Get ready to wow everyone with the best hot fudge sauce ever. Seriously.
This rich, deeply flavorful sauce was my go-to recipe at the fine dining restaurants where I worked. It may not be the fastest or simplest, but its depth of flavor and perfect texture make it well worth your time to make. It turns chewy in the fridge and melts into pourable perfection when warmed.
If you’re looking for another fudge sauce option, check out my quick fudge sauce—but trust me, taking the time to make this one as written will give you the ultimate hot fudge experience. For more sweet inspiration, explore all my dessert sauces. Now let’s get to it.
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The Best Hot Fudge Sauce, At a Glance
✔️Skill Level: Beginner
✔️Skills: Stirring, Simmering
✔️Type: Dessert Sauce
✔️Number of Ingredients: 11
✔️Prep Time: 15-20 minutes
✔️Cook Time: 25 minutes
✔️Yield: 32-36 cookies
Related Recipes: Quick Hot Fudge Sauce, Chocolate Syrup, Chocolate Ganache
Jump Straight to the Recipe
This is a superb hot fudge sauce recipe! I have made it twice now. I found I did not need to strain the sauce as it is pretty smooth as is. It is a very easy recipe to follow with big flavour!
Reader C. Teshima
What Makes This Hot Fudge the Best?
This ice cream sauce is not the best because it has the fewest ingredients. No, that prize goes to good old ganache which makes a fine ice cream topping, clocking in at 2 or maybe 3 ingredients.
But if you want classic fudge sauce, this recipe is the answer.
Here are the things that make this fudge sauce the best:
- Thick and chewy when cold
- Melts beautifully when warmed
- Deep, rich flavor that complements any ice cream, from vanilla to coffee
- Balanced with just the right amount of salt to enhance every bite
- Customizable flavors to suit your preferences
Once you try it, you’ll keep coming back. It’s that good. It is truly an old-fashioned fudge sauce with you’re going to want to make again and again.
When you do make this recipe, it will help me and other readers if you:
✅Rate the recipes using the stars in the recipe card
✅Leave a review when prompted in the recipe card
✅Leave a comment on the post
Thank you! ❤️
Divine!!! Is the word that best describes this Hot fudge sauce.
Laura Schrock from Food In The Myakka Kitchen
I was looking for a recipe for one this morning and stumbled upon this on on my Pinterest account and my word I will not be looking for another any time soon.
If you’re already confident in making fudge sauce, please feel free to head straight to the recipe.
Ingredients and Substitutions
NOTE: If you don’t need all the step-by-step instructions, feel free to jump straight to the recipe.
The ingredient list is actually relatively long, but the process is pretty straightforward. Here’s what you’ll need:
- butter: Adds richness and body. Use unsalted if possible; if using salted, reduce added salt by a smidge.
- sugar: Sweetens and gives the sauce its classic chewy texture. Substitute light brown sugar 1:1 if desired.
- corn syrup: Prevents crystallization and enhances chewiness. Light or dark both work. If you do not want to use corn syrup, a light-flavored honey would make an excellent substitute.
- heavy cream: Adds body, volume, and richness. Dairy solids brown during cooking, deepening the flavor.
- salt: Enhances flavors and balances bitterness from cocoa powder.
- milk: Increases volume with minimal fat and adds dairy solids for flavor.
- cocoa powder: This provides the bulk of the chocolate flavor. Use quality cocoa (Hershey’s or Ghirardelli). Save your cacao powder for raw applications. Either Dutch process or American cocoa will work just fine.
- water (or coffee): Helps form a cocoa paste to mix into the sauce. Coffee subtly deepens chocolate flavor.
- light rum: Enhances flavor without overpowering. Substitute with your favorite liquor, liqueur, or coffee if avoiding alcohol.
- vanilla: Rounds out the chocolate flavor. Any vanilla works well here.
- semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate: Adds extra chocolate flavor and cocoa butter for body.
How to Make Hot Fudge
This sauce comes together in two main steps:
- Chocolate and flavorings: Place chocolate, cocoa powder, rum (optional), vanilla, and water in a large bowl.
- Dairy and sugar:
Boil heavy cream, milk, sugar, corn syrup, and salt to concentrate flavors and reduce liquid. Aim for 224-225°F for the perfect consistency—runny when warm, thick and chewy when cold.
