Food & Drinks

This South African caramel sauce is unbelievably delicious

recipe for caramel sauce

Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: This South African caramel sauce is unbelievably delicious. 

Sick pet, child in toddler puberty, and looming dismissal: with this caramel sauce, you can handle all of life's setbacks just fine. If the cat throws up on the couch, your husband keeps texting his tennis teacher, and your bank card is blocked, then you already think of a scoop of vanilla ice cream with lots of caramel sauce. You need this recipe!

Ingredients 

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup water
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon butter, cut into small cubes
  • pinch of salt
  • vanilla extract
  • brush

The recipe for this caramel sauce comes from the South African website Melkkos & Merlot. A bilingual site, in Afrikaans and English, but that Afrikaans is particularly uplifting. Take this sentence: Here at the end of week four of the big Covid lockdown, I think we all deserve a lick of sweetness for the soul. A truth as clear as a milk cow, so let's get started. This recipe is ’kannie-flop‘ according to the site, so nothing or no one is stopping you.

Here's how to make life-saving caramel sauce

  • Mix sugar and water in a saucepan. Place it over medium heat and stir until the sugar is dissolved. From that moment on: do not stir your sauce anymore. Let the sugar water boil for about ten to fifteen minutes. If you see sugar crystals forming along the edge of the pan, brush them away with a brush that you have dipped in a little water.
  • When the sugar water starts to change color, you need to pay close attention. If it gets too dark, the caramel will taste bitter and burn. Melkkos & Merlot advises: remove the pan from the heat when the caramel is amber-colored. The sugar is so hot that the caramel will continue to color even after being removed from the heat.
  • Now stir the heavy cream into the caramel. It will bubble like crazy, don't be alarmed. Then gradually stir in the butter, add the pinch of sea salt and the vanilla. Now the sauce is ready; it will thicken a bit as it cools. Don't be tempted to lick the spoon or dip your finger in the sauce to taste, because caramel is ridiculously hot. Pour into a bottle or jug and store in the refrigerator.
  • You can pour the caramel sauce over vanilla ice cream, but also over waffles, pancakes, or a plain sandwich. With ice, milk, and sauce in the blender, you make a great milkshake (in Afrikaans: melkskommel). Or sneak to the fridge at night and spoon the sauce straight from the jar, no one will blame you.