This vegan salted caramel sauce tastes just like the real deal! There is no coconut milk, so it tastes like real dairy caramel, but it’s totally vegan and salted to perfection! (You can also simply leave out the salt and have the best darn vegan caramel sauce ever too)! This sauce uses the traditional caramel-making method, so it has a genuine caramel taste. If you want truly authentic tasting vegan caramel, this is the recipe for you!
I've tried many different vegan caramel sauce recipes over the years and this is by far the most authentic tasting dairy-free caramel ever!
Jump to:
❤️ Why you will love this recipe
- It’s vegan, gluten-free, and can be made soy-free too!
- Poured over your favorite dessert, it makes everything taste better!
- It doesn’t have that coconut flavor that most vegan caramel sauces have!
- It’s the perfect blend of sweet caramel and salt!
- Since it is made in the traditional way, it has a true caramel taste!
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Sugar - any vegan granulated sugar will work. You will be able to see the color change easier in the lighter color sugars.
- Water - to give your sugar some moisture so you can cook it and caramelize it.
- Oil - for a rich and creamy texture. Any neutral-flavored oil will work. I prefer refined coconut oil for the richest and most neutral taste.
- Plant Milk - any will work, but I like soy milk since it has a rich and creamy dairy-like taste.
- Cream of Tartar - or lemon juice. For acidity to help your sugar stay smooth and not crystallize.
- Salt - to make salted caramel, or leave it out for regular caramel. (optional)
🔪 Helpful tools
- A heavy bottomed pot to make sure that the sugar cooks evenly.
🥄 Instructions
- Measure out your coconut oil, plant-based milk, and salt and have them waiting near the stove.
- Start with a very clean pan and pour in sugar, water, and cream of tartar.
- Turn on the heat to medium and let it start to boil. (Don’t stir, just swish it around a little if needed).
- Allow the sauce to boil for about 5 minutes and then start watching it very closely.
- After about 6-7 minutes, the bubbles will get smaller and it will start to get a darker color and smell slightly of caramel.
- When it starts to caramelize, remove it from the burner and immediately pour in the coconut oil. (At this point you can give it a stir with a long-handled whisk).
- Then pour in the plant milk and continue to stir with the whisk for about 30 seconds. (It will bubble up and spatter when you add the milk, but then turn to caramel after a few seconds of stirring).
- Once the bubbling from the milk calms down, add the salt and stir for a few more seconds. (or leave out the for regular caramel).
👩🏻🍳 Pro tips
- Measure out the oil, milk, and salt and have it ready to add to the caramel. Waiting longer than a few seconds will mess it up.
- Start with a very clean pan - this will help your sugar not form crystals at the sides. You can also put a lid loosely on the pot to help trap in some of the steam. This will keep the sides of the pot a little moist and it won’t crystalize. If you need more tips to help your caramel not crystalize, check out the test kitchen's tips for keeping sugar from crystalizing.
- Watch the caramel closely. Sugar turns to caramel at 340° F but will burn at 350° F, so you must remove it from the heat before it reaches 350° F.
- Store in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 1 week.
If your caramel is too firm
- Warm it over low heat and add a teaspoon or 2 of water. (You can also put it in the microwave for about 20 seconds to warm it up).
If your caramel is too runny
- Heat it on a very low heat for about 5 minutes and allow some of the moister to evaporate.
Note: Making this caramel sauce can be a little dangerous. It should be made by an adult and I wouldn’t even recommend having small children nearby. It will bubble and spatter when the milk is added so you need to stand back and use a long-handled whisk to stir it. If the hot caramel spills on you it will stick and burn!
There are few things in life a delicious as this vegan salted caramel sauce and you can probably justify putting it on just about any of your favorite vegan desserts!
🧁 How to use this caramel
It’s delicious over my aquafaba ice cream as a topping for veggie brownies, drizzle it over my vegan no-bake cheesecake, or
Use this recipe to make vegan salted caramel frosting or vegan millionaire shortbread bars! You can even use it as a filling for these chocolate peanut butter bombs!
