If you’re a fan of salted caramel then you’ll love this miso caramel recipe. The miso adds that subtle touch of saltiness and an added unique “umami” element for an elevated depth of flavour. It’s easy and quick to make and will pair perfectly with any dessert from simple vanilla ice cream to rich fudge brownies.
Table of contents
What is Miso Caramel?
Miso caramel is somewhat similar to salted caramel, the saltiness is added from Miso paste instead of salt. If you are a big fan of salted caramel, then I suspect that you will love this miso caramel recipe because the miso adds not only a salty element but also umami known as the “fifth flavour”. This will add a greater depth of flavour than any caramel you have tried before!
What Do I Need to Make This Caramel Recipe?
You only need to gather 4 ingredients.
Sugar – granule sugar or caster sugar make a good caramel sauce. Water – Some caramel recipes do not call for water however, it helps the sugar caramelise evenly. Heavy Cream – cream is called differently in different countries. I used pure cream that contains 1.4oz (39g) fat in Australia which is equivalent to heavy cream or whipping cream in the USA. Miso – There are many different types of miso and classified by colour, ingredients, and taste. We want to add saltiness to this caramel recipe, so any miso is good to use except sweet eating miso. I used my homemade miso paste. If you would like to make your own miso, check the recipe in my Miso post. It takes time for the miso to ferment, but definitely worth the effort. Miso paste is available from Japanese or Asian grocery stores or check out my Amazon shop.
How to make Miso Caramel?
I will explain in detail in the recipe card below, but this is generally the process of the miso caramel recipe. In a small saucepan, place sugar and water. You can stir with a wooden spatula at this point to help the water dissolve the sugar a little bit. Start to heat the sugar and water mixture in the saucepan over medium heat. Wait patiently for the sugar to start to bubble and brown. Once the sugar colour has changed to brown, do not take your eye off the saucepan because we don’t want it to burn. Take the saucepan off the heat and add pre-heated cream into the saucepan a little bit at a time. Then add the prepared miso paste, stirring into the caramel. Put the saucepan back on to low heat for about a minute.
Tips & Tricks For the Caramel Recipe
- Do not stir the sugar mixture, it will cause the sugar to crystallize and will not make smooth caramel.
- Once the sugar colour starts to change into brown, do not take your eye off the saucepan.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and add preheated whipping cream. Add a little bit at a time as it may explode. Be careful not to burn yourself.
What to Serve With?
You can serve it with ice cream, mochi, mochi donuts, sliced apple, Japanese thick and fluffy pancake, Japanese souffle pancakes, Invisible apple cake and shiratama dango.
How to Store it?
It will store about 2 weeks in the fridge but you can also freeze miso caramel. Freeze miso caramel in an ice cube tray and once it freezes, take them out of the tray, place them in a ziplock bag and keep them in the freezer. It will keep a month in the freezer.
Miso Caramel Related Recipes
FAQ
A: As I mentioned in the Japanese food substitute post, there is not any condiment that can replace Miso. Miso is a unique fermented condiment.
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Miso Caramel
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup sugar (150g sugar)
- 1/4 cup water (60ml)
- 1 cup cream (240ml)
- 2 tbsp miso paste *1
Instructions
- Loosen miso with 2 tbs of water (not listed in the ingredients list above) and strain using a sieve. Set aside.
- Heat the cream till just before reaching boiling point. Turn the heat off.
- Place sugar and water in a large and deep saucepan and stir together to dissolve the sugar. *2
- Heat the mixture over medium heat and bring it to boil without further stirring. *3
- When the sugar mixture becomes golden brown, remove the pan from the heat.
- Pour the pre heated cream in carefully and a little amount at a time, as the caramel will bubble.
- Stir to combine and whisk the loosened miso mixture in.
- Put the saucepan back on low heat and simmer for a minute.
- Allow it to cool down and pour into a storage container (such as a glass jar).
- Store it in the fridge. *4
Notes
Nutrition
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Yum…. I love caramel candy. I love ’em sticking to my teeth. Now with the edition of miso makes it very interesting. I want to just grab one.
