Salted Maple Caramel Sauce (easy recipe!) (2024)

FAQs

How is caramel sauce made from scratch? ›

Combine brown sugar, butter, and milk in a saucepan and bring ingredients to a boil. Remove thickened mixture from heat before adding (optional) vanilla extract. Let the caramel cool slightly before using. The result is an impossibly rich sauce that is guaranteed to satisfy your sweet tooth.

If you're using heavy cream, note that it contains more water (less butterfat) than double cream. If your caramel sauce ends up too runny, cook it for a few minutes longer to remove some of the moisture – this will thicken it up. (And next time, try using a slightly smaller amount of heavy cream.)

Like dry caramel, you want to gently move the sugar mixture in that same side-to-side paintbrush-like fashion until the sugar dissolves. Then, as soon as the mixture comes to a boil, it should not be stirred, as the agitation can cause crystallization.

You can substitute maple syrup for honey in equal amounts. Decrease the oven temperature by 25 degrees since maple Syrup tends to caramelize and burn on the top and edges sooner than recipes using cane sugar.

There are two basic methods of making caramel – wet and dry; the basic difference between the two methods being water. Essentially both methods are heating sugar, then adding fat (butter and cream, typically); but the wet uses water to dissolve the sugar faster.

If you have added too much butter to your caramel sauce, you may find that it is too oily or it might even begin to separate. To fix this, add 1 tablespoon of either water or milk and stir while cooking over medium heat. Adding 1-2 Tbsp of a simple cornstarch slurry may fix the problem, as well.

Stirring the sugar

That can set off a chain reaction that can cause caramel to seize up, ruining the entire batch. Instead, gently swirl the pan as you go and use a wet pastry brush to wipe down any sugar that sticks to the sides of the pot. Read up on more tips for preventing crystallization, too.

Add more sugar to the sauce.

Most caramel sauces are made by caramelizing sugar and adding milk and a little salt. If you increase the amount of sugar in the recipe you'll end up with a thicker caramel. Try increasing the sugar by about 1/3.

To make a perfect easy caramel every-time, simply add one or two drops of vinegar and just enough water to wet the sugar. The idea is to lower the PH. you can also use a small pinch of citric acid or cream of tartar if you have.

Why does my homemade caramel taste bitter? ›

The temperature of the caramel can rise so rapidly that it is hard to keep it in the desired temperature range, shown above. As a result, the caramel could burn and taste bitter.

Maple syrup that is boiled too long will crystallize and maple syrup that isn't boiled long enough will spoil quickly and will be watery because the concentration of sugar in the syrup will be too low.

The more glucose and fructose sugars in the boiling sap and the longer the sap boils, the darker the syrup will be. Sap with lower pH also breaks down sucrose, resulting in more glucose and fructose. Furthermore, the concentration of sugar in sap influences boiling time.

The very dark maple syrups have a more caramel or "buddy flavour". The medium coloured maple syrup will have that recognizable maple flavour. This difference in flavour is created by an actual chemical change in the composition of the sugar and other elements that make up the distinct maple flavour in the syrup.

What Are the Ingredients in Caramel? Sugar, butter, and cream are the three cornerstones of caramel. Some people also add corn syrup and water (we do). Water helps the sugar to dissolve more easily and reduces the risk of burning.

Most believe caramel was created more than 1,020 years ago in 1000 AD by Arabs mixing sugar and water to create a crystallized liquid. Funny enough, the original caramel was not believed to be enjoyed as a sweet treat but rather used as a beauty product.