Dulce de Leche
Dulce de leche (pronounced DOOL-say day LAY-chay) is Spanish for "candy of milk". It is a traditional South American candy similar to caramel. The "classic" recipe for dulce de leche is to boil a can of sweetened condensed milk for hours until the contents form a dark brown, thick fluid.
Ingredients:
- 14 ouncecan sweetened condensed milk
Directions:
- Remove the label from the can.
- Using a can opener, punch a couple of holes into the top to help prevent the can from exploding.
- Place the can in a small pot and add water until it is near 1/4 inch the top of the can.
- Bring the water to a simmer (not boiling) for
- 3 hours for thick runny dulce de leche)
- 4 hours for solid dulce de leche).
- Water will need to be added over time as it cooks off.
- Remove the can with tongs and allow to cool before opening.
- Stir the dulce de leche so the layers are a uniform color.
- This is a really simple recipe involving very little interaction on the part of the cook. The downside of the recipe is that it takes about four hours for solid dulce de leche. Here's my recipe for making dulce de leche fast (potentially less than 15 minutes).
15 Minute Dulce de Leche
- Pour the sweetened condensed milk into a large (2.5 quart or larger) microwavable bowl.
- Microwave on medium power for two minutes. Whisk until smooth and repeat.
- About 10-12 minutes, the milk will look like it has curdled, and the dulce de leche is ready to be used as a sauce, but not yet at the candy stage. Whisk until smooth.
- Continuing to cook the mixture a total of about 15 minutes and when:
- more curdled appearance.
- it will pull away from the bowl as you stir
- it will stick together and be difficult to remove from the whisk. While hot, it is possible to knock most of it out of the whisk into the bowl.
- Using a spoon, you can pick up a piece of the sticky candy.
- The candy should stand up and cool quickly.
- It should be tacky but not sticky
- This candy will store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for over a month.