This easy crockpot caramel recipe slowly cooks into a deliciously creamy sauce and dessert topping! It’s a “set it and forget it” dip that everyone loves!
I love caramel so much. It’s always my first choice for an ice cream topping, and caramel desserts are usually my favorite.
But making homemade caramel sauce has always been one of those things I dismissed, thinking it was too hard.
I thought it would be too easy to burn. I guess I thought it was like making homemade caramel candy. Which I know can be challenging.
I have a thing about waste. Wasting time. Wasting food. Wasting money. It all really gets to me.
So taking on a recipe that I thought would fail would mean wasting time and ingredients. I just wasn’t going to do it!
Little did I know that making caramel sauce was so much easier than candy making. And making crockpot caramel is so easy I’m in disbelief over the entire process.
Honestly, making caramel sauce in the crockpot now seems like the most foolproof way to make an incredibly delicious ice cream topping and dip.
About this Crockpot Caramel Recipe
If you search for slow cooker caramel recipes and crockpot caramel recipes you’ll see a lot of different results. Let me tell you what this recipe is not:
- It’s not the open and cook a can of sweetened condensed milk recipe for homemade caramel. That recipe is missing ingredients like brown sugar and butter. I’m always wanting that buttery brown sugar taste when I crave caramel.
- It’s not the super, crazy dangerous cook an unopened can of sweetened condensed milk recipe. Don’t do this. It’s dangerous. It’s also pretty dumb, because you can just open the can!
- It’s not crockpot dulce de leche. Cooking sweetened condensed milk and adding a bit of salt or a bit of vanilla gives you dulce de leche. Dulce de leche is a sweet, carmelized treat, but I can tell you, it’s not the caramel sauce you’re looking for!
Instead, this crockpot caramel sauce recipe gives you all the flavors of a traditional caramel. The flavors you’d find if you ordered a caramel sundae from an ice cream shop.
It requires just a few more ingredients, but the results are totally worth it.
What you need for making caramel sauce in your crockpot
You’ll definitely need a slow cooker to make this amazing crockpot caramel sauce. You’ll also need a bowl to mix the ingredients in.
Most importantly, you’ll need an oven-safe dish that fits in your crockpot.
Why would you put a baking dish inside your slow cooker?
After you mix up your ingredients, you’ll pour them into the baking dish. The baking dish will go into the bowl of the crockpot, and you’ll add water to surround the baking dish.
This turns your crockpot into a big, slow double boiler. It’s the ultimate way to slowly cook delicate items that otherwise burn easily, like caramel.
A standard loaf pan fit neatly into my oval slow cooker. You can use a glass, ceramic, silicone or metal pan, as long as it’s safe for the oven.
Here are a few pans that work well for using inside a crock pot:
HIC Souffle Dish, Fine White Porcelain, 1.5-Quarts CapacityFarberware Baking Nonstick Cooker BakewarePan, Round, 7 InchCuisinart 9-Inch Chef’s Classic Nonstick Bakeware Loaf PanSet of 2 Loaf Pans, Non-Stick Silicone Baking Pans
Why is the crockpot the best way to make caramel sauce?
I fully admit my experience making homemade caramel sauce is limited. The times I’ve had to make it has been for layers in other desserts. Like these oatmeal caramel bars.
Using homemade caramel within other treats is much more forgiving than making it for a standalone treat.
There are a few reasons that you should use your slow cooker to make caramel sauce. Here’s why you should stop making it on the stove:
- No stirring. I watched my mom and aunt cook and bake a lot as I was growing up, and I learned that making candy like caramel means lots of stirring while it heats up on the stove. Crockpot caramel means you don’t have to stir while it cooks.
- No standing at the stove. Things like caramel generally need to be cooked at lower temperature to prevent burning. This can take a long time where you need to stir constantly. You won’t need to do this when you use your crockpot to make your caramel!
- No candy thermometer. Just like stirring and standing, watching a candy thermometer is another essential part of caramel making that you don’t need to worry about when you make it in your slow cooker.
- No burning. The caramel is cooked in a glass dish in a water bath inside the slow cooker. The water bath gives the sugar some insulation from direct heat, and the slow cooker method means it will gradually caramelize.
How thick is this sauce?
You’re going to love this caramel sauce, especially since you can decide on the consistency as it cooks!
