This easy homemade Caramel Sauce is thick and creamy, with a deep caramelized sugar flavor and a silky smooth texture. Try it on brownies, ice cream, or your favorite pie–it goes with just about anything!

🤎 Homemade Caramel Sauce Recipe
If you’ve never made homemade caramel sauce before, get ready to be shocked at HOW MUCH BETTER it is than store-bought! Most jarred caramel is (literally!) a pale imitation of real caramel sauce – it’s an ultra-sweet, watered-down, vaguely yellowish sauce with just a hint of caramel flavor. Bo-ring!
Now compare that to this homemade caramel sauce: a thick, luscious sauce that slowly slides off the tip of a spoon, with a rich and creamy texture and the complex flavor of darkly toasted sugar and caramelized butter. Yes please!
This sauce is good enough to eat by itself with a spoon ( and believe me, I do!) but it’s also incredibly versatile. It’s perfect for drizzling over ice cream, swirling into brownie batter, adding to pie filling, or using as a dip for fresh fruit.
You’ll need about 30 minutes and a few simple ingredients to make this sauce. Don’t worry if you’ve never made caramel before – we’ll walk you through the process of making caramel sauce step by step, with photos and lots of tips for getting that perfect caramel flavor and consistency.
How to Use Caramel Sauce
Although caramel can be enjoyed any time of the year, I love to serve this caramel with tons of Fall and Thanksgiving recipes: pumpkin spice cheesecake, pumpkin pound cake, pear pie in a jar, you name it!
Table of Contents
🧾What You’ll Need

Ingredients
You’ll only need 7 simple ingredients to make this caramel sauce recipe! Here are a few things to keep in mind as you gather your ingredients. (Links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)
- Corn syrup: Keeps the sauce from getting grainy. If light corn syrup isn’t available in your area, you can swap in glucose syrup or golden syrup.
- Granulated sugar: Combining granulated sugar with corn syrup makes a homemade caramel sauce that’s perfectly sweet.
- Heavy cream: Adding cream to the sauce gives it a thick, luscious texture with fantastic flavor!
- Unsalted butter and salt: Be sure to use unsalted butter so you can control the saltiness of the caramel. If you only have salted butter, use it and omit the excess salt from the recipe.
- Vanilla extract: To round out the flavor of the caramel, use a little vanilla extract to add depth.

Equipment
You just need a couple basic baking staples to make this homemade caramel sauce! (Links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases.)
- Candy thermometer: To make perfect homemade caramel, a candy thermometer is a must! If you don’t have a thermometer yet and need some help picking out the best kind, check out this comprehensive thermometer guide.
- Heavy bottomed saucepan: I use a 4-quart heavy bottomed saucepan to make this caramel. Heavy bottomed pans help conduct heat better so the caramel cooks evenly and is less likely to burn!
- Pastry brush: Using a wet pastry brush to remove excess sugar around the inside of the pan will help to prevent sugar crystals from forming.
- Storage containter: Don’t forget you’ll need something to store your sauce in. I like to use a glass jar with a hinged lid, but you could also use a plastic container. This recipe makes about 30 oz, so make sure your container is large enough, or split it up into several smaller jars.
Candy Thermometer Tips
I can’t overemphasize the importance of using a candy thermometer when making candy. However, to get the most out of your thermometer there are a few things you should know:
- Test your thermometer: Before getting started, especially if you live at high altitude, it’s important to test and calibrate your thermometer for accuracy. If your thermometer is inaccurate, you might ruin your caramel accidentally.
- How to test a thermometer: Bring a pot of water to a boil. Insert the thermometer for one minute and then read the temperature. At sea level, water boils at 212ºF. If your thermometer doesn’t show 212ºF, calculate what the difference is. For example, if it reads 208ºF, you know that you have a difference of -4ºF from any temperature written. If something needs to be cooked to 300ºF, then you need to cook it to 296ºF to get the right result! Need more help? Learn more about how to calibrate a candy thermometer with this helpful tutorial.
- High altitude candy making: If you live high above sea level, you’ll know that candy making can be challenging because you’ll need to make some temperature adjustments. I’m here to tell you that learning how to use your candy thermometer at high altitude doesn’t have to be a pain. Check out this guide to high altitude candy making and discover all the tips and tricks you’ll need to make this caramel sauce recipe.