Jenni Says: Keep the mixture at a “lazy boil.” If it boils up or boils aggressively, moderate the heat a bit. I generally bring it to a boil over high heat and then reduce to medium or even medium low to keep that lazy boil going.
Pour the hot dairy mixture over the chocolate and whisk until smooth. For an extra-smooth sauce, strain through a fine-mesh strainer. It’s optional, but worth it!
Jenni Says: For the smoothest texture, strain through a fine-mesh strainer. This is an optional step, but since it doesn’t take much time, I usually strain mine.
This sauce really is the best! The first time I made it exactly as written and it was so good it only lasted a couple days.
Reader Carolyn
Jenni Says: If you are not averse to having alcohol but don’t happen to have any on hand, use vanilla extract in place of the rum. I’ve done that before, and it’s delicious! If you want to make your sauce alcohol-free, substitute coffee for the rum.
NOTE: Since this hot fudge is dairy-based, it is not recommended to can this.
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If you want a non-dairy chocolate syrup that you CAN can, check out my chocolate syrup recipe.
Hot Fudge Sauce Q & A
Once fully cooled, store the sauce in a tightly sealed jar or container in the fridge. It’ll keep for several weeks, but let’s be real—you’ll finish it long before it goes bad! If it looks or smells off, toss it.
Since you add the boiled mixture to the alcohol mixture off the heat, none of the alcohol boils away. And even if you do boil it, while most will boil off, not all will. If for any reason you cannot have alcohol, you can substitute 2 Tablespoons of very strong coffee.
If you follow my advice to cook to no more that 225F, you shouldn’t have any issues. The fudge sauce will get chewy but not hard on ice cream. If you overcook and it does get too hard on ice cream, reheat the batch with a bit more cream or milk to loosen it up a bit.
When you pour your fudge sauce on your ice cream and it seems too thin, all running off and into the bottom of your bowl, scrape the rest of the sauce back into a pan, bring it to a boil, and let it boil for a couple of minutes to thicken it up. If using a thermometer, bring the sauce to about 225F.
It is not recommended to can dairy-based sauces. My advice would be to use a recipe specifically formulated for safe canning.
Graininess can occur if the dairy mixture is overcooked, leading to sugar crystallization. To fix this, add about 1/4 cup of milk or cream, heat until it just reaches a boil, then let it cool.
Caramelizing the dairy is technically an optional step. Your sauce will have more depth if you do caramelize the dairy first, so for more information, please read the next section.
Do I have to caramelize the dairy mixture?
While it’s optional, Tangela shares this comment:
Thank you so much for this recipe–I made a batch and LOVE it!
Reader Tangela
I **think** that I undercooked the dairy mixture–I was afraid of scorching it–I will bravely let it go another few shades darker next time in order to get the “chewy” factor.
I also made bomb hot chocolate using it!
Caramelizing the sugar/dairy does a couple of things:
- It evaporates out some of the water, concentrating the flavor and allowing for a thicker sauce and that old-fashioned chewy texture that is so incredibly addictive.
- The caramelized sugar and milk solids lend a deep, complex base flavor that you would not get if you don’t take this step.
If you want to use your instant-read thermometer to check doneness rather than just going by color, shoot for 224F/107C.
Here’s another comment in support of taking the time to caramelize the dairy in your hot fudge sauce so it really will be the best:
Gave this a try. followed directions. no alcohol.
Pinner Julie
I was nervous about the boil wait. But– Do THIS PART!!!
I couldn’t believe how creamy, rich and chewy-thick . Heated up serving 30 seconds in microwave from fridge–PERFECTION!!!
I WILL ONLY MAKE this very recipe!!! Thank You!!!
The Key to Perfect Hot Fudge Thickness: Temperature Matters
The hotter you cook your sauce, the thicker it will be upon cooling.
I generally go with the color of the dairy rather than whipping out my instant-read. Take the dairy to a light beige color, and it will still be fairly liquid (although thick) upon cooling. Take it to medium beige, and your fudge sauce will be more solid once chilled.
If you prefer to rely on temperature, which will yield a more consistent result, the magic temperature for cooking the dairy portion is 224-225F/106.7-107.2C.
Unless you plan on eating it straight from the jar with a spoon, always reheat the sauce before serving.
You can do this by immersing your container in a pan of hot water or in the microwave on medium power.
