Here’re my top 3 proven methods to make homemade dulce de leche. From stovetop to Instant pot, I’ve explored different ways to make homemade version and I’m ready to report my findings.
This is a long post, but you’ll learn details of 3 ways to make dulce de leche at home, pro’s and con’s of each method, and one method that disappointed me greatly. Plus, storing tips and different ways to eat this golden deliciousness!
I’ve been meaning to write this post for very, very long time. You see, I’ve made homemade dulce de leche for as long as I remember. And it’s, hands down, my childhood favorite!
Instead of sharing my go-to method only, I decided to experiment other ways to cook dulce de leche and see if there’s any better method out there. And in the process, I learned a lot and even found the worst method that’s absolutely not worth trying. If you want to find out, just keep on reading.
But first…
WHAT IS DULCE DE LECHE?
Dulce de leche is basically a caramelized sweetened milk. It’s a Spanish phrase and it literally means “candy made of milk”.
Ok, forget the technical terms, dulce de leche is a liquid gold. It’s so lusciously creamy and sweet with toffee like flavor. There’re so many ways to consume it. We’ll talk about different ways to use it in a sec, but my favorite is to eat it by spoonful!
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DULCE DE LECHE AND CARAMEL?
Actually not much, yet they’re 2 different things. Caramel is sugar-based, and dulce de leche, on other hand, is milk based. You can read more about the differences between caramel and dulce de leche in this article, which explains it way better than I could.
Also, in my opinion, dulce de leche is less sweet than caramel.
Ok, now let’s talk about different cooking methods. I’m sharing 3 methods that I’ve tried and recommend, pro’s and con’s of each method, and one method that disappointed me greatly. Plus, storing tips and different ways to eat this golden deliciousness!
Method #1. STOVETOP
This is my go-to method of cooking homemade dulce de leche. This’s how my mom, my friends’ moms, basically everyone around me cooked it.
HOW TO COOK DULCE DE LECHE ON STOVETOP?
It’s very simple. Basically, remove the label off of cans of sweetened condensed milk, place unopened cans (I always cook 3-4 cans at a time) in a large stockpot, fill with water until it covers the cans at least 1 inch above (better if you can do 2 inches above cans), cover, bring it to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 3-3.5 hours.
WARNING: This is not the time to leave the house! Keep an eye on the pot from time to time, making sure the water level doesn’t drop, exposing the cans. You know what happens if the cans get exposed? It explodes! Yes, for real! And you’ll end up with a huge mess to clean up, or even remodel.
Ok, I’m not trying to scare you off trying this method, but I also don’t want you to set it and forget it.
That being said, if you add enough water to cover the cans at least 2 inches over the cans and cover the pot, while simmering, water won’t evaporate as much, and I rarely needed to add more water. If you don’t have deep pot, like I do, you may need to add more water to keep the cans submerged in water.
Pro’s:
- Super simple and easy way to cook multiple cans of sweetened condensed milk.
- Rich dark color and thick consistency after 3-3.5 hours of cooking.
- Silky smooth texture.
- Unopened cans means longer shelf life.
Con’s:
- Not completely hands-off. Requires check-ins from time to time to maintain proper water level.
- Danger of explosion. Only if you disregard the point above .
CONCLUSION: Stovetop method is still my favorite one. It yields the smoothest dulce de leche out of all the methods I’ve tried. Scroll down to see the side by side comparison.
If you make this method, PLEASE don’t open a hot can! Be patient and wait until the cans are fully cooled. Why? Because pressurized hot dulce de leche will spray you in your face. OUCH!
Method #2. OVEN
So, baking sweetened condensed milk in the oven was a new method for me. But I was pleasantly surprised by the result. If you’re afraid of cooking unopened cans, this method is for you! It still takes a few hours to reach that nice dark color, but once you put it in the oven, you may wonder off to do other things. The only downside I noticed is that dulce de leche is not as smooth as stovetop method.
HOW TO COOK DULCE DE LECHE IN OVEN?
Open a can of sweetened condensed milk, pour it into a cake pan, set the pan in a large roasting pan, cover the cake pan with a foil, add hot water into roasting pan until it reaches half way up the cake pan. Then bake at 350°F (190°C) for about 3 hours, or until it reaches desired color.
TIP: Don’t forget to cover the pan with sweetened condensed milk with an aluminum foil, or it’ll scorch on top.
Pro’s:
- Super simple and easy way to make dulce de leche.
- No risk of explosion.
- Rich dark color and thick consistency after 3 hours of baking.
Con’s:
- Slightly grainy texture, but mostly smooth.
- Multiple dirty pans.
- Shorter shelf life than unopened cans.
CONCLUSION: I highly recommend this method if you need 1-2 cans to use right away (or within a week or two), and don’t want to babysit simmering pot on a stovetop.
Method #3. INSTANT POT
I had high hopes about this method!!! I absolutely love my Instant Pot and was excited to try making dulce de leche in it, hoping to cut down cooking time. BUT I’m also not crazy about putting unopened can under pressure!
