Treat yourself to a worthy indulgence with Vegan Salted Caramel! You only need 4 simple ingredients to make this silky smooth salty and sweet concoction. Drizzle this delight onto ice cream, brownies, coffee, or any other treat of your choice!
If you love caramel in desserts as much as I do, make sure to go make my Vegan Millionaire Shortbread Bars!
Is there anything on earth more heavenly than sticky sweet caramel? I don’t think so! I love stocking up on my favorite vegan recipes that feature caramel, especially during the cozy fall months. Some of the best include Vegan Salted Caramel Skillet Cookie, Vegan Caramel Monkey Bread, and my classic 3 Ingredient Vegan Caramel Sauce.
What’s to love about this vegan salted caramel?
- It’s a budget friendly recipe. You only need 4 ingredients to make this delicious sauce! If you eat vegan regularly, you likely already have everything you need in your kitchen at this very moment.
- The balance of salty and sweet is drool-worthy. I love a good salty sweet combo, especially when it’s done just right. There’s enough salt in this sauce to excite your taste buds, but not too much to overpower the sweet vegan caramel.
- You can drizzle it on anything! The list of desserts that this sauce does not compliment is way shorter than the list of desserts it does go well with… Which is virtually everything.
Ingredients you need
- Sugar – When making caramel sauce, it’s best to use granulated sugar. Organic granulated sugar is vegan, while some white sugars are not.
- Vegan Butter – The salty flavor in this sauce is also enhanced by the salted butter! If you have to use unsalted butter, you may need to add an extra sprinkle of salt. I have used Earth Balance, Melt and my favorite is Miyoko’s.
- Soy Creamer – In a pinch, you can substitute this with coconut cream, or any other vegan creamer of your choice. Just make sure it’s not heavily flavored.
- Salt – Be careful not to be too heavy handed when sprinkling this in!
Frequently asked questions
- How long will Vegan Salted Caramel stay fresh? In an airtight container in the fridge, this sweet sauce will stay fresh for about a week.
- How do I reheat it? The microwave actually works best! Reheat the chilled caramel in 20-30 seconds intervals in the microwave, stirring every time it stops.
- Where should I serve salted caramel? Drizzle this mouthwatering sweet/salty sauce on desserts like Vegan Ice Cream, Vegan Brownies, Vegan Hot Chocolate, Apple Crisp, Apple Cake or whatever else your heart desires. Get creative!
Want more ideas on how to use this salted caramel?
- Drizzle over Vegan Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Serve as a topping for Vegan Monkey Bread instead of the usual glaze
- Serve with Vegan Apple Pie with a scoop of non-dairy vanilla ice cream
- Make a salted caramel latte with non-dairy milk and espresso or drizzle over Pumpkin Spice Lattes
- Drizzle over Vegan Cinnamon Rolls
- Serve on Vegan Pumpkin Scones
- Use as a topping for Vegan Pumpkin Cake or Pumpkin Pie
Vegan Salted Caramel
Treat yourself to a worthy indulgence with Vegan Salted Caramel! You only need 4 simple ingredients to make this silky smooth salty and sweet concoction.
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons vegan butter
- 1/2 cup soy creamer see Notes for options
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, add the sugar and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat resistant spatula or wooden spoon. The sugar will get clumpy, then eventually start to melt until it's a dark brown liquid.
- Once the sugar is all the way melted, carefully stir in 1 tablespoon of butter at a time until combined. Be very careful as the butter will bubble up as soon as you add it. If the butter looks a bit separated from the sugar (like a layer of oil on top), remove it from the heat and carefully whisk until it comes together. Watch out for oil splatter though!
- Once the butter and sugar are combined, very slowly pour in the soy creamer, stirring as you pour. Once combined, let the mixture boil for 1 minute without stirring. It will bubble up in the pan, but don't let it bubble over.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the salt. Let it cool down until it thickens up. It will be quite thin when hot, but thicken as it cools.
Notes
- Instead of soy creamer, you can use coconut cream or possibly another dairy free creamer as well. Just make sure it’s plain and not vanilla flavored or any other flavor. Use an unsweetened version.
