Salted rum dulce de leche sauce is a gorgeous mix between salted caramel flavours and the boozy kick of spiced rum.
It’s super simple to make and is a gluten-free recipe. A jar of this stuff would make an amazing gift. Or you can keep it all for yourself and pour it over your favourite desserts, like a toffee pudding, or ice creams.
This sauce is beautifully thick like caramel but so full of that distinctive dulce de leche flavour. It’s also something a little bit different, and I just love the taste!
Jump to:
What is dulce de leche?
Dulce de leche is a caramel-like sauce originating from South America. It’s usually thicker than your typical caramel and is made from milk and sugar, slowly cooked over a long period of time.
You can easily buy dulce de leche from the shops. One of my favourite brands is Nestle’s dulce de leche.
I do however find it’s extra tasty and a better consistency if you make it yourself. Maybe it’s all that love that goes into it (I know, so cheesy).
You can keep the dulce de leche and use it as it is! I think it’s amazing included in a load of recipes, for example where you’d usually have caramel, etc.
👍 Best ways to enjoy
I use both dulce de leche and this salted rum dulce de leche sauce in one of my favourite cupcakes, which I call a Pirate’s temptation.
The sauce is perfect drizzled over ice creams. I love to use this ice cream topping on a hot sunny day after a BBQ or at dinner parties. It really takes your standard vanilla ice cream to the next level!
One of my favourite things to do is to add this to my coffee. A teaspoon (or two) of this sauce is so delicious to spice up your caffeine hit, and the boozy addition gives it a sinfully indulgent twist. Step aside Starbucks, I've got a better coffee syrup now!
You can also heat the sauce up, either in the microwave for 30-60secs or over the stove for a few minutes and pour it over your favourite desserts and puddings. Personally, I think it goes great over an apple pie or apple crumble.
If you’ve tried this sauce on any of your favourite desserts, let me know what ones you’re loving in the comments below.
🥘 Ingredients notes
The quality of rum that you buy will have quite an impact on the flavour of your sauce. I find the cheap rums are quite harsh and can lack some of the smooth spice of some of the other rums I’ve tried.
Make sure to use your favourite spiced rum for a taste you’ll love. Or just a good brand of rum that you know people will love. I'm by no means a rum connoisseur!
When measuring your ingredients, I always recommend using weights rather than cups where possible for greater accuracy. Accuracy is important for the amount of flour used.
🔪 Equipment notes
Use measuring spoons for your teaspoon and tablespoon amounts where possible. Be sure to level off the heaped ingredients in your scoops before adding them to your mix.
🍱 Storage
I'd recommend storing your salted rum dulce de leche sauce in the sealed jar in the fridge. It should last 2-3 weeks in the fridge.
💭 Top tips for success
- When making your dulce de leche, it’s important not to let your water level go below 1inch (a few centimetres) above the can. This is because your tin might burst from the intense heat and lack of pressure. I’ve never had a can of condensed milk explode, but it sounds like it would be pretty messy!
- In the theme of no-explosions-please, make sure your can has cooled completely after cooking before you open it. Otherwise, it can spew dulce de leche like a fountain when opened! I like to leave the tin to cool in the water slowly for an hour first before leaving it on the side to cool completely before use.
- Another top tip is to lie you can on its side rather than standing it upright when you’re boiling it. This way the can won’t jump about as it heats, so you won’t have to listen to an annoying banging sound for 2 hrs.
Troubleshooting help:
If you’ve got any specific questions on making your salted rum dulce de leche sauce, please feel free to leave a comment below and I’ll try my best to help out!
Alternatively, you can get in touch via my Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest – I’d love to hear from you!
♻️ Alternatives and substitutions
I like to use a spiced rum for this, as I think the cinnamon and vanilla flavours complement the dulce de leche beautifully. You can switch it up though and use a dark rum, which will also be strong and full of flavour with an extra kick. You can also try using a white rum, which will be a lot more subtle in flavour.
If you don’t drink alcohol, you can still make this delicious sauce by swapping the rum liquor for rum flavouring. Swap the 3tbsp of rum in this recipe for 2tsp of rum extract. I also like to add an extra pinch of ground cinnamon and ½tsp of vanilla if using rum extract so that you still get that spiced rum flavour.
🧁 Other goodies
So, I definitely recommend that you whip up a batch of this delicious and easy salted rum dulce de leche sauce! But as an avid home baker, I’m sure you’re asking yourself “what next?”.
Feeling saucy? Yeah, you are ? Why not check out my other sauces and condiments recipes. One of my all-time favourites is passionfruit curd.
If you’re feeling extra sweet for all things caramel-flavoured, take a look at my recipe for millionaire’s shortbread. Or for some syrupy sweetness, give my maple pecan pie shortbread bars with golden syrup a try! So much sugary sweet mouth joy to be had.
Looking forward to some new recipes? Check out my Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest pages for a few sneak peeks and some sweet inspiration!
Or if you’d like to hear about our latest recipes, why not subscribe to our newsletter?
📋 Recipe
Salted Rum Dulce de Leche Sauce
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Ingredients
- 1 tin sweetened condensed milk (397g)
- 3 tablespoon spiced rum
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place your unopened tin of sweetened condensed milk on its side into a large and deep saucepan, then fill your pan with enough cold water to cover the tin by at least 2 inches.
- Heat over a medium heat on the stove until boiling, then reduce to a gentle simmer for 2hrs. Top up the water level with hot water (either from boiling the kettle or the hot tap).
- Every 30mins, check your water level and top this up with more hot water so that the level never goes below 1inch above the tin.
- After the 2hrs of simmering, allow your tin to cool in the hot water for 1hr then remove from the water and allow to cool on the side for at least another 1hr.
- Once the tin feels completely cool to the touch, open your tin. You should have a very thick and caramel-coloured dulce de leche inside.
- Empty the contents of the tin into a mixing bowl, and add the rum and salt, stirring until you get a smooth sauce. Your sauce should be thick but have a pouring consistency.
- Store the sauce in a jar in the fridge until ready for use.
Notes
- This is a gluten-free recipe, but always check your ingredients for allergens to be safe.
- This makes roughly 440 ml of sauce, enough for a large jar or 1 ½ medium-sized jars.
- The sauce will last for a few weeks stored in the fridge.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate based on an online nutritional calculator, actual values may vary.
Fanny Escudero
Can I use dark rum or white rum? I would love to make this sauce to add it to a sponge cake this Thanksgiving.
Sweet Mouth Joy
Hiya, you can use either, but I prefer dark rum for a bolder flavour. It would be great on a Thanksgiving cake, hope you have a lovely day!