How to Make Homemade Caramel Like a Professional Pastry Chef (2024)

Homemade caramel can make people nervous. One moment you have a buttery and decadent drizzle for ice cream sundaes or even a savory sauce, and the next minute, a scorched pot and a vow to stick to the store-bought stuff in a squeeze bottle. Acclaimed pastry chef, cookbook author, and alumna of Gramercy Tavern Claudia Fleming, and current Gramercy pastry chef, Karen DeMasco spent years of their illustrious careers perfecting the art of caramel. The two will share the stage at the 2024 Food & Wine Classic in Aspen as Fleming bakes her iconic chocolate caramel tart and DeMasco whips up a silky caramel ice cream. Both women are eager to teach guests that making caramel at home is easy with a few simple tips.

If you’ve struggled with making caramel, it’s likely that one of two things happened: burning or crystallization. Burning happens if the sugar is left on the heat source too long or the heat source is cranked up too high. While most professionals swear by using a candy thermometer, DeMasco says you shouldn’t count out using your senses. Use a thermometer, but keep an eye on the color of your caramel to track the sugar’s color and temperature and prevent it from burning. But where most people go wrong is judging the caramel color while it’s in the pot, which DeMasco says is misleading. “When you look at caramel in a pot, it always looks darker than it is,” she says. Her handy trick? Dip a whisk in the caramel and hold it up against a white surface like a white wall or a white plate, a process similar to a photographer adjusting white balance. Holding the caramel up against a white surface is an easy way to gauge its color accurately.

Crystallization is more common in wet caramels, which are made by cooking sugar and a liquid together. There are several reasons why sugar crystals form, such as excessive stirring, sudden temperature changes, or sugar granules sticking to the sides of the pot. When heat is applied, these factors can cause the sugar granules to turn into grainy crystals instead of smooth caramel. Once crystals form, they can quickly spread. To prevent this, some caramel makers recommend using a wet pastry brush to wash down the sides of the pot. However, Fleming suggests starting with water in the pot first and then adding the sugar to prevent the sugar granules from clinging to the sides. This method also eliminates the need to continually brush down the sides of the pot while the caramel is cooking.

Some of their best caramel-making advice is also a good foundation for all types of cooking. DeMasco says having proper mise en place is vital to caramel success. “Have everything measured out and ready to go before you put the sugar on the stove,” she says. Caramel requires a watchful eye, and organizing your ingredients and tools before cooking makes it much easier to focus on what’s happening in the pot.