- I prefer using Miyoko’s vegan butter but other brands work just fine.
- Organic granulated sugar is vegan. Not all white sugars are vegan, but some are depending on where you live. You must use a granulated sugar though; no other sweetener will work as well.
Nutrition
Serving: 1of 12 servings | Calories: 119kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 0.1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 246mg | Potassium: 21mg | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 269IU | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 0.01mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @nora_cooks_vegan_ or tag #noracooks!
Can you use Trader Joe’s dairy free heavy cream in this instead of the creamer (I don’t know the difference between them)? I see in the comments someone else used a heavy cream but am not sure if the ratios need to be altered for that adjustment. I’ve used your site for a number of recipes and come here often knowing how great your recipes always turn out. I made your cinnamon bun recipe a few weeks ago and am hoping to make the caramel sauce in a few weeks.
Yes, that should work well here. I hope you enjoy this, and I’m glad you liked the cinnamon rolls!
Nora, do you have a video for this recipe? I am having a lot of trouble. I’ve tried twice now and the first time it burned, while the second time, it separated. I just want to see what it’s supposed to look like when it is “all the way melted.” I am terrible at candy-making and have never successfully made caramel, so not surprised I can’t get this right.
Sorry, I don’t have a video for this recipe. It’s sounds like the first time you cooked the sugar a bit too long perhaps? The sugar really does just melt into a liquid and turn brown. Perhaps try turning your heat down a little bit, or use a different pan (I prefer non-stick). When you say it separated the second time, do you mean once everything else was added? Sometimes you have to remove it from the heat and truly whisk carefully for quite awhile to get it combined. You may want to give my Easy Vegan Caramel a try, which doesn’t need any of these steps! I love that one too.
I think, the second time, I didn’t melt the sugar all the way….it still had grains in it. Then when I added the butter, nothing I could do (even whisking) could undo not melting the sugar properly. I’m going to give it one more try. I have never been able to make caramel…even before going vegan. I am just not good at the candy-making component of cooking (I’m also terrible at making fudge). Thanks for replying, Nora. You’re the best.
Invest in a candy thermometer. I was never able to make caramel until I got one. Take the sugar to a minimum of 320°F and maximum of 370°F. Do not let your thermometer sit in the bottom of the pan. It will read hotter than it truly is. Tip the caramel to the side if it is too shallow otherwise. Then, once at temp, expect it to scare the crap out of you both when you add the butter and again when you add the creamer. Make sure you are using a decent sized pot because it Will bubble up. It will likely seem to seize at some point. That is okay just keep mixing. Oh, and use room temp butter and creamer. Caveat, I have not yet made vegan caramel. I am newly vegan. But I made my fair share of dairy caramels.
This caramel is SOOO good! I’ve made it a few times now using cane sugar and oat creamer and it came out perfectly each time!
I wanted to use it for the sticky toffee pudding sauce
I’m trying to convert a sticky toffee pudding recipe with dates into vegan and wondered if this would work
The recipe says to pour the caramel sauce over the cake and put it under the boiler until it bubbles. Would this work or would I be at risk of burn
It’s hard for me to say what will happen honestly, as I’ve never tried what your talking about. It should be okay, but I’d watch it closely. Good luck!
I want to make this tonight to put on popcorn but dont have white sugar.
Has anyone made this with coconut sugar?
The first Nora recipe that didn’t work for me. None of the other commenters have said anything so the ingredients must be correct, but I must ask: Are we sure 1 tsp of salt is correct? I wasn’t going to add the salt at all because the sauce looked so perfect when I removed it from the heat, but who doesn’t love salted caramel? But 1 tsp was definitely way too much. (Perhaps my vegan butter was salty enough so I needed no added salt?) I had to find a way to cut the salt to make it edible, so I added more cream, which helped only a bit. So while it is now easily pourable as it didn’t thicken because of the added cream, it’s still too salty. Any way to save this batch or should I just start over?
