Caramel vs Butterscotch Sauce (2024)

FAQs

Caramel vs Butterscotch Sauce? ›

They look and taste similar, but there are subtle differences. What's the difference between caramel and butterscotch sauce? This is a common question since both are cooked sugar concoctions. But the main difference is caramel is made with granulated sugar while butterscotch is made with brown sugar.

The difference between butterscotch and caramel is that caramel is made with white granulated sugar and cooked to 340 degrees Fahrenheit, whereas butterscotch is made with brown sugar and cooked to 289 degrees Fahrenheit.

butterscotch, usually hard candy made by boiling brown sugar and butter and sometimes corn syrup together in water. The derivation of the name is disputed as to whether it denotes the candy's origin in Scotland or an original ingredient of “scotched,” or scorched, butter.

Butterscotch is a type of confectionery whose primary ingredients are brown sugar and butter. Some recipes include corn syrup, cream, vanilla, and salt. The earliest known recipes, in mid-19th century Yorkshire, used treacle (molasses) in place of, or in addition to, sugar.

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.

While it is often likened to caramel, dulce de leche possesses its own unique flavor profile produced by the Maillard reaction, a chemical reaction and transformation of sugars and proteins via heat. Caramelization does not actually take place when you make dulce de leche.

They also use butter, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream, but it's the sugar that differentiates these two from caramel. While caramel uses white sugar, both butterscotch and toffee use brown sugar.

Origin. Butterscotch is claimed to have been first named in 1817 in Doncaster, England by Samuel Parkinson. He had begun making the candy earlier under the name of buttery brittle toffee. The company that produced the candy received the Royal Seal of Approval for their highly demanded export.

It is not any coated dry fruit but it is hardened sugar,corn syrup along with few other ingredients then dropped with teaspoon to made chocolate chips like candies. These candies are also available in market like chocolate chips.

The primary taste of butterscotch comes from its main ingredient, brown sugar, which imparts a deep, caramel-like sweetness. This sweetness is characterised by notes of toffee and a hint of molasses, a complexity due to the molasses content in brown sugar.

What alcohol is in butterscotch? ›

It's also rather easy to make your own butterscotch schnapps using a brandy or vodka base. This can be done by using butter, brown sugar, and light corn syrup to make a caramel sauce, letting that cool, then adding it to a bottle of liquor.

Why the disappearance? According to John Wright, author of "Flavor Creation," butterscotch never even cracked the Jell-O pudding flavors' top 10 list. So it's highly possible that Kraft Heinz, Jell-O's parent company, cleared out the butterscotch to make room for exciting new flavors.

Even though no alcohol is present, it tends to have a sort of liquor flavor that is probably due to the heated sugar.

Troubleshooting Butterscotch Sauce

Grainy Texture: If your sauce has a grainy texture, it may be due to the crystallization of the sugar. To prevent this, make sure there are no sugar crystals on the sides of the pan before starting. In addition, avoid stirring the mixture once it begins to boil.

If the temperature changes dramatically – hot or cold – butter curdles from sugar. Keep your mixture at a constant medium temperature.

Over high heat, the butter will melt faster than the candy and you'll find that the milk solids have separated from the oil, creating a split sauce. Moreover, the likelihood of separation increases when utilizing thinner or less sturdy saucepans because they cannot efficiently distribute heat.

Ingredients for Butterscotch Sauce

A traditional butterscotch sauce recipe requires only three main ingredients: brown sugar, butter, and heavy cream. That's it! We also add in a little vanilla and salt to boost the flavor.

There are many different kinds of caramel, including soft caramels, hard caramels, and chewy caramels. Soft caramels are made with a high proportion of milk or cream, which gives them a soft, creamy texture. Hard caramels, on the other hand, are made with very little milk or cream, and have a harder, crunchier texture.

The brown sugar, brought on by the addition of molasses during the refining process, winds up giving butterscotch a much deeper flavor than you'd get from caramel. Additionally, butter is added to the process (hence the name), adding a richness you can't quite get with simple white sugar.

But what is butterscotch, exactly? Whereas caramel is made by cooking white sugar until it melts, darkens, and breaks down into its component parts, which in turn react with each other to create complex aromas, butterscotch is built on brown sugar, which gives it a couple of advantages.