In this instructable I will show you how to make caramel. This homemade caramel sauce recipe is easy to make using few ingredients. I love caramel, it is so yummy on ice cream, on cakes, in cookies, surrounded by chocolate, as a salad dressing (jk or am I?). Making caramel at home is awesome, but you do need to be careful when the sugar melts it is super duper hot! If I can do it, you can do it, let's get started!

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Follow the easy steps below or watch the short video tutorial or do both. :)

Step 1: Ingredients/Tools

You may print the recipe here if you like.

Ingredients:

1 cup white granulated sugar (200g)
1/4 cup filtered water (60ml) (the water doesn't have to be exact)
1/2 cup heavy cream (120ml)
1 tsp. vanilla extract (5ml)
6 tbsp. of butter (85g)

Tools:

Heavy bottom sauce pot with high walls
wooden spoon
basting brush

Step 2: Water and Sugar

Start by adding your water and sugar to a heavy bottom sauce pot. A heavy bottom sauce pot is ideal because it distributes the heat better, but you can get away without using one. Nonstick pots don't work as well though.

Step 3: Vanilla and Cream

Now mix together your vanilla extract and cream. Then take the pot, cream and butter over to the stovetop.

Step 4: Patience Is a Virtue

Now with the heat set to medium low to medium, place the pot on the burner and don't touch it, don't stir it, don't mess with it. Let the sugar crystals melt. You may see some sugar crystals forming on the walls above the melting sugar. Use a basting brush dipped in water and gently brush those and allow them to fall in the mixture. After several minutes the sugar will start to turn colors, blonde, then light brown then amber. At this point you can swirl your pot a bit to allow the color to spread, but it isn't necessary. Wait until you have a nice deep amber color. Then take the pot off the burner and turn off the heat.

Step 5: Stir Stir Stir

Next we stir in the cream a little at a time, until all incorporated, stir fast. The caramel will react violently to it. Be careful, it is super duper hot, and if it splashes up on you it will stick to you skin. So if you are worried wear gloves. Generally a really tall pot is fine though. Then stir in all the butter until it is all melted. The caramel is done. Now let it cool for awhile. You can transfer it to another bowl to cool faster if you like. As it cools it will get thicker.