Just made this to go on my friends vegan birthday cupcakes and my goodness it is DELICIOUS! I’ve had to tear myself away from the pot while it finishes cooling so I don’t keep “taste testing” it. Reminds me of daim bar caramel. Will definitely be making this again thankyou for such a fab recipe!
You are welcome, Mhairi! I know what you mean about ‘taste testing!’ I’m so glad you love the caramel! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback! Happy birthday to your friend!
Hi Nora,
This recipe looks awesome! I was wondering, what exactly do you mean by soy creamer? Is it cooking cream such as Belsoy or more like coffee creamer such as Silk? Thanks in advance 😊
I’m not familiar with Belsoy, but yes, like Silk creamer or another creamer. It doesn’t have to be soy, and you could use coconut cream instead (though it might taste a bit like coconut then). Hope that helps!
I should have rated and reviewed this recipe a year ago. I make it all the time!
For others asking, I used it as a filling between cake layers often—it’s wonderful. (Just make a good buttercream dam.) I’ve also used it to make caramel apple pie—works great!
I typically use plant-based heavy cream instead of creamer, though. LOVE IT!
Oh gosh, I love your ideas, Dee! Thanks for sharing them as well as your great review! I’m thrilled you loved the recipe! Happy cooking!
I have been looking for a vegan caramel sauce with NO coconut taste. I was so happy to find this recipe. The first time I made it, I burnt it, unfortunately, but since the recipe is actually pretty simple, I had no problem trying it again. After learning my lesson and turning down the heat, I made a beautiful caramel sauce. It’s exactly what I was looking for, thank you!
can this be used as cake filling?
I’m sure it could, yes.
Hi Nora! I love ALL of your recipes and am excited to try this and the Apple streusel bars. When you say coconut cream can be used, do you mean from the can?
Yes, from a can. Thanks for loving my recipes!
Yes!!! A real-deal caramel!!!
I was looking for a non-coconut vegan caramel to accompany a cake I was making and kept finding recipes for loose sauces that relied on brown sugar or maple to mimic a deeper sugar flavor, but didn’t actually cook the sugar to allow for proper caramel flavor or thickness. I wish I found this sooner!
One note– I didn’t end up being able to find unsweetened or unflavored plant based creamer at the store, so I decided to try my luck with Califia Farms French Vanilla Almondmilk Creamer. I was happy with how it turned out, but I’m sure mileage may vary depending on the brand and flavor used.
Hi Fern. Thank you for sharing your fabulous review! I’m so glad you found my caramel sauce, and that you are happy with it! Happy cooking!
Before I went vegan 7 years ago I used to make caramel pecan cheesecake and since then my husband has said so many times that he misses it. Last night I made your cheesecake recipe with the caramel sauce on top and it was almost exactly like we used to have. Thank you so much for this recipe!!!
Oh, I love it! That sounds delicious, and I’m glad it was similar to the cheesecake you guys loved! Thanks for sharing your fabulous feedback and idea! Happy cooking!
Hello, thanks for sharing the recipe! Do you think it would be possible to sub oat milk for creamer?
It would probably work okay yes. Thanks!
Second time making. Adding vanilla, but otherwise a wonderful recipe. In fact, our household references your recipes OFTEN. MERCI BEAUCOUP!
Hi Kiki! I am thrilled that your family is enjoying my recipes! I appreciate you using them! Thanks for your awesome review and feedback on the caramel! Happy cooking to you!
HI – does this freeze well?
I haven’t tested it, but it should freeze well. Just let it thaw at room temp before using.
This is very good. I drizzled it over your apple strudel. Do I store it in the fridge?
I’m glad you liked the caramel! Store in an airtight container in the fridge. The sweet sauce will stay fresh for about a week.
once the caramel cools will it get hard?
The caramel thickens. It does not get hard.
Hi Nora! This looks so delicious and since I have an abundance of apples right now, I was wondering if I could use this to make like a caramel apple pie. I was thinking little hand pies, but wanted to ask would you recommend baking with the caramel inside, or should I just drizzle it on after?
That sounds like a tasty idea! I haven’t tested the caramel in a pie or other baked desserts, but I’m sure you could use it both inside or on top of an apple pie. Happy baking!