How to make condensed milk caramel without blowing up your kitchen (2024)

By: AutumnUpdated: 3/13/21

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Filed In: Dessert| recipes| Side Dish

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In today’s post: Learn how to make delicious 1-ingredient condensed milk caramel THE SAFE WAY! Makes a perfect caramel apple dip.

One of my very favorite side dishes to take along to barbecues or potlucks is a big plate of apples with creamy homemade caramel apple dip. Everybody loves it (and I mean everybody!), it’s great for kids who might be a little picky, it’s inexpensive, and best yet it’s SO EASY to make! And you only need one ingredient: sweetened condensed milk.

Now, maybe you’ve heard of sweetened condensed milk caramel before, and maybe you even know someone who has experienced a condensed milk caramel disaster: the “old” method of making caramel sauce from condensed milk involved cooking the milk in an unopened can, which when done incorrectly can lead to the can exploding!

Cooking sweetened condensed milk in the unopened can is a cool concept, and I know many people have had success with that method. However, you do have to simmer the can on the stovetop for a few hours (or cook it in a crock pot for 8 hours) and it MUST stay covered with water the entire time. If you remember to check it regularly to ensure the water hasn’t boiled off it’s probably perfectly safe, but if (like me!) you have a tendency to get distracted, you run the risk of letting the water boil off – and that can cause the can to explode, shooting hot caramel and sharp pieces of can all over the place! Using a crockpot is a better bet than simmering on the stove because it’s much less likely to boil dry, and if you watch the water level I’m sure you’d be fine, but comments like this one make me a little wary:

“I blew up a crockpot and covered my kitchen in caramel and glass doing this recipe(a few years ago now), the pan was on very low with a lid on but over the hours the steam escaped and it still boiled dry as I left it overnight! If I had been in the kitchen I would have been very badly burned and cut as glass, bits of pot and caramel went everywhere! We had to repaint the walls and roof once we had scraped off the caramel, not fun 😛 Please can I warn your lovely readers to use LOADS of water and check it/top up if needed!”

This caramel sauce is delicious, but nothing’s delicious enough to risk life and limb! So, cook it the safe and easy way instead. Here’s how:

How to make sweetened condensed milk caramel (aka caramel apple dip)

Watch this video to see how easy it is to make (written instructions follow):

1 – Pour a can of sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk) into a metal baking pan like a pie plate or an 8×8 pan. Cover it tightly with foil.

2. Place your baking dish into a larger pan – I use a disposable foil pan. Pour enough water into the larger pan to come up 1 inch.

3. Place both pans into a preheated 400 degree oven and bake for 90 minutes to 2 hours, or until the caramel sauce is as dark as you’d like. The photo below shows the milk before and after baking.

Sweetened condensed milk caramel tips

Store your condensed milk caramel in the fridge. It should keep for a couple of weeks, although it never lasts more than a few days at my house.
This makes about 1 cup of sauce. When I serve it as a caramel apple dip, I usually cut up 7 apples to go with it.
Little pots of caramel and a few apples would make a lovely gift – just remind people it needs to be refrigerated.
You can also use this sauce on ice cream or brownies. It will get a little thick in the fridge, but it loosens up nicely when microwaved for a bit.

Looking for more delicious fall recipes? Check out these posts:

Caramel Pumpkin Poke Cake

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Pie Cake

Pumpkin Pie Cinnamon Rolls

Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup

Meet Autumn

Hello there! I’m a busy mom of five who loves to make things. Crafts, recipes, sewing, holiday projects: I’ve tried them all, and you can too! I love EASY projects anyone can make.

Reader Interactions

Heidi says
Posted on 3/25/20 at 1:20 am
I have tried to make carmel sauce for so long and finally decided that it was something that I am just not good at. I tried this method of putting it in the oven and wouldn’t ya know…..I made carmel….good carmel! Thank you very much for sharing this. I’m eating it by the spoonfuls!
Reply
Lea says
Posted on 11/5/19 at 11:49 am
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!! I can’t tell you how excited I was to see this instructional recipe. I have managed to find a sugar free sweetened condensed milk but of course since it’s homemade it doesn’t come in a can….I considered a few options like putting it in a mason jar and in the hot water bath but I was worried about an explosion and then I didn’t think using the crockpot would work either….and I tried on the stove top just to cook it longer when making it to see if I could turn it into caramel but that didn’t work all that happened was after so much of the milk evaporated I had an extremely thick milk and then after it was in the fridge it had turned into a thick block which was almost impossible to do anything with.
I’m sooo excited to try it, I’m going to do it today.
Reply
K. Paddock says
Posted on 8/9/18 at 9:29 pm
I Pop the lid off, cover can with foil securely. Put can on the wire rack in your instant pot. Fill with water until half way up the side of can. (You can do several cans together.) Manuel pressure for 40 minutes. Quick release remove cans onto counter, remove foil. Let sit 20 minutes add a splash of vanilla if you like and stir it up good. Waa Laa!
Fast, safe and yummy!
Reply
- Kristi C says
  Posted on 9/21/18 at 2:22 pm
  Yes!!
  Reply
Shannon says
Posted on 11/6/14 at 11:57 am
Pour pineapple juice over apples to prevent browning.
Reply
Lexy says
Posted on 8/7/14 at 8:57 am
Any hints on how to keep apples from turning brown if one would take this to a function where it won’t be eaten for several hours?
Reply
- Jill says
  Posted on 8/7/14 at 10:13 am
  pour some lemon juice over the apple and this should keep the slices pristine
  Reply
- esa3316 says
  Posted on 11/17/14 at 11:05 am
  Orange juice works best for keeping apples from turning brown and doesn’t make them as tart. I usually slice the apples and coat them with orange juice and store them in a sealed plastic container with a little juice in the bottom. They will keep a couple of days without turning brown.
  Reply
- Carol says
  Posted on 9/25/15 at 8:50 pm
  You can also use lemon-lime soda to keep apples from turning brown.
  Reply
- Jen says
  Posted on 10/4/15 at 12:31 pm
  If you soak sliced apples in sprite (or any lemon lime soda pop) for approximately discounted then drain they will not Brown. Have done this for my son’s lunches and they stay unchanged f or days s. Plus they arrenot soured from ‘re lemon
  Reply

