Ice cream sauce fans, get ready to wow your family, your guests, and even yourself with this old fashioned hot fudge sauce recipe in all the land.
This deeply flavorful dessert sauce is the same sauce I made in huge quantities at both fine dining restaurants I worked in. It’s the kind of sauce that solidifies into chewy goodness in the fridge and melts to pourable perfection when warmed.
Hands down my favorite and (subjectively) the best hot fudge sauce recipe for pretty much any of my ice cream recipes, but might I suggest chocolate caramel ice cream or caramel vanilla ice cream?
It is seriously the best I’ve ever had–not kidding! Plus you can vary the flavor to suit your taste, too. Enjoy!
Reader Rave!
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 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.
If you’re looking for good, old-fashioned hot fudge sauce, though, you need look no further.
Here are the things that make this fudge sauce the best:
- It gets a thick and a bit chewy when cold.
- You have to heat up in order to pour it.
- It has deep, rich flavor that is exactly what is needed to set off a perfect vanilla ice cream. Or coffee ice cream.
- There is enough salt in it to round out the flavors, counteract any bitterness that might be present if you use a really dark chocolate and to make the sauce sparkle on your tongue.
- You can vary the flavor based on your preferences.
It is truly an old fashioned fudge sauce with deep, rich chocolate flavor.
How can I vary this recipe?
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
Play with this sauce and make it your own.
When you want to relive your visits to the soda fountain where the fudge sauce was thick and rich and tasted of fudge and not “brown,” then please make it according to the original recipe which calls for light rum and vanilla.
Ways to use it
Aside from pouring it over ice cream, you can also use the sauce to make chocolate milk or hot chocolate. Just stir enough into hot or cold milk until you like the chocolate-ness level and enjoy.
Here are some other ideas:
- Top a cheesecake with it
- Serve it with cake or drizzle it over an iced cake to get that “drip” effect
- Use it as the fudge layer in my chocolate cheesecake pie (Please do this!)
- Use it to layer with soft ice cream before freezing to make a swirled ice cream
- Top an ice cream mud pie like my friend Laura did
Rave review
Laura Schrock made this recipe and shared her photo on Instagram!
Divine!!! Is the word that best describes this Hot fudge sauce. 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. Do yourself a favor and give it a try , I’ll post the link here in my bio 👍🏼Thank you @onlinepastrychef for the amazing recipe!❤️
Laura Schrock from Food In The Myakka Kitchen
I am so excited that she made and loved it, and I know you’ll love it too!
Ingredients
NOTE: Please keep scrolling down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe. In this section, I’m just letting you know what you’ll need.
The ingredient list is actually relatively long, but the process is pretty straightforward. Here’s what you’ll need:
- butter
- sugar
- corn syrup
- heavy cream
- salt
- milk
- cocoa powder
- water (or coffee)
- light rum
- vanilla
- semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate
Why is there alcohol in this ice cream sauce?
Even just a bit of alcohol, whether it be rum or Kahlua or Godiva chocolate or whatever, brings out the alcohol soluble flavors that would otherwise remain locked away.
The entire recipe, and it makes just over a quart, uses only 2 Tablespoons of alcohol. You can’t taste it, but you would miss it were it not there.
Thank you so much for this recipe–I made a batch and LOVE it!
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!
Reader Tangela
What can I substitute for the alcohol?
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.
Tools and equipment you might need
I always advocate for weighing your ingredients. It allows for consistent results. I love my Escali Primo and after 17 years, it is still going strong.
You’ll also need a large, heavy bottomed sauce pan, a nice large bowl for mixing up the cocoa paste, and a fine mesh strainer.
Procedure
The process for making this sauce is pretty straightforward:
- Bring butter, sugar, corn syrup, heavy cream, salt, and milk to a boil.
- Whisk cocoa powder, rum, water (coffee) and vanilla into a paste.
- Add the chopped chocolate/chocolate chips to a bowl along with the cocoa paste.
- Let the sugar/milk mixture boil until a light caramel color, stirring frequently.
- Pour the caramelized sugar/milk mixture into the bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Whisk until smooth.
- Strain and store.
Do I have to caramelize the dairy mixture?
No, you don’t. But if you don’t take the 20-30 minutes to cook the dairy until it has caramelized, you will not have made the best hot fudge sauce in the world.
You will have made a very good one, but it won’t be the best.
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.
Can’t I just buy some at the store?
Well, yes, you could. And I’m sure you can find one you really like.
However, I encourage you to make your own. If you don’t have time to boil a big old pot of ingredients on the stove for a long time, you can just make some ganache.
I also recommend trying my Quick Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe that takes a couple of shortcuts to get to long-cooked flavor in way less time.
You could also try this great quickie version from my friend Chris. It’s an excellent blender hot fudge sauce, so it comes together super fast.
Enough talk! Please go and make some of this sauce. And then come back and tell me how much you love it. Make a sundae, and don’t forget to put the cherry on top. I promise you will feel just like a kid again.
If you do make some, please share a photo with me, either in the PCO Facebook Group or on instagram by tagging @onlinepastrychef and using hashtag #pcorecipe. Thanks, and enjoy!
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.
This is the scale I use, love, and recommend:
The Best Hot Fudge Sauce in the World
This rich, deeply fudgy sauce attains incredible complexity and depth two ways. First, the addition of a touch of alcohol brings out alcohol-soluble flavors. Starting with a lightly caramelized base affords more depth and that bit of chew and stretch you expect from an excellent fudge sauce. A full recipe yields over a quart, so you can either half the recipe or make the full recipe and share with friends.
