cooking sugar.

[boomchakabowwow]

to be honest, it scares me. it's like napalm. hot..beyond hot.

i want to make mexican Flan for my wife. the custard is easy. the sugary caramel sauce, gives me pause. i just dont love cooking sugar. any cheats? for instance, can i take a piece of store bought caramel and sprinkle it on the bottom of the flan bowl? trying to think outside the box.

 

[MarcelNL]

Watch some pro's do it, then get a decent (and high/large enough) pan, and keep watching the stuff never leaving it...once you do not get scared and do silly things like picking up the pan when it sizzles over when adding liquid or something or sticking a finger in the pan or similar it's fairly easy.

this appears to be a decent write up... Easy Caramel Sauce Recipe

 

[Rainman890]

Not sure if this counts: when you put the sugar in the pan, add a bit of water/flavorful liquid (e.g. alcohol for extra flavor) to the sugar, and swirl it around until no dry sugar is left in the pan.

Then turn on the heat and watch how the bubbles change from boiling water to caramelizing sugar. Don't stir too often, only if you absolutely need to. Use a silicon spatula. Everything should be clean (any residue will make the sugar seize).

Just practice. Use a nonstick pan if possible to learn, because it's a lot easier to clean if you mess up...

If you mess up, add water immediately so it doesn't get time to stick.

Good luck!

 

[MarcelNL]

if you mess up you add boilinmg water to the lump you're left with and it comes out easily, don't ask how I know

 

[M1k3]

Dry caramel is quicker to make, easy to mess up.

Wet caramel takes longer to make, harder to mess up.

 

[sumis]

while making xmas candy, my daughter poured a drop or two on her hand. screamed for an hour. she will never make candy again.

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