Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: I love butterscotch because it’s sweet without being one dimensional. And I super love adding salt in order to really bring out all the flavors!
Texture: Thick, rich, and perfectly pourable.
Ease: Practically fool proof, quick, and much simpler than caramel.
Appearance: I mean, it doesn’t look like a whole lot, but it’s practically liquid gold!
Pros: Never buy store-bought butterscotch again.
Cons: None! I love that this stays good for 2 weeks, though I doubt it’ll last that long.
I make this again? Mmmhm.
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I can’t believe I’ve never shared a recipe for butterscotch before.
I’m always rambling on about how the best chocolate chip cookies have a slight butterscotch flavor to them.
You know, that caramelized complex sweet flavor that sends you into crazy cravings mode where you NEED SOMETHING SWEET STAT just thinking about it.
Well, some sweets develop a butterscotch-like flavor due to a high portion of brown sugar and butter being cooked together.
That’s basically what butterscotch is, and if you peek at the ingredients below it’s 5 simple ingredients and just 10 minutes. No thermometer needed! No corn syrup either.
It’s especially perfect drizzled over ice cream. Check out how to make ice cream without an ice cream maker here!
How to Make Homemade Butterscotch Sauce
Why won’t my butterscotch sauce thicken?
Once your sauce comes to a bubbling simmer let it cook for 3 full minutes without touching it. If you don’t cook the sauce enough it won’t thicken. If you cook it for too long, or at a full boil, then it will thicken too much and be more like butterscotch candy.
What’s the difference between butterscotch sauce and caramel sauce?
Generally speaking, caramel is made by cooking down white granulated sugar until it caramelizes into a liquid mixture then adding it butter and cream. Butterscotch is made by cooking brown sugar with the butter and cream all at once. This saves time and is much simpler.
If you’re interested, check out my recipe for salted caramel sauce here.
What sugar to use for butterscotch sauce?
Brown sugar, as I mentioned above. I prefer to use dark brown sugar for its intense flavor, but you can use light brown if that’s what you have.
Does butterscotch sauce have alcohol?
In this recipe you’ll see I’ve written the option of adding in 2 tablespoons of dark liquor. This can be scotch (hehe), bourbon, rum, whisky, or cognac. It adds a nice hit that cuts through the sweetness and adds to the complexity of flavor. However, it’s totally optional.
What kind of salt to use for butterscotch sauce?
Sea salt is definitely best. It’ll balance out and enhance the sweet flavor. If you prefer, use a higher end flaky finishing salt for an even better taste.
How to make SMOOTH butterscotch sauce?
To ensure there’s absolutely no clumps of sugar or grainy texture, you can take the optional extra step of straining your butterscotch sauce with a fine mesh strainer after it cooks and before it cools. Stir in the salt called for after straining since the strainer may remove a large part of it.
How to store homemade butterscotch sauce:
Store in a jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.
Can butterscotch sauce be reheated?
Yes. Reheat the butterscotch sauce in a saucepan over low heat or in the microwave until it’s slightly warmed but still thick.
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Ingredients
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) dark brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons dark liquor, optional
Instructions
- In a large heavy saucepan or skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the sugar, salt, and cream and stir with a rubber spatula until combined. Bring to a simmer. Without stirring, let the mixture cook at a bubbling simmer for three minutes. Be careful not to boil too long, or you’ll end up with chewy butterscotch candies instead of a sauce. Mixture will thicken considerably as it cools.
- Remove from heat and let cool slightly before stirring in the vanilla extract and liquor (if using). Pour into a resalable container, preferably glass. Don’t scrape the sides of the pan into the container or you may end up with gritty pieces of undissolved sugar. You should end up with about 1 1/3 cups sauce.
- Serving and Storage: The sauce should be served warm. It can be stored in a jar, in the refrigerator, for up to two weeks. Reheat the butterscotch sauce in a saucepan over low heat.
Recipe originally published in 2016 and recently updated with new photos, recipe improvements, and tips. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
I followed the recipe exactly and mine separated after being in the fridge overnight. Not sure what I did wrong
Hi Nichole! It’s hard to say for sure what happened without having baked alongside you, but here are a few possible culprits:
– What type of butter did you use? We haven’t tried this recipe using European-style butter. Because European-style butter has a higher fat content, it’s possible this could cause the sauce to separate. I recommend using unsalted American-style butter (about 80% butterfat) instead.
– Another possible culprit could be if the sauce was exposed to air once you put it in the fridge. Make sure your sauce is tightly covered, as air exposure can lead to separation.
I would recommend trying to salvage your sauce by reheating it and whisking vigorously, to see if it comes back together. Fingers crossed that saves it for you! Good luck and happy baking!
I will love for you to keep sending me your recipe
Hi Shannon! You can sign up to receive Handle the Heat’s newsletters here 🙂
Guys, this is seriously SO GOOD!!!! Super easy to make, and definitely not hard if you’ve made caramel before. I love using this for pretty drizzles on baked goods, topping ice cream, and also for my iced coffees. Bonus Tip: make dalgona and sweeten it with this. You’ll thank me later, I promise. 🙂
I have made a honey cake with butterscotch sauce to drizzle on top recipe said white sugar is that why it’s not as dark still yummy but not as dark
This recipe is perfect!!!..I almost cried when it was done…it didn’t crystalize like other recipes I’ve used before. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. ❤️
Yay!! So happy to hear of your success!
My mother and I love to make butterscotch haystacks at Christmas. Last year when we attempted to melted down the butterscotch chips to make the candy the chips did not melt properly. It was very clumpy and gritty. I am puzzled lol. I received my ultimate cookie handbook yesterday and I am in love .
Hi Kelly! Butterscotch chips (and chocolate chips) actually have added ingredients that help them maintain their chip shape when exposed to heat and don’t melt down smoothly. Do you use a double boiler or melt in the microwave? If in the microwave, you’ll want to use 50% power for 30 second increments at a time, stirring well after each time. You could try chopping them a bit prior to melting so they heat more quickly. You could also try adding a few drops of unflavored vegetable oil or coconut oil to the bowl prior to melting as that can help with seizing. Make sure not even a drop of water enters the bowl as that can cause your chocolate/butterscotch to become grainy. I hope that helps!
Hi. How much is 1 cup cream in ml?
I don’t use a digital scale to measure milk, water or creams because there’s no air inside those ingredients, so cups work perfectly fine; however, I just looked it up on Google, and it looks like 1 cup is about 240ml.
Great recipe and very easy! Can it be frozen? I made a double batch but I don’t need quite this much.
What kind of vanilla you use?
Absolutely delicious! I don’t plan on buying or making caramel ever again!!
The video says to use 4T of butter and the printed recipe says to use a whole stick of butter! I am assuming 4T is the correct measurement! Please respond!
Thank you,
Patty
The recipe says 113 g butter which is 4 oz. Maybe she misspoke and meant 4 oz in the video but said 4T?
The amounts given in the printed recipe is double the amounts given in the video. All depends on how much you want to make. 🙂
Delicious