Vegan Caramel Sauce (2024)

FAQs

What is vegan caramel made of? ›

The base for this 5-ingredient caramel is coconut cream, dates, and arrowroot starch, which are blended until creamy and smooth. This makes up the liquid ingredients, which are added to a bit of coconut sugar and cooked until glossy and just bubbly.

Like regular caramel, this vegan caramel is made from a base of sugar, cream, and butter. We'll be using coconut cream instead of regular cream, and dairy free butter to keep it all dairy free since most caramel is not vegan. Then you'll need some salt and vanilla for extra flavor and that's it!

Because caramel is essentially just sugar, in its purest form, it is vegan. However, it is often mixed with dairy cream, butter, or milk, which is why it's important to always check the back of store-bought caramel candy.

Grainy caramel is caused by crystallization, which is easy to avoid (and can also be fixed). Caramel becomes grainy when the sugars crystallize, a process that happens when the melted sugar splashes up onto the cold sides of the pan. It loses its moisture and turns back into a sugar crystal.

Caramel is made by heating sugar (either with a liquid or by itself, more on that below!) in a heavy-bottomed saucepan until it melts and becomes clear. The liquefied sugar is then cooked, without stirring, until it darkens in color, taking on additional flavor notes the longer it remains on the heat.

Case in point: the caramel syrup is vegan but the caramel sauce is not. Here is everything you need to know about these flavor-enhancers so you can order with confidence the next time you stroll up to a Starbucks.

This product is not vegan as it lists 4 ingredients that derive from animals and 1 ingredient that could derive from animals depending on the source.

Modified Big Mac

Order the Big Mac without the beef patty and cheese. Swap the Big Mac sauce (which is not vegan) for one of the two vegan sauce options: Tangy Barbeque Sauce or Sweet 'N Sour Sauce. The Big Mac sesame seed bun and all the other toppings (lettuce, pickle slices, and onions) are vegan.

Many vegans refer to Oreos as “accidentally vegan,” meaning they don't contain animal products — but they weren't created to be a specifically vegan treat. Oreos do not contain milk, eggs, or any other animal-derived products, so they are technically vegan in that sense. Plant-based cookies and cream lovers rejoice!

Most vegans consider sugar a generally acceptable food, but strict vegans abstain from refined cane sugars that are likely to have been processed with animal products. They can, however, consume vegan-friendly raw cane sugar, certified-organic cane sugar, and sugar made exclusively from beets.

Is Mcdonalds caramel vegan? ›

Chocolate and caramel syrup contain dairy. So Caramel macchiato, Cappuccino, Latte, Iced Latte, and Frappé aren't vegan. Mocha Frappé, Latte, and Iced Mocha are also only vegetarian. Hot chocolate also contains the same chocolate syrup which has dairy in it.

When it comes to your average supermarket purchases, there's no need to fret: Nearly all vanilla extracts are vegan—even the imitation ones.

Because refined sugars made from sugarcane require bone char to achieve a clear white colour, most refined cane sugars are unsuitable for vegans. Some types of brown sugar also involve using bone char, such as those that are created by adding molasses to refined cane sugar to achieve the brown colour.

Do vegans have to remove caramel from their diets? In a sense, yes, the traditional caramel recipe is made almost exclusively of animal products, namely butter and heavy cream. Though traditional caramel is out, vegans can eat non-dairy caramel alternatives that don't compromise the original recipe's taste.

Unfortunately for vegans, most commercially available forms of caramel include non-vegan ingredients like milk that give caramel its creamy, rich texture.

However, not all Starbucks syrups and sauces are dairy-free, and it can be confusing. Case in point: the caramel syrup is vegan but the caramel sauce is not. Here is everything you need to know about these flavor-enhancers so you can order with confidence the next time you stroll up to a Starbucks.

Caramel is white granulated sugar that's been heated slowly to 340 degrees Fahrenheit. This gradual heating process breaks down the sugar's molecules and creates a deep golden brown color and rich flavor.