Jenni Says: When not using a thermometer, the color of the dairy matters:
Light Beige: pourable at room temperature and not quite so thick
Dark Beige: thicker at room temperature and chewy when cold
Other Delicious Dessert Sauces
Elevate all your desserts with one of these other dessert sauces:
- Strawberry Coulis: A vibrant, beautiful berry sauce perfect for drizzling over cakes or ice cream.
- Caramel Syrup for Coffee: Enhance your morning coffee with this rich, homemade caramel syrup.
- Spiced Pumpkin Caramel Sauce: A seasonal favorite that pairs well with a variety of desserts from cheesecake to ice cream
- White Chocolate Sauce: Smooth, creamy, and made with real cocoa butter, this sauce is ideal for adding a touch of sweetness to your treats.
- Real Butterscotch Ice Cream Sauce: A classic butterscotch sauce with deep, browned butter and caramelize sugar flavor
Questions?
If you have any questions about this post or recipe, I am happy to help.
Simply leave a comment here and I will get back to you soon. I also invite you to ask question in my Facebook group, Fearless Kitchen Fun.
If your question is more pressing, please feel free to email me. I should be back in touch ASAP, as long as I’m not asleep.
A Note About Measurements
NOTE: Most of my recipes are written by weight and not volume, even the liquids. Even though I try to provide you with volume measurements as well, I encourage you to buy a kitchen scale for ease of measuring, accuracy, and consistency.
Don't let its small price and small size fool you. The Escali Primo is an accurate and easy-to-use food scale that I have used for years. It's easy to store, easy to use, has a tare function, and easily switches between grams and ounces/pounds for accurate measurements.
Do You Love This Hot Fudge? Please Rate and Leave a Review. Thank You!
It will help me and other readers so much if you take a moment to rate and leave a review for this recipe.
You can use the stars to rate 1-5 (5 is best), and leave a review in the comments. It helps me make adjustments if any are needed, and comments help others decide whether the recipe is worth making.
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Thank you so much for taking the time!
The Best Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe
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Ingredients
- 4 oz unsalted butter (1 stick or 112 grams)
- 8 oz granulated sugar (1 slightly generous cup or 224 grams)
- 11.75 oz by WEIGHT light or dark corn syrup, (1 cup or 329 grams)
- 16 oz heavy cream (1 pint, 2 cups or 448 grams)
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 5.3 oz whole milk (about 2/3 cup or 149 grams)
- .67 oz cocoa powder (1/4 cup or 19 grams)
- 1.3 oz water (2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon water or 36 grams)
- 1 oz light rum (2 Tablespoons or 28 grams)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla paste
- 8 oz excellent quality semi-sweet chocolate, chopped or good quality chocolate chips (I used Ghirardelli 60%, 1 1/2 cups or 224 grams)
Instructions
Start the Dairy Base
- Place the butter, sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, salt and milk in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Heat over medium heat until it comes to a boil.
Make the Chocolate Mixture
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, water, rum (or your preferred substitute), and vanilla into a thin paste.
- Chop the chocolate into small pieces (or use excellent quality chocolate chips or paillettes) and add to the bowl.
Caramelizing the Dairy (Optional but not really)
- When the dairy comes to a boil, regulate the heat to medium so it maintains a slow boil but doesn't boil up in the pan. Your sauce will be bubbling all over the surface but not frantically so. More of a lazy boil that doesn't boil up.
- Stir the dairy frequently–at least every 2-3 minutes–and boil until it reaches a light caramel color, about 20-30 minutes (about 15 minutes if making a half batch). You don't necessarily want the mixture to be super thick, but you do want it a few shades darker than when you started. If you have an instant-read thermometer, the ideal temperature to shoot for is 224F.
- Once the dairy is a lovely shade of deep beige, pour it into the bowl with the chopped chocolate and cocoa paste. Do this carefully holding the pot away from you a bit since the mixture is so hot. Allow it to sit for a minute or two and then whisk until smooth.
- Optional: Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer to make sure it is completely smooth.
- Allow the sauce to cool, and then store in jars in the fridge.
Did You Make Any Changes?
Notes
Fudge Sauce Variations
This sauce can be flavored in many ways. Here are some ideas to try:-
- Add a bit of orange zest and/or cinnamon to the boil
-
- Switch out the rum for orange liqueur.
-
- Use your favorite alcohol–a liquor or liqueur.
-
- Add some peppermint extract.
-
- Whisk in powdered freeze-dried raspberries or other freeze-dried fruits.
