This miso caramel recipe is a delicious way to incorporate a salty-sweet umami flavour into creamy salted miso caramel sauce. It is perfect for drizzling over ice cream, pancakes, pies or waffles.The recipe yields a cup of miso caramel sauce.
Servings8 servings
Equipment
- Small sauce pan – I use a stainless steel 2 quart (1.8 litre) saucepan.
Ingredients
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
- ½ cup heavy cream * , room temperature
- 2 tablespoons white miso paste
- flaked sea salt , to taste
Instructions
- Place the sugar and water in a very clean, small saucepan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally until the sugar melts. When the sugar is almost dissolved, stop stirring completely – really, don't stir it at all, ever.
- Turn it up to medium-high heat. And give the pan an occasional gentle swirl for even heat distribution. Use a wet pastry brush to wash down any sugar crystals that form on the sides of the pan. Simmer, without stirring, until the syrup has an amber colour (a deep golden brown) – about 5 to 10 minutes. (A candy thermometer should read 248 °F if you want to be precise.)
- Remove the syrup from the heat. Put on your baking gloves. Then, carefully pour in the cream – it will cause the caramel to bubble vigorously. Use a wire whisk or silicone spoon and stir until well combined – be careful of the scalding hot steam. And don't worry if the caramel seizes – returning it to the heat will help loosen it.
- Return the caramel to low heat. Whisk in the miso paste and cook for another 2 minutes. Taste carefully (the miso caramel is piping hot), and add a pinch of salt if you want it saltier. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool slightly before using.
Notes
- Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) contains at least 36% of milk fat. If your cream has a lower fat content, add a tablespoon of unsalted butter for a luscious texture. It helps to use room-temperature ingredients to keep the caramel sauce from seizing, but it's not strictly necessary – you may just need to whisk a bit harder.
- Refrigerate the miso caramel sauce in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. Allow the sauce to cool down completely before refrigerating. It will thicken up in the fridge. Simply reheat small quantities in a ramekin in the microwave as needed. Or reheat the lot in a stovetop saucepan with a splash of water over low heat. You can also eat the thick and creamy miso caramel by the spoonful straight from the fridge – as I do.