Best 5 Authentic Caramel Sauce Recipes

OH-SO-EASY CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring brown sugar, butter, and milk to a gentle boil and cook until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat; add vanilla extract.

EASY CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker. Add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat, cool slightly and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.

CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Mix the water and sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Do not stir. Increase the heat to medium and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a warm chestnut brown (about 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer), about 5 to 7 minutes, gently swirling the pan to stir the mixture. Be careful - the mixture is extremely hot! Watch the mixture very carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Turn off the heat. Stand back to avoid splattering and slowly add the cream and vanilla. Don't worry - the cream will bubble violently and the caramel will solidify.
• Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth, about 2 minutes. Allow to cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. It will thicken as it sits.

AUTHENTIC CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Also need: instant read thermometer, pastry brush and a small bowl of cold water In a heavy 2 quart sauce pan combine sugar and 1/2 cup of water, cover with a snug fitting lid and heat over med-low stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved.
• Once sugar has dissolved, brush down inside of pan with pastry brush and water to remove any traces of sugar from the sides of the pan.
• Remove lid from pan and increase heat to med-high.
• Do not stir mixture at this point.
• Mixture will boil until all water has evaporated, use pastry brush and cold water to keep the inside of the pan clean of any splashes.
• The danger here is that sugar will crystallize on the sides of the pan and set off a chain reaction that will crystallize the entire pot.
• Have a second pot of water boiling and your 1/4 cup measure with salt in it all ready to go as you'll need to work fast once the sugar has reached the desired temperature.
• Adjust heat so mixture is boiling gently, slowly raising heat to raise temperature of the sugar syrup.
• Boil mixture until it reaches 315°F.
• for a light caramel, 330°F.
• for a medium, 345°F.
• for a dark caramel.
• You can go as high as 360°F for a very dark and nutty tasting caramel, however it's a bit too much for the average caramel eater.
• Once caramel has reached the desired temperature immediately remove from heat as the temperature will continue to rise very rapidly, put on some heavy gloves, point pan away from you, or anyone else for that matter, and pour in the 1/4 cup of water mixed with the pinch of salt.
• This exciting step arrests the cooking and keeps the sugar from solidifying.
• The mixture will splatter for a few seconds then subside.
• I like to set the pan on the edge of a burner so it's tilted away, hold the lid with one hand, pour the water with the other and cover it FAST!
• When mixture cools to 220°F add the condensed milk and vanilla extract.
• Stir over a low heat until well combined.
• Pour mixture into your serving container (I use small, wide mouth mason jars) and fill pan with boiling water and return to stove.
• Allow it and your tools to boil for a few minutes and your clean-up will be a snap.
• Once you get the hang of it there will be just a couple splatters to clean up and you you'll be able to tell the temperature of the mixture by looking at the color.
• Store in the refrigerator. I've kept a single batch for three months-- it may last longer.

CLASSIC CARAMEL SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring the cream to a boil in a 1-quart saucepan over medium heat.
• Cook the sugar, water, and honey in a 3-quart heavy-duty saucepan over high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Brush around the inside of the pan with a damp pastry brush at the point where the sugar syrup meets the sides of the pan. Do this twice during the cooking process to prevent the sugar from crystallizing.
• Cook the mixture over high heat, without stirring, until it turns amber colored, 6-8 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and slowly add the hot cream to the sugar mixture while stirring constantly. The cream will bubble and foam. Continue stirring to make sure there are no lumps. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the butter until it is completely melted. Then stir in the vanilla.
• Transfer the caramel sauce to a bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, cool slightly, and serve warm.