Homemade Salted Caramels

Homemade salted caramels are rich, buttery, soft, and chewy, with just the right amount of sea salt. Using just 7 simple ingredients, they make a delicious holiday gift, and can even be dipped in chocolate for an extra fancy gift.

I started on my holiday baking over the weekend and I had the urge to make these delicious caramels. I haven’t made homemade salted caramels, or any other candy, since the day I closed my chocolate company several years ago. 

I wasn’t sure if I would remember how to make them, but it all came back to me! These caramels were one of my most popular items, so I am excited to share this recipe with all of you.

This recipe, adapted from Chocolates & Confections: formula, theory, and technique for the artisan confectioner, is a great soft caramel recipe. It's rich and buttery, salty-sweet, and just the right level of soft chewiness.

Homemade caramels make a fantastic holiday gift, along with chocolate covered pecans, cardamom shortbread cookies, and old fashioned peanut butter balls.

Jump to:

• ⭐️ Why These Caramels are the Best
• 🥄 Ingredients Needed
• 🍫 Flavor Variations
• 🔪 How to Make Homemade Salted Caramels
• 👩🏼‍🍳 Expert Tips
• 🍬 More Dessert Recipes
• Homemade Salted Caramels Recipe

⭐️ Why These Caramels are the Best

• Rich, buttery, soft, and chewy sea salt caramels
• Detailed step-by-step instructions for candy-making success
• Makes a delicious homemade holiday gift: wrap in waxed paper, place into a cellophane bag, and tie with a beautiful ribbon.
• Just 7 simple ingredients
• Freezer-friendly caramels
• Can be customized to be made with chocolate, spices, and/or nuts

🥄 Ingredients Needed

• Granulated sugar
• Evaporated milk
• Heavy cream
• Vanilla extract
• Light corn syrup
• Unsalted butter
• Salt

🍫 Flavor Variations

This salted caramel recipe is also a great jumping off point to make fun flavor variations; the sky's the limit with caramels! Here are some suggestions for delicious flavor ideas:

• Caramels with nuts: Mix 2 cups of chopped toasted nuts into the caramels after they are cooked but before pouring them into the pan.
• Chocolate caramels: Add 1 cup of chopped dark chocolate to the mixture at the beginning of cooking. For a mouth-watering chocolate-caramel dessert, try my easy turtle pie (no bake)!
• Fruit caramels: Add 1 cup of fruit puree to the batch when it reaches 235 degrees F. Continue cooking to 240 degrees F.
• Spice caramels: Add 2 teaspoons of preferred ground spice (e.g. cinnamon, ginger, etc.) to the batch at the beginning of cooking.

🔪 How to Make Homemade Salted Caramels

Spray an 8"x8" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and line it with parchment paper. Set aside. Combine sugar, evaporated milk, heavy cream, and vanilla bean in a large, heavy-bottomed pot, and cook over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, and add corn syrup. Stir to incorporate.

Insert candy thermometer and clip onto the side of pot. Continue to cook, stirring every 5-8 minutes and really scraping the bottom of pot. The caramel will get darker in color as it cooks down and the liquid evaporates.

When temperature reaches 230 F degrees (it should take roughly 30 minutes to reach this temperature), add butter and stir until melted. The caramel will start to thicken and darken in color. Turn heat down to low, and stir frequently, scraping bottom of the pot every once in a while.

When temperature reaches 240 F degrees (this will take another 15 minutes or so), remove pot from heat, add salt, and stir until combined.

Pour caramel into parchment-lined pan. Using a spatula, smooth the caramel out, making sure it is distributed evenly throughout pan. Cool completely (at least 2.5 hours), and cut into 1x1-inch squares.

👩🏼‍🍳 Expert Tips

• Storage: Wrap individual squares of caramel in wax paper and place in an airtight container (at room temperature) for up to 2 weeks.
• How to freeze: Place caramels (wrapped in wax paper) into a freezer-safe container and store in the freezer for up to 2 months. To thaw, place on the counter for 1-2 hours.
• Use a candy thermometer. We want to be precise when making caramel with the perfect chewy texture. Make sure the tip of the thermometer does not touch the bottom of the pot, as this will affect the thermometer reading.
• Avoid crystallization. Avoid scraping down the sides of your pot when stirring - this will prevent the sugar from crystallizing.

• Use a large heavy-bottomed pot. The caramel mixture will boil up quite a bit at first, so a large pot works best for making caramel.
• Soak your pot. For easy cleanup, soak your pot with hot water immediately after emptying caramel into prepared baking dish.
• Wrap caramels. To wrap each caramel, cut a 3-inch square of wax paper. Place the caramel at the center of the square. Fold the bottom inch of paper up over the caramel, then overlap the top inch of paper down over the caramel. Twist the ends several times and repeat with the remaining caramels. Place wrapped caramels in a mason jar and add a beautiful ribbon.

🍬 More Dessert Recipes

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