Thank you Richard 😀
I live at high altitude and it takes a bit longer for candy to begin caramelizing here. Might you be able to give us a temperature to get the sugar syrup up to?
I made it with coconut milk as someone suggested and it’s delicious but a tad runny. I think I needed to cook the syrup longer but I got antsy.
Love your chronicles.
Thank you Theresa 😀
I’m planning a Japanese themed dinner party and would love to pair a miso caramel with some type of cake or pudding. Do you have any recommendations?
Hi Phuong 😀 any simple flavoured cake will go with miso caramel well because miso caramel has strong flavour.
What type of cream do you use?
Hi Are you in America? I think the cream I used equivalent to whipping cream.
Hi – just wondering if you think this would keep for more than a week? I’ve been looking up shelf life of caramel and it seems to wildly vary haha. I’m thinking of making this as a Christmas’s gift and am hoping it will have a shelf life of about a month? Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks!
Hi Caitlin, I am not sure as it contains cream in it so it is better to be consumed as soon as possible. I actually left it for a month and was ok but I ate it on taking my own lisk. If it is a gift, I will give fresh one and tell them finish it as soon as possible.
Thank you so much for your response! much appreciated.
This looks great! I had miso caramel at a restaurant last year and have been dreaming of it since. I’ll be making this recipe this week to top a cheesecake!
Do you know how long this caramel lasts in the fridge?
Hi Rebecca, It lasted about a week in my fridge 😀
More years ago than I care to count I was in Japan and was told about a candy. I butchered the pronunciation then so I will be no better now but I believe it was pronounced miso no suke. Is this the miso caramel that you write about? Is there another candy that may be pronounced somewhat as I have spelled it? Your answer will put to rest a long nagging frustration I have had. Thank you.
Hi William, I think it is name of a candy or a brand macahnt name. This recipe is caramel with miso flavour so I think this is different what you were looking for. Sorry
I love it super great!
thank you!
Oh my goodness, this sounds like absolute heaven! I want to smother this on top of EVERYTHING! Going to try this recipe ASAP. I have always been a miso fan, and I am a caramel lover, so I am certain I will love it 😀
Also, that homemade miso workshop sounds like such a cool experience – I’m so jealous! I never even contemplated the idea of trying to make my own miso before – I’ve always just purchased it at my local Asian grocery stores – but this has opened my eyes to the idea of it. I bet it tastes SO MUCH better than store-bought! Now I’ll have to see if there are any workshops like that in my area.
Thanks for such a delicious and decadent recipe!
Konnichiwa Shannon. Yes, it was eye opening experience for me too to know miso can be used for sweets 😀 Fermented food is kind of a food trend now, so keep an eye out, you will find something near your area.
Your miso caramel has beautiful color and texture. I have a soft spot for anything sweet salty, so I definitely want to give it a try. The only problem is I can’t use dairy cream, so I guess I need to play around and see what works. Thank you for sharing this interesting recipe!
Hi Sophie. Thank you, let me know and please share what works for you, someone who can not use dairy cream might want to know as well 😀
I’m very late to the party but I don’t do milk and have made many caramel sauces and candies using coconut cream, either from a can or you can make your own. Good luck!
Hi Melinda, Thank you for the information. I have not tried other type of milk for this recipe so it helps who don’t use milk. Thank you 😀
Oh..i was at Gold Coast recently. Should have met up with you and join you for the workshop too!
Your miso caramel looks wonderful, I have bookmarked to make it soon!
Hi Faithy, really? yes we could. That workshop was wonderful, I had a lots of fun.
Very interesting recipe !
Thank you for taking the time and effort to list American measurements along with grams, etc.
I can easily measure 3/4 cup miso compared to “130 grams”
Arigato-Gozaimasu !!!
Konnichiwa Doug san, Thank you for reading my blog. I am searching a better recipe card and I think I found one, that reader can change the measurement etc. Stay tuned 😀
What is cap cream
Hi Emily, Thank you for letting me know, it is typo. Supposed to be 1 CUP of cream 😀