Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (2024)

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Caramel Candy has never been easier to make! With just a few ingredients and a few minutes of time you can make rich, chewy caramel squares in your microwave.

Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (1)

Homemade Caramel Candies

I don’t know about you, but I can hardly contain my excitement when a Christmas plate is delivered and they have some homemade caramels wrapped in wax paper on them. They are always the softest, melt in your mouth caramels and I have great news for you..

YOU can make them. Seriously, with just a few ingredients, a microwave and a little stirring you’ve got those decadent caramel squares dreams are made of.

Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (2)

Caramel Candy Recipe ingredients

There is a full list of ingredients with exact measurements in the printable recipe card below.

  • Butter– I generally use salted butter, but be warned that salted butter will pop in the microwave when you are initially melting it down. I just place a paper towel over my bowl to avoid a mess in the microwave. You could use unsalted if you have it though. Just add a pinch of salt to the caramel mixture prior to microwaving.
  • Sweetened condensed milk– just one 14 oz can.
  • Corn syrup– light corn syrup is what we will use. Dark corn syrup will yield a richer and darker flavor and color.
  • Brown Sugar– You need brown sugar for this recipe, don’t try and substitute granulated sugar. Trust me, you will be so disappointed!
  • Vanilla extract
  • flakey sea salt– I use Maldon’s flakey sea salt, I purchased it on amazon.
Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (3)

How to Make Caramel Candy in the Microwave

Making Caramels in the microwave couldn’t be easier. Follow the steps below and you’ll be golden!

  1. in a large microwave safe bowl, melt your butter completely. (Please use a heavy duty, microwave safe bowl. The bowl will get very hot. Check the manufacturers website to ensure it is microwave safe to high temperatures.)
  2. Stir in the sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup and brown sugar. The mixture will be grainy, but there should be no lumps.
  3. Microwave on high for 5 minutes and then stir. Continue microwaving and stirring 1 minute at a time until the temperature reaches 240° on an instant read thermometer. (see below for instructions on how to check doneness without a thermometer.)
  4. Pour the mixture into a buttered 8×8 pan. Allow the mixture to cool at room temperature for 30 minutes and then place in the fridge for 3 hours.
  5. Wait until the caramel is cold before cutting.
  6. Cut with a sharp knife in one up and down motion for each cut.
  7. Wrap with wax paper and enjoy!

Tips for this Microwave Caramel Recipe

How to check temperature of Caramel Candies

You’ll check if the caramel is done by quickly bringing it down to room temperature and ‘setting’ the caramel to see what the finished texture would be like. To do this, get a bowl of ice water and drop a small amount of the hot caramel liquid into the ice water. When the caramel is ready, the caramel will ball up and be easily pliable between your fingers. If it is still really soft and doesn’t come together in a ball, you’ll need to cook it for longer. If it hardens and is more like toffee, the caramel has been cooked too long.

How to store Microwave Caramels

How to freeze Microwave Caramel Recipe

Yes, you can! Just make sure that the caramel is wrapped well and then in an air tight container.

Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (4)

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Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (5)

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5 from 13 votes

Microwave Caramel Candies

By: Karli Bitner

Caramel Candy has never been easier to make! With just a few ingredients and a few minutes of time you can make rich, chewy caramel squares in your microwave.

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 7 minutes minutes

Cool Time: 4 hours hours

Servings: 25 Squares

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (111g) salted butter, if using salted butter, make sure to cover your bowl in the microwave
  • 2 cups (492g) brown sugar
  • 1 cup (340g) corn syrup
  • 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • flakey sea salt, optional

Instructions

  • In a microwave safe bowl, melt the butter completely.

  • Add the brown sugar, corn syrup and sweetened condensed milk to the bowl and whisk until completely combined.

  • Microwave on high power for 5 minutes.

  • Stir and check the temperature of the mixture. Our goal is to get it to about 240°.

  • If you don't have a instant read thermometer, you can check the doneness by dropping a small spoonful into a cup with ice water. The texture of the caramel after it cools down in the ice water is what the texture of the caramel will be if you stopped cooking it right now. It should be soft and pliable, but not super hard or super soft.

  • If needed, return the caramel to the microwave and cook for an additional one minute and then check the temperature, repeating until the temperature has reached 240°f (115°c) or until it is done to your liking by the ice water test.

  • Stir in the vanilla extract.

  • Pour the caramel mixture into a buttered 8×8 pan.

  • Allow the caramel to cool at room temperature for 30 minutes.

  • Then place the caramel in the fridge for 2-3 hours or until set.

  • Sprinkle with flakey sea salt, if desired.

