Caramel sauce can be a delicious addition to desserts, whether it is used as a dip, filling, or just a drizzle on top. Its simple taste and texture can elevate many sweet treats, including ice creams, waffles, pancakes, pies, and fruit. This rich, flavorful sauce is also fairly easy to make, typically using four to six ingredients. With the right tips, one can also perfect the caramel sauce texture, making it as smooth as possible.
How to make caramel sauce from scratch
An easy, foolproof homemade caramel sauce typically needs four ingredients—granulated sugar, water, heavy cream, and unsalted butter.
- Combine some sugar and a couple of tablespoons of water in a stainless steel pot.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the butter and heavy cream together.
- Place the steel pot with the sugar-water mixture over medium heat. Keep stirring it until all of the sugar dissolves. At this point, a thick and smooth liquid will begin to develop.
- Once the sugar is fully dissolved, stop stirring the mixture. Safely and carefully start swirling the pan so all of the liquid is heated evenly. Consider turning the heat up slightly to cook the liquid better.
- Keep an eye on the sugar as it begins turning brown. This might take around 15 minutes, so it is important to be patient and trust the process. However, as soon as the sugar caramelizes and all of the liquid turns brown, turn off the heat.
- Add the butter and heavy cream to the caramelized sugar, and constantly whisk the mixture. Continue whisking even after adding the required amount of cream and butter until the mixture becomes smooth and cohesive.
- The mixture should still be hot, so once the whisking is complete, transfer it to a heat-safe container and allow it to cool. Then, the caramel sauce will be ready.
One can store this sauce in the fridge for at least 10 days.
How to make caramel sauce without using cream
Whole milk can be a great substitute for heavy cream when making caramel sauce. Given that milk has enough water content already, one would not need additional water for this caramel sauce recipe. This also means that one would need to tweak the cooking process a little bit.
- Start by heating the butter in a saucepan or pot over medium heat.
- Then, add the sugar and milk to the pan and stir to combine.
- Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until it is thick and bubbling.
- Remove the mixture from heat, carefully pour it into a heat-safe container, and let it cool.
Tips for getting the texture right
One of the biggest challenges when making caramel sauce with water and cream is avoiding a grainy texture. However, the right techniques make it easy to whip up a perfectly smooth homemade caramel sauce.
Avoid scraping the sides of the pan
Usually, when the sugar is melted and caramelized, some of it tends to stick to the side or the corners of the pan or the pot. At this stage, one may instinctively scrape the corners and mix in the sugar. However, this may not be a good idea, as the sugar that sticks to the corners quickly crystallizes. Scraping the crystals and mixing them in will make the sauce grainy. So, instead of scraping the stuck sugar, it is better to brush it down using a pastry brush dipped in water.
Bring the heat down
Another thing that can crystallize the sugar is keeping the heat too high when the mixture is caramelizing. The crystallization will make the sauce texture grainy. To avoid this, it is better to make the caramel over medium heat.
Switch to swirling the pan at the right time
Once all of the sugar has dissolved, it is crucial to put away the spatula and stop stirring since that can also cause crystallization. Instead, as soon as the sugar dissolves, one must switch to swirling the pan to heat the mixture.
Tips for fixing a grainy caramel sauce
If one notices their sauce taking on a grainy texture, they can still save it and make it smooth with a few simple adjustments.
Add some water
Adding a few tablespoons of water will help quickly dissolve the crystallized sugar, making the texture smooth. Here, the water must be gradually added while stirring the sauce constantly to ensure it mixes well.
Use corn syrup
Many recipes include corn syrup as one of the main ingredients for caramel sauce. That said, when making the sauce without it, adding a tablespoon of corn syrup to the heating mixture and stirring it well will also help the sauce develop a smooth texture.
Add some butter
Adding more butter to the caramel mixture and stirring it in when the pan is still over the stovetop can also help get rid of the grainy texture and make the sauce smooth.
Blend the sauce
If one notices the sauce taking on a grainy texture after it cools down, one can simply blend the mixture with a blender or food processor to get a smooth consistency.
Strain the sauce
After the caramel sauce cools down, one can strain it. This also helps remove the crystallized sugar and make the sauce smooth.