Drizzle it over the following
- Vegan Apple Crisp
- Aquafaba Ice Cream
- Vegan Cheesecake
- Veggie Brownies
- Vegan Pumpkin Pie
- Dairy-Free Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Vegan Apple Cake
⭐ Easier caramel recipes
If so, you have to give my Vegan Butterscotch Sauce recipe a try! It has a very similar taste and texture, but is much more forgiving! You can also use my peanut butter caramel recipe instead if you don't want to have to cook.
🍎Make caramel apples
Check out my post with full instructions on how to make perfect vegan caramel apples!
📌 Be sure to follow me on Pinterest for new vegan recipes!
A classic tasting caramel sauce made without dairy or coconut milk.
- 1/4 cup refined coconut oil
- 3 tbsp soy milk or any other plant-based milk
- 3/4 tsp salt or omit for regular caramel sauce
- 1 cup vegan sugar
- 3 tbsp water
- 1/8 tsp cream of tartar (optional - makes it smoother)
-
Measure out your coconut oil, plant-based milk, and salt. Have them waiting near the stove.
-
Start with a very clean pan and pour in sugar, water, and cream of tartar.
-
Turn on the heat to medium and let it start to boil. (Don’t stir, just swish it around a little if needed).
-
Allow the sauce to boil for about 5 minutes and then start watching it very closely.
-
After about 6-7 minutes, the bubbles will get smaller and it will start to get a darker color and smell slightly of caramel.
-
When it starts to caramelize, remove it from the burner and immediately pour in the coconut oil. (At this point you can give it a stir with a long-handled whisk).
-
Pour in the plant milk and continue to stir with the whisk for about 30 seconds. (It will bubble up and spatter when you add the milk, but then turn to caramel after a few seconds of stirring).
-
Once the bubbling from the milk calms down, add the salt and stir for a few more seconds. (or leave out the salt for regular caramel).
Tips:
- Measure out the oil, milk, and salt and have it ready to add to the caramel. Waiting longer than a few seconds will mess it up.
- Watch the caramel closely. Sugar turns to caramel at 340°F (171°C) but will burn at 350°F (177°C), so you must remove it from the heat before it reaches 350° F (177°C).
- If your caramel becomes too firm, heat it back up and add a teaspoon or 2 of water. If your caramel is too runny, heat it on a very low heat for about 5 minutes and allow some of the moister to evaporate.
- Store in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Note: Making this caramel sauce can be a little dangerous. It should be made by an adult and I wouldn’t recommend having small children nearby. It will bubble and spatter when the milk is added so you need to stand back and use a long-handled whisk to stir it. If the hot caramel spills on you it will stick and burn!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Leave a comment and starred review! I would love to hear from you!
This is such a fabulous recipe, really had that authentic caramel flavor.
I find that I need less coconut oil and more plant milk in order to get the desired consistency.
I also cook the sugar according to the flavor I want. Sometimes I cook it until it’s just golden for a butterscotch flavored sauce!
I'm so happy that you like it, Abigail! 🙂
I must have done something wrong, but I can't figure out what. I used it to fill vegan chocolates, and the caramel was so hard that I couldn't even bite into it.
It sounds like you got your caramel too hot. If you still have some that you didn't use in the chocolates, you can add a little plant-based milk to it and warm it until it thins out.
I followed this recipe exactly and left it on the counter overnight. When I went to follow your salted caramel icing recipe, it had solidified. I warmed it a little in a warm water bath just to get it out of the container (didn't want to melt the icing), and it still left big chunks after mixing with a hand mixer. What can I do to make it softer without impacting the integrity of the icing?
It's very difficult to make it smooth again since it's already added to the frosting. You could have added a tiny bit of very hot water to it to thin it out and make it smooth before adding it to the frosting, but now I think that your only choice is to keep beating it. You can let it rest at room temperature for about an hour and then try beating it again, some of the crystals may get moist enough to dissolve. If that doesn't work, add 2 tablespoons of liquid from a can of chickpeas to the frosting and beat on high for at least 5 minutes. This will help smooth it out as well.
Hi Monica. I meant for next time. If I wanted to make the caramel 1) not rock hard 2) not so soft it would mess up the frosting - what could I do next time? I'm planning to make cupcakes for an outdoor party, and these were the test run.
