The easiest homemade Caramel Sauce made in minutes, with just 5 basic ingredients. Enjoy it on top of ice cream, in your hot chocolate, or literally over anything!
If you love caramel, you have to try my Homemade Caramels, Caramel Apples, Caramel Popcorn, Chocolate Covered Pretzels, or Chocolate Covered Marshmallows!
Homemade Caramel sauce is a big reward for little effort.
Homemade Caramel sauce is a big reward for little effort.Before you even think about buying an artificially flavored caramel sauce from the store, let me tell you how EASY it is to make yourself. You get that real, rich caramel flavor, with no of the additives or preservatives, and it will keep in the fridge for weeks. Drizzle it over pumpkin cheesecake, apple crisp, or better than sex cake. Use it for ice cream sundaes (with brownies and hot fudge, too), or as a dip for fresh sliced apples.
How to make Caramel Sauce:
Combine: Grease the sides of a saucepan, then add butter, brown sugar, water, and salt, and cook over medium-low, stirring constantly until butter is melted. Bring mixture to a boil then simmer on low for 5-8 minutes, stirring constantly. It should be golden brown and thickened (it will continue to thicken as it cools).
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and evaporated milk. Add additional evaporated milk if you want a thinner consistency. Serve easy caramel sauce over ice cream, chocolate chip skillet cookie, or drizzle over pumpkin eggnog or hot cocoa.
Storage and Freezing Instructions:
To Store: Refrigerate leftover caramel sauce for up to 2 weeks. Rewarm in the microwave for a few seconds.
To Freeze: Store in a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw completely in the refrigerator before using.
Serve Caramel Sauce With:
- Caramel Apple Dip
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Baked Peaches
- Better Than Sex Cake
- Ice Cream Cake
- Bread Pudding
- Hot Cocoa
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Recipe
Homemade Caramel Sauce
Equipment
- saucepan
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar , firmly packed
- 2 Tablespoons water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup evaporated milk , or heavy cream, or more, to thin the sauce
Instructions
- Grease the sides of a medium saucepan with oil or non-stick spray. Add butter, brown sugar, water, and salt to saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the butter has melted.
- Bring the mixture to a boil., stirring constantly. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 5-8 minutes, stirring, until golden brown and thickened (keep in mind it will continue to thicken as it cools).
- Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and ½ cup evaporated milk. Add more evaporated milk if you'd like a thinner consistency.
- Store caramel sauce in a covered container or jar in the refrigerator for 1-2 weeks. Re-warm in the microwave for a few seconds, or on the stove over low heat.
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe September 2015. Updated May 2020 and October 2024.
Original recipe adapted from Food.com
This post contains affiliate links.
Have you every used heavy cream in place of the evaporated milk?
Yes, that’s a great substitution! Enjoy!
Made the recipe and love it. Thanks for sharing.
I made this sauce for the first time today to fill cupcakes with. Well they were excellent thanks for the quick and easy recipe
Is it wrong to eat half the jar of Carmel off a spoon. Lol I’ve made this recipe several times now and it never lasts more than 2 days. That’s a beautiful thing
Hello!!! This tastes great! Added a little milk only so it wouldn’t be too thin. However, it seems that my sugar didnt melt? It’s a bit rough on the tongue and felt like there were granules and the butter has separated, you can see it accumulating on the top. Is it supposed to be like that? I made 1/2 recipe and added 3/4milk. Thinking if i should add more
Hi Mia, It seems that the sugar didn’t dissolve as it should. Next time, try stirring it really well the entire time, scraping the sides of the pan as you go. Also, be sure to maintain the heat at medium–don’t fluctuate the temperature at all. Hopefully those things should fix the problem!
I made the apple crisp along with the caramel sauce! It turned out beautifully! And my kitchen smells so good now too. Thank you for sharing! My family loves it!
So perfect to whip up while the baked peach dessert is in the oven.
What chocolate cake mix did you use it looks lovely & moist , can’t wait to try this recipe thanks.
Can I use a can of Caramel condensed milk instead?
Do you use salted or unsalted butter? Can’t wait to try this!
Unsalted butter. You could use salted butter too, just taste the mixture before you add the additional 1/4 tsp that the recipe calls for.