HOW TO COOK DULCE DE LECHE IN INSTANT POT?
So, I tried 2 ways of cooking sweetened condensed milk in Instant Pot:
- Cooking in a cake pan, or stainless steel bowl.
- Cooking in a canning jar.
And because cooking a glass jar in an Instant Pot makes me a little nervous, I tried cake pan method first. After 15+ minutes of coming to pressure and 40 minutes of cooking, I was quite disappointed to see barely blond concoction. I put it back and tried for another 40 minutes, and it darkened a little more, but it was still on paler side to my liking.
But since I’ve seen SO many Instant Pot dulce de leche recipes out on internet, I thought it can’t be for nothing! That’s why I decided to try cooking sweetened condensed milk in a canning jar. And I got much better result! Nice rich color in 40 minutes of cooking under pressure. See the image below.
However, I wasn’t a huge fan of the texture. It was the grainiest of all. Again, you’ll see the difference in my side-by-side photo below.
Pro’s:
- Quickest method! Nice rich color and thick consistency in a little over an hour when cooked in a canning jar.
- You can make as many jars as you can fit in your pressure cooker.
Con’s:
- Grainy texture.
- Multiple dirty pans/jars.
- Shorter shelf life than unopened cans.
CONCLUSION: This’s definitely a great method of making a homemade dulce de leche, especially if you’re pressed for time. In about an hour or so, you can enjoy deliciously rich, thick and creamy dulce de leche. However, the texture may come out slightly grainy, but it doesn’t affect the flavor.
NOT RECOMMENDED METHOD: Microwave!
A promise of enjoying rich dulce de leche in less than 15 minutes seemed too good to be true. Yet, I was hopeful despite its active hands-on process.
Unfortunately, making dulce de leche in a microwave was a big miserable bust! I tried this method couple of times to make sure I’m not giving up on this method too soon. But both times I ended up with a giant mess, as you can see below.
Instructions: place sweetened condensed milk in a big bowl, cook at 50% power for 2-minute sessions, stirring in between sessions. After 10 minutes, cook for 1-minute sessions at 50% power.
First time, I used a 2-cup measuring cup for half a can of sweetened condensed milk. After 2nd 2-minute session, it overflow all over.
So then I used a bigger bowl, 5qt bowl to be exact, it was kind of working nicely, until it finally reached dark color, but at this point it was also scorched. The last 3 sessions were at 1-minute intervals!
So yeah, don’t waste your time, or sweetened condensed milk!
Now, let me show you 3 scoops of deliciously creamy dulce de leche from each cooking method side by side. Which one looks the best to you?
I may be biased but stovetop version looks the best to me, thick and smooth, just how it should be. Oven version is nice too! But in a pinch, Instant Pot will always come to rescue!
HOW TO STORE HOMEMADE DULCE DE LECHE?
- Unopened can of dulce de leche can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 months.
- Leftover dulce de leche should be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
HOW TO USE DULCE DE LECHE?
There’re endless ways to eat dulce de leche. And since I’m so obsessed with this sweet sauce, I’ve incorporated it in many of my dessert recipes.
Ok, friends, put on your yoga pants! Here’re just a few ideas to add a dose of dulce de leche into your daily life:
- Add it to your coffee.
- Make dulce de leche and Ritz cracker sandwich. Salty and sweet, these little snack bites have a complex texture combination of buttery crispy crackers and creamy filling. So good, my favorite treat with my afternoon tea!
- Eat it with apple slices.
- Fill your crepes.
- Make these indulgent dulce de leche chocolate mini cakes.
- Or this decadent dulce de leche cheesecake. So impressive too!!
- These 4-ingredient dulce de leche chocolate cups are great treats to have on hand!
- Add it to your brownies.
- And if you need a quick caramel buttercream frosting, use dulce de leche!
- Drizzle it over ice cream!!! Yum!
Hope you found this tutorial helpful!
Homemade Dulce de Leche
Ingredients
- 1-4 14oz cans of sweetened condensed milk (Note 1)
Instructions
- STOVETOP METHOD. Remove the label off of cans of sweetened condensed milk, place unopened cans (I always cook 3-4 cans at a time) in a deep stockpot.
- Fill with water until it covers the cans at least 1 inch above (better if you can do 2 inches above cans). Cover the pot and bring it to a boil.
- Then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 3-3.5 hours. Keep an eye on water level often and make sure it doesn't expose the cans. If the water level drops, add more hot water to keep the cans fully submerged.
- WARNING: This is not the time to leave the house! Keep an eye on the pot from time to time, making sure the water level doesn't drop, exposing the cans. You know what happens if the cans get exposed? It explodes! Yes, for real! And you'll end up with a huge mess to clean up, or even remodel.
- Using a pair of kitchen tongs, remove the cans and cool completely before opening. Do NOT open the hot cans, or pressurized dulce de leche will spray you in your face! Unopened cans can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 months.