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- Get the recipe below 👇👇
- Scroll below the recipe for step-by-step photos
- Read important FAQs and more
⭐ More Dessert Sauce Recipes
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Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 fl oz water, (1/4 cup)
- 5.5 fl oz light corn syrup, (1/2 cup)
- 14 oz granulated sugar, (2 cups)
- 12 fl oz heavy cream, (1 ½ cups), at room temperature
- 4 oz unsalted butter, (1/2 cup), cubed, at room temperature
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Combine the water, corn syrup, and sugar in a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, and place it over medium heat. Stir well so the sugar dissolves.
- Brush down the sides of the saucepan with a wet pastry brush to prevent any sugar crystals from forming. Once it starts to boil, stop stirring completely, and insert a candy thermometer.
- Cook the sugar syrup, without stirring, until it is fragrant and a medium amber color, between 340-350°F on the candy thermometer. (If you stop cooking when the caramel is still a light yellow color it will result in a very mild caramel sauce that lacks deep flavor.) Depending on your pan and stove, this caramelization process might take anywhere from 15-25 minutes. Tip – Don't just rely on the temperature – also check the color of the caramel as it cooks. If your saucepan has a darker bottom and it is difficult to determine caramel color, keep a small white plate near the stove and drop a spoonful of caramel onto the plate periodically.
- Once your caramel reaches the correct temperature and color, carefully add the room temperature cream, butter, and salt, combining well. Continue to cook while stirring regularly, until the caramel reaches 232°F on the thermometer (this will probably take 6-8 additional minutes).Tip – To prevent burns, stand back when you add these ingredients, as the cream will cause the caramel to splutter and steam.
- Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. Let the caramel cool until it is warm but not hot, then serve.
- To store, allow the caramel to cool completely to room temperature, then place it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Can be served cold or warm.
Recipe Notes
Freeze: Caramel sauce can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Simply cool completely and place into a plastic airtight container. To serve again, thaw in the fridge or at room temperature, then warm if desired.
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
Nutrition
📸Photo Tutorial: How to Make Caramel Sauce
This homemade caramel sauce recipe comes together in just 30 minutes! Full instructions are included in the recipe card above.


- Make sugar mixture: Combine 1/4 cup (2 fl oz) water, 1/2 cup (5.5 fl oz) corn syrup, and 2 cups (14 oz) sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir well to dissolve the sugar.


- Remove excess sugar: Brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to remove any excess sugar crystals (this helps to prevent crystallization). Continue stirring.
- Bring to a boil: Once the mixture starts to boil, stop stirring and insert a candy thermometer.


- Cook: Cook until fragrant and the color becomes a medium amber (between 340 and 350ºF, approximately 15-25 minutes). If you want visual reassurance, you can check the color of the caramel as it cooks by periodically dropping spoonfuls of caramel on a white plate.
- Add remaining ingredients: Once the caramel is the desired temp/color, carefully add 1 1/2 cups (12 fl oz) room temperature heavy cream, 1/2 cup (4 oz) softened unsalted butter, and 1 teaspoon salt. The mixture will splutter and steam a bit at first, this is normal.
- Finish the caramel: Once the dairy is added, you should stir regularly as the mixture cooks. Heat it until it reaches 232ºF (about 6-8 minutes). Remove from the heat and add in the vanilla. Cool until warm, then serve.
- Enjoy!

💡Tips and FAQs for Success
Make perfect caramel every time with these pro tips!
Candy making is science! To get the best results, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients with a food scale. It’s especially important to measure the correct amount of sugar. If you don’t have a scale, you can also use the spoon and level method. Gently fill your measuring cup with spoonfuls of sugar and then use a knife to level off the top.
Crystalization happens when some of the granulated sugar doesn’t get dissolved into the caramel sauce mixture. If the caramel crystallizes, add a little bit of water and bring it back to a boil. Heating it up should allow the crystals to re-dissolve.
The best way to prevent crystallization is to wipe a wet pastry brush around the inside walls of the saucepan after adding the sugar, water, and corn syrup. The wet pastry brush will remove excess sugar crystals and prevent larger crystals from forming in the caramel.
Refrigerate: To store homemade caramel sauce, cool completely to room temperature, then keep in the fridge in a jar or airtight container for up to 2 weeks. To serve again, enjoy straight from the fridge or warm in the microwave!
Freeze: Caramel sauce can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Simply cool completely and place into a plastic airtight container. To serve again, thaw in the fridge or at room temperature, then warm if desired.

💭 Serving Suggestions
There are so many different ways you can serve caramel sauce! Swirl it into frosting for cupcakes, drizzle it over ice cream or cheesecake, use it as part of another recipe, or just eat it with a spoon. ๐
Here are some of my favorite recipes to make using this homemade caramel: