Classic Caramel Sauce

Flavor

Once all the sugar melts, it will start getting that signature caramel brown color and will turn from a light shade to a dark shade fairly quickly. There is a wide range of flavors you can get in caramel, all dependent on when you add the butter (which stops the caramel cooking process). Golden, amber, reddish – each one will produce a different taste. Darker browns will have a richer caramel flavor, while lighter ones will have a subtle toffee flavor. It’s best to add the butter once the color is amber, meaning a deep brown but not so dark that it’s almost black. Once you master this, you can try to add the butter to a deeper brown color (about 15-20 seconds after the amber color appears).

What about corn syrup (or lemon juice or cream of tartar)?

You may find these ingredients in some recipes. It helps to reduce crystallization and therefore makes the process easier, which is great, but definitely optional. Unless I have it on hand, I won’t use it.

Dry or wet method?

There are 2 ways to cook caramel: cooking just sugar by itself (dry caramel) or cooking the sugar with water (wet caramel). I recommend the wet method for a novice baker. I had good results with it when I was learning and I still use it. For this method you’ll need to add water to the pan along with the sugar. In both methods, the resulting caramel will be the same since the water will evaporate while cooking, but in order to let it evaporate, wet caramel will take a few minutes longer.

To stir or not to stir?

When using the dry method, you can and should stir the sugar in order to prevent burning. While in some recipes, it’s suggested to stir the sugar constantly, I suggest stirring only occasionally and when necessary because whisking encourages lumps and makes the mixture crumbly. You can’t always avoid lumps, but don’t worry as they will eventually melt. In the wet method, stirring will encourage crystallization and clumping, so avoid doing this. Instead of stirring, you can gently swirl the pan.

The process

The sugar should dissolve within a few minutes. Once the sugar liquefies to a caramel, watch it carefully, because it can turn from deep brown to burnt within seconds.

Once it turns amber in color, add the butter. Be very careful, adding it gently and keeping your face away from the pan. The caramel is HOT and will bubble up. For that same reason, it’s recommended to warm up the whipping cream slightly before adding, to reduce the high difference in temperature.

For salted caramel, you can use either 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt or 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt, to taste. You can also use 1 teaspoon of ‘fleur de sol’, a high quality flaky sea salt.

More Caramel Recipes:

• Perfect Caramel Apple Pie
• Amazing Salted Caramel Apple Scones
• Salted Caramel Cheesecake Mousse
• Caramel Banana Upside Down Cake
• Chocolate Caramel Truffles