-
- Add some heat in the form of chipotle pepper or smoked hot paprika
Storing
Keep sauce tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. It will probably be good for longer than that, but use your best judgment. You can freeze the sauce for longer storage. This sauce is not suitable for canning unless you are well-versed in canning dairy products.Nutrition
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Enjoy the best hot fudge sauce. Every single bite of it.
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This recipe is awesome!! truly never had anything fudge that tasted this smooth! A+, well done! thank you for the recipe.
The only change I made was replacing the corn syrup with organic brown rice syrup. (corn allergy)
This recipe is THE replacement to my previous fudge sauce recipe.
I’m thrilled you love it! And very good sub with the brown rice syrup too. ❤️
If I want to make this without the rum, do I need to adjust any other ingredients?
It calls for 2 Tablespoons of rum, so you won’t have to make many adjustments. If looking for a non-alcoholic version, I generally increase the vanilla by a little and replace the rum with some strong coffee. Enjoy!
Hi!
I have made this before and it is DELICIOUS!
My question is, if I use it in an ice cream cake as a layer, will it freeze hard or stay somewhat pliable?
Hi, Jeanette! So glad you love this sauce–me too! It will definitely get firm but there’s too much sugar in it to get really hard. You should be able to slice it, especially with a serrated knife. Just keep the layer fairly thin since it could easily overpower other layers. Enjoy!
thank you for responding so quickly!
My pleasure! I try never to leave anyone hanging. Let me know how the cake turns out, Jeanette!
Can you use Frys Cocoa in this recipe? Also, you stated you use Hersheys. But what kind of Hershey’s? Is it the Hersheys natural cocoa unsweetened powder or the 100% cacao unsweetened brand? Don’t want to make this and ruin the recipe due to the type of cocoa.
Hey, Corrie! Honestly, any cocoa powder you like will work. You’re right to check though. I would choose cocoa powder over cacao since most health benefits of using a raw cacao are going to be boiled away. I’ve made this with everything from Hershey’s and Nestle 100% cocoa powder to fancy brands like Valrhona when I was at the restaurant. I’ve never had a bad batch. I really hope you enjoy it. Oh, and just to make sure you saw: if you choose to use honey or another liquid sweetener over corn syrup, you may need to increase the cocoa powder and the chopped chocolate by a little bit so the overall flavor is balanced. Enjoy!
So yummy, made great holiday gifts! How much is a serving per your nutritional analysis?
Hey Deb! So glad you like the sauce, and I hope your giftees love it to. I’m pretty sure I based the nutritionals on a 2 Tablespoon serving.
I just made this twice, and am THRILLED to say the least! The first time I followed the recipe using Ghirardelli 48% cacao chocolate chips. It tasted great, even cold, like tootsie rolls. The second time I used 60% cacao Ghirardelli chips and coffee instead of water. WOW! It’s rich and velvety and chewy and decadent! I am so impressed with the results! Both times I weighed everything. (I actually prefer using weight rather than volume, as it’s more exact) and I patiently brought it to 224/225 both times, using an instant reax thermometer. I used light rum and vanilla as listed in the ingredients both times. This is TO DIE FOR fudge sauce! THANK YOU!
Oh, MaryLou, I am so happy!! I love your description–you so accurately capture it: rich and velvety and chewy and decadent! I’m also glad you are comfortable using a kitchen scale. It really is best for getting the most accurate and consistent results. Thank you for taking the time to send some feedback–enjoy every bite!
If you love chocolate you will love this recipe . Definitely lives up it’s title.. This is the best recipe for the best hot fudge sauce ever. It’s the only one I make anymore.
I am so glad you’ve adopted this as your favorite, Pam! And thank you also for the review–I appreciate it!
I usually make a 2-minute blender hot fudge but I wanted to try to get that “chew” that you find in icecream shops. This taste good but I don’t feel a “chew” to it. I have one of those glass top stoves and it is very difficult to just temperature. It would be helpful for me if I knew the temperature to cook the mixture to. I used dark corn syrup in a dark pan so I couldn’t really go by color, just time
The chew doesn’t happen until you chill it, either in the fridge or by pouring it on ice cream. If it doesn’t have it, heat it back up and simmer some more. I’d say take it to 230-232F. Enjoy!
This would be a great treat for the holidays.
Absolutely! It keeps for a good long while in the fridge, too!