  • Cut into desired shape and size, wrap in wax paper. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 133kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 0.1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 42mg | Potassium: 27mg | Sugar: 26g | Vitamin A: 118IU | Vitamin C: 0.001mg | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 0.1mg

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Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli (2024)

FAQs

Microwave Caramel Candy Recipe - Cooking With Karli? ›

To melt caramels using a microwave, open up a bag of soft caramels, unwrap the individual candies, and place them in a microwave-safe dish. Next, add milk to the bowl, or if you'd like a richer treat, add heavy cream instead. Then, place the bowl in the microwave and heat the caramels on HIGH for 1 minute.

How long to melt caramels in the microwave? ›

To melt caramels using a microwave, open up a bag of soft caramels, unwrap the individual candies, and place them in a microwave-safe dish. Next, add milk to the bowl, or if you'd like a richer treat, add heavy cream instead. Then, place the bowl in the microwave and heat the caramels on HIGH for 1 minute.

How to melt Brach's caramels? ›

Unwrap and put caramels and 2 Tablespoons water in medium saucepan. Cook on medium-low heat until caramels are completely melted (approx. 15 minutes), stirring constantly.

How to soften hard caramel candy? ›

If caramels are too hard, you can try placing them back in a saucepan, adding a couple tablespoons of water and stirring until the thermometer reads 242°F.

Can I substitute caramel sauce for caramels? ›

Caramel sauce results either from cooking sugar until it browns or by thinning melted caramel candies. When a recipe calls for melting caramel candies, you can use a homemade caramel sauce to replace the melted caramels.

How do you know when caramel is done boiling? ›

When the caramel has darkened to the point of being almost burnt — when it's dark amber in colour, smoking, and beginning to gently foam — take it off the heat and stop the cooking by pouring in the liquid called for in the recipe. Then stir or whisk the caramel over low heat until it's smooth.

Why won't my caramel melt? ›

Instead of stirring, you gently swirl the melted sugar around in the pan to keep it moving and avoid burn spots. The agitation of stirring can cause the sugar to grab on to any unmelted crystals on the sides of the pan, and crystallization, or chunks of sugar, form in your caramel and they won't melt.

Does melted caramel harden? ›

Once you make caramel, it will harden as it cools, and you'll have to heat it up again to use it. However, if you want to turn it into a more spoonable sauce, you add other ingredients like butter or cream to the melted caramel.

Can you melt Werther's hard caramels in microwave? ›

Combine caramels and water in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave mixture in 30-second increments, stirring between each increment, until caramels begin to melt, about 1 to 1 ½ minutes.

Do Werther's chewy caramels melt? ›

Absolutely! Werther's Original Soft Crème and Chewy Caramels are ideal for baking. You can also use Soft Éclair Caramels for that caramel chocolate flavour profile. Just melt on medium low heat, add a little milk or cream until you get the consistency you want.

Why did my homemade caramel get hard? ›

If the melting sugar splashes up onto the sides of the pan, it quickly loses its moisture content and forms back into crystals. That can set off a chain reaction that can cause caramel to seize up, ruining the entire batch.

How do you keep caramel from hardening? ›

Caramel crystallizes because there are crystals of sigar formed on the sides of the pan by evaporation. Brushing down the sides of the pan wirh water should prevent this. I usually add any butter or other fat in the recipe while the sugar is melting, so it is already combined as it caramelizes.

What makes caramel soft or hard? ›

Burning
TemperatureCaramel Status
179°C (355°F)The caramel starts to turn medium brown; hard when cooled
185°C (365°F)The caramel turns dark brown; soft and sticky when cooled
210°C (410°F)The caramel turns black and bitter; often used in this stage as a coloring agent
2 more rows
Apr 6, 2021

Do I need to add anything to melt caramel? ›

The key to getting it right is to use soft caramels as opposed to hard. You must also add some sort of liquid, such as milk or cream, to prevent the caramels from drying out. Knowing these tricks will help you to melt caramels with ease.

How to melt kraft caramels in the microwave? ›

How to Melt Caramels in the Microwave
  1. Unwrap the individual caramel candies. Place in a microwave safe bowl along with 1 tablespoon of water.
  2. Microwave on high for about 1 minute. Stir until smooth, then heat longer if needed.
Sep 11, 2023

Why is my homemade caramel sauce not thickening? ›

Add more sugar to the sauce.

Most caramel sauces are made by caramelizing sugar and adding milk and a little salt. If you increase the amount of sugar in the recipe you'll end up with a thicker caramel. Try increasing the sugar by about 1/3.

How long does it take for melted caramel to harden? ›

How long does it take caramel to set? Give your caramel at least two hours to set, or overnight if possible. You can also pop caramel into the fridge to help it set up faster. The caramel will sweat a little when brought out of the fridge, but will still taste fine.

How long does it take sugar to melt when making caramel? ›

Combine the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium to low heat and bring to a boil. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes or until the sugar caramelizes and turns golden brown. Do not stir the mixture as the sugar heats or it can start to crystallize.

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