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FAQs

How to make condensed milk caramel without blowing up your kitchen? ›

Cooking sweetened condensed milk in the unopened can is a cool concept, and I know many people have had success with that method. However, you do have to simmer the can on the stovetop for a few hours (or cook it in a crock pot for 8 hours) and it MUST stay covered with water the entire time.

Tell Me More ›

Does boiling condensed milk turn into caramel? ›

There are 2 ways to make this superb caramel made from a can of condensed milk. You can boil a can in a saucepan for 3 hours or do it in a slow cooker. As a can of Dulce de leche will happily keep unopened in the pantry for months (as if!), I like to do a big batch – 4-6 cans at a time.

Does caramel made from condensed milk need to be refrigerated? ›

“This keeps for a month in the fridge.

Tell Me More ›

Why do you add baking soda to condensed milk? ›

Baking Soda will make the Milk thick and give creamy texture. Condensed Milk is ready. It is thick and creamy. Cool down to room temperature.

Explore More ›

How do I get my caramel to harden? ›

As it cools, it will thicken. You will need to store the caramel sauce in the refrigerator, so it will firm up even more once chilled. Just bring it back to room temperature and microwave before drizzling or dipping!

Know More ›

What's the difference between caramel and dulce de leche? ›

Caramel and dulce de leche might look and taste somewhat similar, but they are actually pretty different. While caramel is made from slowly simmering water and sugar until it caramelizes, dulce de leche is made from simmering milk and sugar super slowly until it turns into a creamy, caramelized substance.

Find Out More ›

What happens if you boil caramel too long? ›

Overheating the mixture

Follow the recipe carefully, and never melt your caramel on your stove's highest setting—it will cause the caramel to scorch and taste burnt. Once it gets a burnt or bitter flavor, it can't be saved.

Learn More Now ›

Why is my condensed milk caramel lumpy? ›

Identify the Cause: Grainy caramel sauce typically results from sugar crystallization during the cooking process. This can happen if sugar crystals form on the sides of the saucepan or if the sugar syrup is mixed too much while cooking.

How do you cook condensed milk on the stove? ›

Directions. Peel the label off the can (or cans!) of sweetened condensed milk, place it in a pot or large saucepan, and cover it with water by 1 to 2 inches. Bring it to a very gentle boil, then reduce the heat to LOW, so that the water has a nice slow simmer. NOTE: Solid cans (without tab lids) are preferred.

Read The Full Story ›

How to thicken caramel condensed milk? ›

To thicken a caramel sauce, use one tablespoon of cornstarch or tapioca starch (sometimes known as tapioca flour) and one tablespoon of water per cup of caramel. Then simmer the caramel, stirring it constantly with a wooden spoon until it becomes thick.

Show Me More ›

Is evaporated milk the same as condensed milk? ›

Both are concentrated, shelf-stable milk products that have been heated until at least 60 percent of their water content has evaporated. The main difference between evaporated milk and condensed milk is that evaporated milk is unsweetened while condensed milk is sweetened.

Get More Info ›

Why does boiling condensed milk make caramel? ›

Because it contains a ton of sugar. An easy caramel/dulce de leche that students have made for many, many years: bring a pot of water to the boil, lower heat to low simmer. Put in an unopened can of sweetened condensed milk. Let it cook for at least a half hour, probably more.

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How do you caramelize a tin of condensed milk? ›

Fill a deep medium saucepan with water. Bring to the boil. Carefully place the can in the saucepan, ensuring there's enough water to completely cover the can at all times, topping up water frequently throughout the cooking process. Simmer, uncovered for 3 hours.

What happens when you microwave condensed milk? ›

After the first two stirs, you'll notice that the milk bubbles and foams up as it expels moisture. Then, with each stirring, the milk will be thicker and more caramel colored. If after the 10 minutes, you like the color and consistency, stop!

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How long does it take to whip condensed milk? ›

Once the condensed milk is well-chilled, remove it from the refrigerator and begin whipping it with the chilled beaters. Start at a low speed and gradually increase to high speed as the mixture thickens. Whip for 5-7 minutes, or until the condensed milk forms stiff peaks.

Can you water down condensed milk to make milk? ›

Condensed milk cannot be directly converted into whole milk. Whole milk is basically regular milk that contains about 3.5% fat. On the other hand, condensed milk is made by removing water from regular milk and adding sugar. To get whole milk, you may need to dilute the condensed milk with an equal amount of water.

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How long does it take sweetened condensed milk to thicken? ›

At the end of 45 minutes, it will be foamy and thick.