauce from the store, but homemade caramel sauce is far better. It is buttery, delightful, and with no preservatives. Try the sauce with my fluffy Chocolate Pancakes.
I teaching you two ways to make sweet and bittersweet caramel sauce, using the same ingredients. You just need to know when to stop caramelizing the sugar, and that's made easy by watching the video below and the step-by-step images. Make some at home and store it. You can freeze the sauce for up to three months.
🥘 INGREDIENTS
Five simple ingredients are all you need. If you don’t have them at home, you can easily get them from the store, and they are budget-friendly.
Butter – Use quality unsalted butter to have the maximum flavor. You can go for salted butter, too; if you do, omit the salt from the recipe.
Sugar – It is best to go for fine white sugar. Brown sugar is good but will make the caramel darker, slightly different in texture and taste.
Heavy cream – We can’t have rich and smooth caramel sauce without heavy cream. Don’t go for low-fat cream.
Water – It prevents the sugar from burning quickly.
Salt – You might think adding salt to caramel sauce is strange, but it enhances the flavor.
🔪 HOW TO MAKE
Making a delicious caramel sauce is super easy; you only need 15 minutes to go through the process. The detailed instructions are in the recipe card below, but here are the main steps.
Step 1
Add sugar and water to a heavy bottom saucepan and cook on medium heat. When the sugar melts, Swirl the pan carefully and occasionally. This way, the caramel will cook evenly.
Step 2
When the melted sugar turns golden, Turn off the heat to prepare the sweet caramel sauce. For the bittersweet caramel, continue cooking until the sugar turn amber or deep amber, then add the butter and whisk until it dissolves.
Step 3
Gently and carefully pour the heavy cream while whisking (careful, it will splash a bit).
Step 4
Add the salt and whisk for a few seconds. Allow the caramel sauce to cool a little while in the pan, then pour it into a jar to cool completely. The caramel sauce will be thin but will get thicker as it cools.
💭 COOKING TIPS
- To enjoy a flavorful caramel sauce, use European butter because it has less water.
- Using a heavy bottom pan, help the heat to spread evenly and prevent the sugar from burning.
- After adding the water to the sugar, swirl the pan to distribute the mixture, but you have to leave the pan alone until the sugar dissolves to prevent crystallization.
- Instead of white sugar, you can use raw sugar but avoid using brown sugar.
- Resist stirring the sugar and water mixture with a spoon.
💬 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Yes. The caramel has cream, which will spoil if not refrigerated.
You can use properly refrigerated caramel sauce for up to one month.
You can microwave it or heat it on gentle heat over the stovetop.
Do not stir the sugar and water mixture when adding it to the pan. Give it time to dissolve. You gently swirl the pan to help it dissolve evenly.
When hot, the caramel will be thin. When at room temperature, it will have a pouring consistency, but it will get thicker after you refrigerate it, the caramel will get thicker, but you can still spoon it out of the jar.
There is no need for a candy thermometer. This is an easy caramel sauce recipe with no complications. You can figure out when to add the next ingredient and when to stop caramelizing the sugar. Here I want to say that the color of the caramel sauce depends on how dark you allow the sugar to get.
No, the caramel sauce recipe I share here is not thick enough. However, you can use it to dip apple slices in it.
Add three tablespoons of water to the pan and swirl gently; this should take care of any crystallization.
You can drizzle it on cinnamon rolls and brownies and use it in cold coffee.
🍲 USE CARAMEL SAUCE WITH
🌡️ STORING HOMEMADE CARAMEL SAUCE
Refrigerate: You can refrigerate the caramel sauce in a jar with a tight container for up to one month.
Freeze: To freeze the caramel sauce, pour it in a freezer-friendly container, and it will keep for 3 months.
To thaw the frozen sauce, place it in the refrigerator overnight and then heat it in the microwave or gently over the stovetop.
📖 Recipe
Homemade Sweet and Bittersweet Caramel Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream At room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup water
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- In a heavy bottom pan, add the sugar and water. Swirl the pan to spread the mixture evenly. Let it cook on medium-high heat until the sugar dissolves. Avoid using high-heat.
- When the color of the sugar changes to light brown on the sides of the pan an come to a boil, swirl the pan carefully and gently to allow the caramel to cook evenly.
For Sweet Caramel Sauce
- When the mixture turns a light amber color, turn off the heat. Add the butter and whisk until the butter dissolves.
For Bittersweet Caramel Sauce
- When the mixture reaches a deep amber color, turn off the heat. Add the butter and whisk until the butter dissolves.
Steps After Adding the Butter
- Add the cream while whisking (careful, it will splash a bit).
- Add the salt and vanilla and whisk for a few seconds. Allow the sauce to cool a little while in the pan.
- Pour the caramel sauce into a jar to cool completely, then place it in the fridge.
Video
Notes
- Heat the caramel sauce before using it.
- If you are using salted butter, omit the salt in the recipe.
- Add half a teaspoon of salt to the sauce to make the salted caramel sauce. You can use sea salt.
- I suggest you read the tips and FAQs in this post, which will guide you through the process.
- A tablespoon of this sauce can go a long way, so you don't have to worry much about the calories.
- If you make a big batch, the cooking time might increase slightly.
IRENE RILEY
I ONLY SEE RECIPE FOR SWEET SAUCE.
Muna
Hi Irene, Thank you so much for the heads up I have edited the subtitle in the recipe card.