You can choose to have a thin sauce that works well for ice cream toppings and drizzles. This is perfect to use on your homemade Starbucks caramel apple spice or on top of delicious apple pie.
You can also do a medium sauce that’s easier to scoop. This makes a great caramel for dipping.
Finally, you can let it cook in your slow cooker until you have a thick, rich caramel sauce. This can be used as a caramel spread that would be delicious on this cake mix pumpkin bread.
How can you use this slow cooker caramel sauce?
I love caramel so much – I dip so much stuff in this homemade caramel sauce!
These are some delicious foods you can dip in your crockpot caramel:
- apples
- bananas
- strawberries
- pretzels
- cookies
- marshmallows
- walnuts
- almonds
If you’d rather pour your caramel for those delicious swirls and drizzles, here are some things you should drizzle with caramel:
- Birthday cake ice cream
- cake and drip cakes
- pie
- hot cocoa (I think drizzling it over spicy Mexican hot chocolate would be amazing!)
- hot apple cider
- bread pudding
- lava cake
- carrot cake cupcakes
- pancakes
- waffles
- French toast
Finally, if you slow cook your caramel to a thick enough consistency, it’s spreadable! Use it on:
- Sweet breads
- Yeast breads
- gingerbread cookies to make sandwich cookies
- Sugar cookies
Crockpot Caramel Recipe
Full measurements of all ingredients are included in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
Make sure you have everything on the ingredient list before you start your recipe!
Caramel Sauce Ingredients
- sweetened condensed milk
- butter, softened
- corn syrup
- vanilla extract
- lemon juice
- brown sugar
- white sugar
How to make Caramel Sauce in the Crockpot
- Place an ovenproof dish inside of your slow cooker.
- In a bowl, mix all ingredients together until well blended. Pour into the dish in your crockpot.
- Pour hot tap water into your crockpot outside of your dish until it’s about 2/3 up the side of your dish. Don’t pour the water onto your caramel mixture!
- Turn the slow cooker on high and cook for 4-10 hours. See below to get the specific cooking time for your desired consistency.
- Use oven mitts to remove the baking dish from your slow cooker. Whisk briskly for about one minute to blend everything and serve warm.
How long to cook caramel in the slow cooker
You may have noticed the very large range in times you can cook your caramel for in your slow cooker.
Use this crockpot caramel cooking guide to see how long you should cook your caramel for.
Hours to cook | consistency | color |
4-5 hours | thin (drizzle) | light |
6-7 hours | thick pour or scoop | medium |
9-10 hours | Spread | dark |
How long will crockpot caramel keep?
Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to one month. Microwave to warm up your caramel before serving if it’s been refrigerated.
Scroll down and you’ll find an easy way to print this recipe and guide you while cooking.
I love to hear your feedback, so if you loved this recipe as is or made changes, I want to know how you did it. Please come back and let me know in the comments.
I’m always open to your suggestions, too!
Crockpot Caramel Recipe
This easy crockpot caramel recipe is a slow cooker dessert that cooks into a deliciously creamy topping! It's a "set it and forget it" caramel treat, dip and spread that everyone loves!
Ingredients
- 14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup corn syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
Instructions
- Place an ovenproof dish inside of your slow cooker.
- In a bowl, mix all ingredients together until well blended. Pour into the dish in your crockpot.
- Pour hot tap water into your crockpot outside of your dish until it's about 2/3 up the side of your dish. Don't pour the water onto your caramel mixture!
- Turn the slow cooker on high and cook for 4-10 hours. See the notes to get the specific cooking time for your desired consistency.
- Use oven mitts to remove the baking dish from your slow cooker. Whisk briskly for about one minute to blend everything and serve warm.
Notes
Use this crockpot caramel cooking guide to see how long you should cook your caramel for:
- Cook for 4-5 hours for thin (drizzle) consistency and light color.
- Cook for 6-7 hours for a thick pour or scoop consistency and medium color.
- Cook for 9-10 hours for a spreadable consistency and dark color.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
24Serving Size:
2 tablespoonsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 161Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 61mgCarbohydrates: 29gFiber: 0gSugar: 29gProtein: 1g
Robyn says
Hi want to make this what I need to know is do you put the lid on the slow cooker when ingredients are cooking
Alison says
Do you think this can be rewarmed over and over in a crockpot?
Lou says
Should I put the lid on the Crockpot?? If so, should it be tight or should I leave it cracked a bit??