Tips for making caramel

The flavour of caramel is a favourite with many people, so it’s worth mastering the art of making either a creamy or clear syrup. Caramel is made by heating dissolved sugar until it starts to turn a golden colour.

Here are some tips:

Use a heavy-based pan. A thin-based saucepan will prevent the caramel from cooking evenly or steadily.

Always dissolve the sugar completely before bringing the syrup to the boil.

Any sugar crystals clinging to the sides of the saucepan will burn and not dissolve, so use a small brush to sweep them into the syrup before it comes to the boil.

Sugar syrup is boiled at extremely high temperatures (more than 170°C), so for safety’s sake, keep your hands well clear of the pan and ban children from the kitchen. To avoid burning caramel, remove the saucepan from the heat as soon as the syrup turns gold.

If you want to make caramel shards or would like to coat fruit or other items in solid caramel, do not add water or cream to the syrup. Prepare an oiled tray or have baking paper ready with the items for coating, then pour over the golden caramel. It will set as soon as it cools.

When adding water or cream to make a syrup, remove the pan from the heat and work carefully to avoid burns from sugary splashes.

The caramel will become solid as soon as the water or cream hits it, so return the pan to a low heat and stir gently until the mass dissolves. Caramel will keep indefinitely in the refrigerator and may solidify. Soften by bringing it to room temperature.