Can you sub out the coconut oil for a vegan butter ? And can I use unsweetened cashew milk instead of the soy?
Yes, both of those substitutions should work fine. Enjoy! 🙂
Could this be safely left on the counter? If so how many days?
Yes, it should be fine at room temperature for up to 3 days. Enjoy! 🙂
Would this set up to dip apples in for caramel apple?
Yes, it does. If you want a super easy dip for apples you may also like my peanut butter caramel dip too. Here is the link to that one. https://thehiddenveggies.com/peanut-butter-caramel/
Going to try this for my grandchildren!!! Approx. hoe many apples will one batch of this caramel sauce cover?
It will cover about 4 medium apples or 6 small apples. I hope you guys love it as much as we do! (I'm not sure if your grandchildren are going to be helping or not, but use a lot of caution with the hot caramel! It's hard for little fingers not to steal a taste and it will stick on and burn them). I have to remind my husband of this too! 🙂
My caramel looked great when it was hot and Was definitely a sauce consistency. As soon as it cooled completely in the fridge though, it became hard as a rock. I was using it in a coffee so I just scraped some off and it melted in the drink. But this isn’t ideal. Any ideas what went wrong? Can it be stored out of the fridge? Thanks!
Candy making is a tricky process and even the humidity in your house can affect the outcome. You can add a little water to it and heat it up and it will become a sauce again. Yes, if you are not using it in the next 24 hours store it in the fridge. It will thicken when it's cold though.
Could this be made with swerve or stevia?
I don't think so. It turns to caramel because of the caramelization process of the sugar.
The first recipe I've encountered on how to make ACTUAL caramel sauce, and not some oh, just mix coconut milk and brown sugar together and boil- bs. Love it!
I substituted the refined coconut oil with vegan butter and I think it gives a better flavour than the neutral refined coconut.
I did, however, have some trouble with my sugar. It sadly kept recrystallizing and there were a good amount of sugar crystals clinging to the side of my pot, even without stirring. Now my caramel sauce turned into soft toffee!😆 I'm not complaining, it tastes amazing. Any tips how I can avoid this the next time?
Hi Cora, I'm glad that you liked it! I had the same trouble before I started adding the little bit of cream of tartar to it? Did you add that? You can also add a drop of lemon juice or another acid to help it not to crystalize. Also, make sure your pan is very clean starting out. You can also put a lid loosely on the pot to help trap some of the steam. This will keep the sides of the pot a little moist and it won't crystalize. Hope that helps! 🙂
Can this recipe be canned?
I would think so, but I've never tried canning it. It will keep in the fridge for a few weeks in a sealed container. Let me know if you try it. 🙂
Would another oil work instead of the coconut oil?
Yes, I have used canola oil too. I felt like coconut oil worked a little better, but canola also worked well. Just be sure that it's a neutral flavored oil or it will taste funny.
Sorry I meant the buns with icing
Hi can you tell me how long this stay fresh please?
Maria
The sauce should stay good for about 5-7 days in a sealed container in the fridge. The icing will stay good about the same amount of time as long as it is refrigerated. Enjoy! 🙂
Can I use regular sugar instead of vegan sugar?
Yes, that is fine. It will work the same.
I'm having issues with my oil separating... Any tips on what I'm doing wrong?
If your caramel is too hot when you add it, it will melt the butter in your frosting and cause it to separate. Let it cool off a little more and try blending it again. If that doesn't work, add a few more tsp of powdered sugar. Hope that helps.
OMG! This was the most delicious caramel that I have ever had! No one knew that it was dairy free! I love that it doesn't have a coconut flavor, it just tastes like real caramel!
Thanks Margo! I love this caramel too! I think I gained 5 pounds this October from salted caramel alone! 🙂
Could this be made without the coconut oil? Would it even be caramel? You suggestions would be helpful... We are on oil and nut free eating plan...…………..Thanks
I think that the oil makes it soft. It would be more like candy without it. You could use coconut milk instead of the oil and soy milk so it would still have the fat, but not processed oil. Hope that helps! 🙂