My homemade Caramel Candy has the perfect soft and chewy, yet sturdy texture. Enjoy yours plain or coat in chocolate for an indulgent treat! Recipe includes a how-to video!
The BEST Homemade Caramel Recipe
I’m so pleased to share my absolute favorite caramel recipe with you today! It’s simple (a bit time consuming, yes, but very straightforward) and yields incredibly perfect caramel candy. The caramels have a rich flavor balanced with just the right amount of salt and vanilla. You are going to love them!
These caramels are soft, but not so soft they melt in your hand. They’re sturdy enough to hold their shape while still being chewy (but they don’t stick to your teeth obnoxiously like peanut brittle!).
I love topping my caramel candy with sea salt (reminds me of my salted caramel frosting), but they also taste great dipped in melted chocolate. I’m linking my favorite cellophane wrappers below (they’ll last forever!) so you can wrap yours up just like a candy shop!
I highly recommend watching the video below before getting started. I include lots of tips and visuals that I think you’ll find helpful, even if this isn’t your first candy recipe.
What You Need
Seven simple ingredients and a little patience are all you need to make my caramel recipe:
- Light brown sugar. I know brown sugar is not a typical caramel ingredient, but I promise it adds such a beautiful flavor to this caramel recipe. I don’t recommend substituting this for more granulated sugar; if you do, your caramel candy won’t turn out properly. If you really must use all granulated sugar, stop cooking when your caramel reaches 240F (115C).
- Evaporated milk. Do NOT use sweetened condensed milk! The cans look similar, but evaporated milk is what you need (sweetened condensed milk does have a place in caramel, I use it in my Millionaire’s shortbread, but not here).
- Heavy cream. Whipping cream or double cream will also work.
- Vanilla. We will add the vanilla after cooking to preserve its flavor. Now would be a great time to use your homemade vanilla extract, if you have some!
SAM’S TIP: Line your pan with parchment and leave a little extra on the sides as a “sling” so removing your caramel candy is a breeze! I love using this trick for brownies too.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Caramel Candy
- Melt the butter – Cook the sugars, milk, cream, corn syrup, butter, and salt over medium heat until the butter melts.
- Bubble and boil – Attach your candy thermometer and keep cooking and stirring as your caramel boils.
- Just keep stirring – Keep stirring constantly as the caramel gets darker and reaches 240-243F. This will take quite a long time, it consistently takes me an hour from start to finish, but your mileage may vary.
- Add the vanilla – Once at the proper temperature, remove the caramel from the heat and add the vanilla extract.
- Pour it out – Carefully pour the hot caramel into a parchment lined pan and let it cool completely until set, preferably overnight.
- Cut and enjoy! Use a sharp knife to cut the caramels into squares or rectangles. Top with sea salt or chocolate, if desired, and enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: It’s so important to have patience with this caramel recipe (and pretty much every other candy recipe!). Don’t crank up the heat at any point during the cooking process or you could ruin your caramel. Making homemade caramel candy does take some time, but the final result is so worth it!
Frequently Asked Questions
Because it’s so sturdy, this caramel recipe pairs nicely with chocolate! I’d recommend a semisweet or dark chocolate to contrast the sweetness of the caramel, but you can always use milk chocolate if that’s what you like. Whichever you use, make sure to let your caramel set completely so you can cut it in nice squares for dipping.
I highly recommend using a candy thermometer for this caramel recipe, but you can always use the old-fashioned way to test if the caramel is ready. To do this, drop a bit of the caramel mixture in cold water; it should form a ball that holds its shape unless you deliberately press/re-shape it. Depending on the chart you consult, this temperature is either just below or just over the threshold for “firm ball” stage.
Really though, a candy thermometer is best and will give you best results and makes candy-making so much easier. I’ve linked to the one that I use (and love) in the “Equipment” section of the recipe card below.
Unfortunately I don’t have a good substitute here. Corn syrup (not to be confused with the high fructose kind!) is used in many candy recipes, and in the case of this caramel recipe, it’s critical for the proper final texture.
This caramel candy would make a great homemade gift alongside toffee or candied pecans!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Homemade Caramel Candy
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups (300) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar firmly packed
- 1 ½ cups (354) evaporated milk this is the equivalent of one 12 fl oz can
- 1 ½ cups (354 ml) heavy cream
- ¾ cup (255) light corn syrup
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Recommended Equipment
- Maldon sea salt for sprinkling optional
Instructions
- Line an 8” square pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine sugars, evaporated milk, heavy cream, corn syrup, butter, and salt.1 ½ cups (300) granulated sugar, ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar, 1 ½ cups (354) evaporated milk, 1 ½ cups (354 ml) heavy cream, ¾ cup (255) light corn syrup, ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, 1 teaspoon salt
- Turn stovetop heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently (I like to use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula, it makes it easy to scrape the bottom of the pot and ensure nothing burns), until butter is melted and mixture is smooth.
- Attach a candy thermometer to the side (make sure it is not touching the bottom of the pot and is suspended about halfway in the caramel) and stir constantly until mixture reaches 240-243F (115-117C). This will take some time, it usually takes me an hour of stirring!
- Once mixture reaches temperature, remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Immediately pour into prepared pan and allow caramel to cool completely (several hours or overnight) before cutting and (and topping with sea salt, if using). Caramels may be cut and individually wrapped in strips of wax paper or cellophane wrappers, I linked to the wrappers that I used in the “Equipment” section above.
Notes
Storing
Store in an airtight container (or wrapped in wax paper or cellophane!) at room temperature. Caramels will keep for several months.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Sarah
I had to cook this for 1.5 hours in order to reach the correct temperature. It sat for 12 hours and was extremely soft when I cut it. What could I have done wrong for it to not set correctly?
Sam
Hi Sarah! Was it humid in your kitchen? Raining outside? The extra humidity can cause issues when making a candy like this. 🙁
SARAH Ivanov
It has been unusually hunid this week. I’ll try it again and hopefully it will work better. thank you!
Ern
First time making these and they turned out great! I doubled the recipe so it took longer to stir but they came out so good and were even better the day after when the flavors had time to meld together. I cooked until about 247-248F. So good!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Aurora
i love the way you explain it all. Awesome!
Landy
Love this recipe!!! I made this twice already and it’s going to be my go to recipe for caramel!! Thank you soo much I love this sooo much! ❤️❤️❤️
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy our recipe is a winner for you, Landy! 🥰
Bella Lillard
I just made this a few hours ago and it is the best caramel I have ever had in my life, the texture is absolutely perfect
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Bella! We are so happy you loved it 🥰
Claudia Logan
just wondering if pecans could be added to this carmel while still hot.
Sam
Hi Claudia! I haven’t personally tried it, but I think it could work. 🙂
Misty
Hey Sam! I made this caramel recipie today and it’s hard as a rock. I took it off the burner at 245 degrees but who knows if my thermometer is accurate… do you have any tips to revive this? I’ve read online that you can reheat and add heavy cream. Have you ever done this?
Sam
Hi Misty! I have seen people do the reheat and add cream but I haven’t personally tried it so I can’t say for sure how it would work. Let me know if you do try it. 🙂
Emma
I’ve made two batches of this in the past 2 days. The first batch I cooked as directed until it hit around 242 f. This batch didn’t set properly and was too soft to cut. I did the second batch until 250f and found this texture was perfect. The flavour is outstanding and my family loves it. But if you’re having issues with it setting, it may need to cook a bit longer.
Carolyn Ross
my homemade caramel candy turn into the sauce vision i did exactly as you wrote it
Sam
Hi Carolyn! It may have just needed to bake a little bit longer. 🙁