- OVEN METHOD. Open a can of sweetened condensed milk, pour it into a cake pan and cover with a foil.
- Set the pan with sweetened condensed milk in a large roasting pan, add hot water into roasting pan until it reaches half way up the cake pan.
- Then bake at 350°F (190°C) for about 3 hours, or until it reaches desired color.
- Transfer dulce de leche into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
- INSTANT POT METHOD. Open a can of sweetened condensed milk, pour it into a canning jar and close the lid, not too tight.
- Place a trivet on the bottom of inner pot of your Instant Pot. And put the canning jar(s) on the trivet.
- Add hot water until it reaches just under the lid. Close the Instant Pot, make sure the valve is set to sealing.
- Set Instant Pot to Manual/Pressure Cook for 40 minutes on High.
- Once time is up, do a quick pressure release by turning the valve to venting.
- Carefully open the lid and carefully remove the jar(s) with a pair of kitchen tongs. Cool completely before opening. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
Tips & Notes
Nutrition
Basically I just meant a non-canning lid – more like a single piece lid like this:
https://www.containerstore.com/s/gift-packaging/gift-boxes/glass-mason-jar-with-lid/12d?productId=11008464
I figured it would work, and I may try it since we’re not sealing anything, but the Instant Pot just makes me nervous haha 🙂
I totally get it. Hehe I was quite hesitant to put glass jar in it. 🙂 Yeah, those lids would work just fine.
If I want to use a mason jar in the Instant Pot but don’t have a canning lid, do you think it would work with a regular lid (no button, no ring/seal)?
Hi, Stephanie. I’m not really sure what you mean by a regular lid. But I assuming it’s any lid that fits your jar. I don’t see why you couldn’t, since we’re not canning anything and sealing is not our goal. Let me know if you give it a try and how it turns out. Thanks!
Another way you might try to make dulce De leche is one I saw while investigating various Instant Pot methods…if I remembered to site, I would give the gentleman credit, but I was just looking for ideas and lost track…he said to remove the label, open the can, then cover the top of the can with aluminum foil, then place the can on the trivet and add water to half way up the side of the can…pressure cook on high for 28-30 minutes. Quick release; use tongs to remove can. Once the can is cool enough to hold with a mitt, add in 1/2 T. Vanilla extract and stir until smooth. Turned out well for me. I used it a dulce de lechie cheesecake.
Thanks for article and recipes. I made it in my Instant Pot and it came out creamy and delicious. So easy and quick to make it, loved it!
Yay, so happy you tried and loved the IP method. Thank you for sharing your feedback, Janice.
Omg!!! I made the stove top one and it is delicious!!!! I made it for my Dominican cake. Cants wait to try it all together tomorrow.
That’s awesome!! So glad you loved it. Thank you for your feedback, Miss S!!!
I’ve made a caramel sauce by pouring a can of condensed milk into a non-stick saucepan, adding a little butter, and then cooking while stirring the whole time until it thickens and gets a caramel color, which happens after maybe 10 minutes. This was for a caramel slice/millionaire’s shortbread recipe. It seems similar to the microwave method you tried here. Have you tried this method before, or would the end result not qualify as Dulche de Leche?
Hi, Liz. No, I haven’t tried the stovetop method, but it’ll definitely qualify as dulce de leche.
I’m going to make Dulce de Leche with my Sous vide. The recipe I have calls for a finger tight jar and lid. Temp at 180°F, for 12-16 hours. Do you know what the temp of the stove top water bath You used was?
I want to share a couple of cans with friends, which requires shipping them across country. The sealed cans would work better for me.
One method I’ve tried is a slow cooker, which takes longer, like maybe 6-8 hrs depending on the color you want, but needs no babysitting because there’s no risk of losing water. I used the slow cooker function on my instant pot and it worked wonders as it turns itself off too 🙂 Much less scary than using the pressure function for sure.
Have you cooked it for longer than 8 hours yet? If so, was it darker and richer? The darker the better for me!
I needed a small amount of sweetened condensed milk for a bread recipe, and now I’d like to make dulce de leche with the rest. I’d like to take your advice and use the stovetop method, but the can is opened – I have the remaining portion in a ball jar. Do you think I could use the stovetop method with the ball jar, or does it have to be an unopened can? Thanks!
Hi, Kelsey. Since you have an open can of condensed milk, I’d suggest oven method. Stovetop method is for unopened cans only. I’ve never boiled ball jars for hours.
My grandmother made the most delicious original dulce de leche, milk, sugar, vainilla beans and a teaspoon sodium bicarbonate, my son perfected the primitive system using condensed milk tins cooked three hours in the rapid cooker, after opening the tins pouring in new pan add vainilla extract or beans and the sodium bicarbonate, using a wood spoon until it is ready.
I love the addition of vanilla extract at the end! I’ll have to try that next time. Do you know what’s the purpose of adding baking soda?
I used the “recipe” to make my own Dulce de leche….easy. Who knew???
Question….how long will a can of SCMilk turned Dulce keep??