Ingredients
- 4 oz unsalted butter, (1 stick)
- 8 oz granulated sugar, (1 slightly generous cup)
- 11.75 oz light or dark corn syrup, (1 cup)
- 16 oz heavy cream, (1 pint or 2 cups)
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5.3 oz whole milk, (about 2/3 cup)
- .67 oz cocoa powder, (1/4 cup)
- 1.3 oz water, (2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon water)
- 1 oz light rum, (2 Tablespoons)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla paste
- 8 oz excellent quality semi-sweet chocolate, , chopped (I used Ghirardelli 60%)
Instructions
- 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.
- Meanwhile, whisk together the cocoa powder, water, rum and vanilla into a thin paste.
- Place the cocoa paste in a large bowl.
- Chop the chocolate into small pieces (or use excellent quality chocolate chips or paillettes) and add to the bowl.
- When the dairy comes to a boil, regulate the heat so it maintains a slow boil but doesn't boil up in the pan.
- Stir the dairy frequently and boil until it reaches a light caramel color, about 20-30 minutes (less time if you half the recipe). You don't want the color to be as dark as a Sugar Daddy, but it should be significantly darker than sweetened condensed milk. You can see what color it should be above in the post.
- Once the dairy is a lovely shade of deep tan, pour it into the bowl with the chopped chocolate and cocoa paste. Allow it to sit for a minute or two and then whisk until smooth.
- Strain it just to make sure it is completely smooth.
- Store in jars in the fridge.
- If you used fresh dairy, the hot fudge sauce will keep for a good 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator. If your dairy was close to the expiration date, use the sauce up within 5-7 days.
Notes
Flavor Variations
Add some orange zest and cinnamon to the cocoa powder paste
Add a little bit of mint extract or a very few drops of mint oil
cinnamon plus some cayenne or ground chipotle would make a great Mexican-style fudge sauce
Recommended Products
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Nutrition Information
Yield 32 Serving Size about 2 TablespoonsAmount Per Serving Calories 175Total Fat 10.6gSaturated Fat 6.8gCholesterol 29mgSodium 88mgCarbohydrates 20.1gFiber 0.7gSugar 13.6gProtein 1.3g
Thank you for spending some time with me today.
Enjoy the fudge sauce, and have a lovely day.
Lauris says
Can I use all cream for the milk part? Looking forward to trying this.
Lauris
Jennifer Field says
Yes, I believe you could. It will be that much richer and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. You could also use all half and half if you want. Enjoy!
Kate says
Can this be made shelf stable?
Jennifer Field says
I am not a canner, so I cannot say for sure. I would check the Ball Blue Book to see what they say about canning dairy-based sauces. But I can tell you it will stay good in the fridge for about a month. I hope that helps, and I hope you enjoy the sauce.
Lana says
What if I want to can it for long term. How long would it last if I boil the jars and lids? I am not a canner yet, but plan to be. This seems like something I would like to store.
Jennifer Field says
I am not a canner either, so I don’t know the answer about how to safely can a dairy-based sauce. I can tell you it lasts a good 3-4 weeks in the fridge though.
Ena says
Too many ingredients, I’ve got one that uses a lot less.
Jennifer Field says
Good for you. Enjoy your sauce!
Tracey G says
Do you use a candy thermometer? If so, what temperature do you bring the dairy mixture up to? Thanks
Jennifer Field says
I don’t use a candy thermometer for this one, Tracey. I just go by color. Most of the color comes from the milk proteins browning and not from the sugars caramelizing so I can’t really go by the temperature for the different stages of sugar. The best way I can describe the color is about the color of a Graham cracker, if that helps. Depending on how large a batch you’re making, it can take 15-30 minutes. I hope this helps. Enjoy the sauce!
C. Teshima says
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!
Jennifer Field says
Oh, wow, I am so happy you like it!! Thank you so much for letting me know!
Tina says
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Sounds awesome.
Jennifer Field says
I may be biased, but I really do think it’s the best! I hope you enjoy it–please let me know what you think, Tina! 🙂
Cathi Koenig says
I have been experimenting with all kinds of hot fudge sauces, including paleo. I am looking for a sauce that doesn’t get so chewy on ice cream. Do you think I could tweak this and increase the corn syrup just a little ? The caramelizing technique sounds awesome ! Yours is the first recipe that mentions this. Also, once I had some fudge sauce made with honey….it was Soooooo good !
Jennifer Field says
Hey, Cathi! This sauce definitely gets chewy on ice cream. I think to get the same flavor while losing some chew, I’d probably add a bit more dairy at the end of cooking. So after you caramelize the dairy and then mix it with the chocolate and cocoa powder paste, add an additional amount os cream or half and half. You will have to experiment to get the desired texture, but it will be some tasty experimentation. Also, feel free to switch out the corn syrup with honey if you like the way that tastes. I’ll be interested to hear what you think after you give it a try!
Mary says
In the video you use 1 Tablespoon of vanilla (for half the recipe) but the recipe says 1 Teaspoon (for the whole recipe). Can you clarify?
Jennifer Field says
I’m sorry for that discrepancy, Mary. I honestly rarely measure vanilla so the measurement varies. Feel free to use vanilla to taste. I will clarify that in the post. Thanks for the comment, and enjoy the fudge sauce. Whether you use a tiny bit or a tablespoon of vanilla, I think you will love it!