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
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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!
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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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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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Second question, can I use water canning method to make this shelf-stable?
I already made the Quick recipe you reference and my hubby loves it!
Hey, Wendy! I honestly don’t know about canning because it’s not something I do myself. I would consult the Ball canning book or some similar canning authority. And yes, you can use extract rather than rum or coffee, but I would use much less since the extract will be pretty concentrated. I’d start with a teaspoon, taste, and then go from there if you need more. Enjoy!
So glad you like the quick version–I like it too. I think this one is even better, especially if you have the time. Enjoy!
Making this right now. Would rum extract be okay instead of rum or coffee? Same amount?
Aha!! I only knew about dry measure vs liquid measure…..I appreciate this explanation (and new learning for me!).
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!
Hey, Tangela! I’m so glad you learned something (I do try to be a good teacher), AND I am especially happy you made this hot fudge sauce. It is so stupid good! The good news is, nothing awful happens if you undercook the dairy a bit, but you will completely flip if you let it caramelize a little bit more. Thanks so much for stopping by and for letting me know. And Yasssss to the hot chocolate!
Just clicked on this recipe and looked at the comments. My name is Tangela also but I go by Tangee. There are not many of us, so I had to say hello!
A meeting of the Tangelas! I love it! Thanks for stopping in and saying howdy!
Hello,
This sounds like the perfect sauce for me!
Trying it for the first time soon and want to confirm this measurement:
11.75 oz light or dark corn syrup, (1 cup)
should it be 1.5 cups or 1 Cup?
Thank you!!
It is one cup, Tangela. Corn syrup weighs more than water, so while almost 12 oz of water would indeed be 1 1/2 cups by volume, 1 cup of corn syrup weighs 11.75 oz. I will add the information that most of my measurements are given by weight for accuracy and consistency. I hope you enjoy the fudge sauce–please let me know! Enjoy!
This looks amazing & I want to do this as a gift set with my black/huckleberry sauce. Do you have any idea on the shelf life? Just need an estimate for the lable:)
Thank you!
Not canned (I know nothing about canning), it lasts a good long time. For the label, say 2 weeks to err on the side of caution. But honestly it’ll last a good 3 weeks most likely. I hope your friends enjoy it. What a lovely duo with huckleberry, too!
Hot fudge, nuts, whipped cream, and some mocha almond fudge ice cream is really all I need. I am a simple person. OMG! this sounds so good Jenni!
That sounds like the perfect sundae, Beth! xo
Oh my gosh, chocolate is my weakness. I love your idea to add a bit of orange too…so many fun ways to enjoy this chocolate sauce!!
Thanks, Sandi! I know some folks aren’t fans of chocolate and fruit, but these are people I don’t understand at all! lol 🙂
Just pass me the jar and forget the ice cream!! O-M-G!!!!
It is the best. I’m surprised anyone at the reatauatn ever got any. I mean, the guests. The kitchen staff enjoyed it!
Oh myyy! Wish you could send me a case!! Delicious!
Whoooah. That lightly caramelized dairy mixture sealed the deal for me. My mouth could actually taste what my brain was imagining. And I’m not even a chocolate fanatic.
Tell me, what do you consider “close to the expiration date”? Sometimes my cream is marked 4-6 weeks out, and milk only 2-3 weeks out.
I wanted to say in the post, but I’m not really sure it’s true so I stopped myself, but if your “oldest” dairy you’re using is a week from the expiration date, your sauce will last about a week. If it’s three weeks out, it should last around 3 weeks. Does that make sense? I have more or less found that to be the case when I use “brand new” dairy with a date about 6 weeks out, the sauce will keep about that long.
Makes total sense — thanks!
I’ve been looking for a classic hot fudge sauce and by crackie, I think I’ve found it! The ingredients list sells it, but your fine photography seals the deal. Terrific work, my friend.
Thank you so much, Brooks!! I know you will love this sauce. I want you to make it and drizzle it on some sort of hot fudge sundae cake, okay? =)
Yum Jenni, this is the real deal and it looks/sounds amazing. I love your pour shot! Thanks for the link too! Hope your summer’s going well!
I love that yours is made in a blender. I’ve had it in the back of my mind ever since you told me about it at lunch. I knew I would be linking to it at some point! It took me a few tries to get that pour shot. Thank goodness for the 10 second delay setting, Chris!
I’ve been smiling since I read, “by crackie.” This looks amazing, and I think that if I make it for a blog post, then you should send a small jar of yours down to Florida so that I can have a baseline for comparison. I’ll even send you a small jar of mine to get your thoughts. 🙂
I’m afraid it’s not canned, so I’d feel weird about shipping it. But I do hope you make it; I think you will like it a very very lot!
My Oh My, you have struck gold with this one, my dear friend. The ONLY problem I see is that you made it in North Carolina and I’m in Florida!!! Your top pic is INCREDIBLE, too! <3
Thank you so much, Betsy! I have been working hard to up my photography game, even if I am doing it kicking and screaming! I really do hope you make this. I want to hear your review and how it stacks up to the Graeter’s (is that right) that you used to get in Cleveland. =)
I would happily eat this with a spoon and forego the ice cream!
Ha! You and me both, Renee!