Dulce de Leche
Dulce de leche is the filling for walnut-shaped biscuits, for pastry horns, and for a spoon straight from the jar. The method is simple but carries one hard rule: the tin stays under water the whole time. Steam inside builds pressure, and a tin that surfaces overheats. The second rule is never to open it hot. Neither is caution for its own sake — it is boiling caramel under pressure.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 3 h
- Rest
- 4 h
- Total
- 7 h 5 min
- Servings
- 12
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 130 kcal
Ingredients
Makes: One tin, about 380 g
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Inspect the tin
It must have no dents, no bulge and no rust. Do not boil a damaged one: those are exactly the tins that split along the seam under pressure.
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Step 2: Take the label off
Remove the paper label and any glue. Paper turns to pulp, works its way under the lid and burns onto the bottom of the pan.
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Step 3: Cover with water
Lay the tin on its side in a pot and cover it with at least 5 cm of water. On its side it cannot surface as the water boils away.
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Step 4: Simmer gently
Bring to the boil, then lower the heat to a gentle bubble. Two hours give a pale, pourable caramel; three and a half give a dark, thick one.
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Step 5: Top up with boiling water
Check the level every half hour and top up with boiling water — boiling, not cold. This is the most important step of all: an exposed tin overheats within minutes.
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Step 6: Cool it in the water
Turn off the heat and leave the tin in the same water until completely cold, at least 4 hours and better overnight. Do not lift it out or run it under the tap.
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Step 7: Open only when cold
Open it only once the tin is at room temperature. Hot, the caramel is under pressure and spits out from under the opener.
Tips & variations
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Tip
Do three or four tins at once: it takes the same time, and a sealed tin of dulce de leche keeps in the cupboard as long as a plain one.
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Variation
For salted caramel, stir half a teaspoon of flaky sea salt into the finished dulce de leche while it is still warm.
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Tip
In a hurry? Pour the condensed milk into an ovenproof dish, cover with foil and bake in a water bath at 200 °C for 90 minutes, stirring every half hour.
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Storage
A sealed tin keeps like ordinary condensed milk. Once open, move it to a glass jar: two weeks in the fridge, three months frozen.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 12 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 130 kcal | 1,560 kcal |
| Protein | 3 g | 36 g |
| Fat | 3 g | 36 g |
| Carbohydrates | 22 g | 264 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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