How Do I Make Soft Caramels Without Corn Syrup?

Christine Gallary
Christine GallaryFood Editor-at-Large
Christine graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France, and she has worked at Cook's Illustrated and CHOW.com. She lives in San Francisco and loves teaching cooking classes. Follow her latest culinary escapades on Instagram.
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updated May 1, 2019
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Q: I have successfully made your recipe for caramels multiple times, but had been looking for a way to make them without corn syrup, as I try to avoid that particular ingredient whenever possible.

I tried a recipe using honey, which ended up having an unpleasant aftertaste. I then tried to use maple syrup, but that batch burned early on in the cooking process. I then tried a recipe using golden syrup, but that batch started to look dark and smell slightly burnt during the first stage of cooking, and when I finished cooking it and poured it into the pan to harden, it looked abnormally dark and ended up having a burnt aftertaste (even though I followed the directions exactly).

What might I be doing wrong? How can I make soft, chewy caramels without using corn syrup? It must be possible, because people were making caramels long before the advent of corn syrup, but I can’t seem to figure it out!

Sent by Rachel

Editor: Readers, do you have a good soft caramel recipe that doesn’t use corn syrup you can share?

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Candy
Dessert
Ingredient
sweets