Is Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce Worth the Effort? (2024)

FAQs

How long is homemade hot fudge good for? ›

Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Add Chocolate Mixture: Pour the chocolate mixture into the syrup and stir until smooth. The sauce will thicken as it cools. Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Be sure to serve warm, and, when reheating, reheat only the amount of sauce you intend to use; repeated heating and chilling can make the sauce grainy.

Hot fudge is made by boiling together cream, sugar, chocolate, and sometimes butter—the traditional ingredients for fudge—into what is essentially just an undercooked, unset version of the confection. It differs from plain old chocolate sauce by virtue of being gooier and more viscous.

It will thicken and harden as it cools so heat to thin.

Fudge is best stored at room temperature for 2 to 3 weeks wrapped up in its original wax paper. NEVER REFRIGERATE your fudge as this will draw out the moisture and leave you with dry, crumbly fudge.

Typically, homemade hot fudge sauce can be stored in an airtight container and will retain its quality for up to three weeks when refrigerated. The durability of hot fudge sauce is attributed to its ingredient composition, which often includes cocoa powder, sugar, butter (how long does butter last?), and milk or cream.

In fact, hot fudge sauce is just a fudge that never sets! Cream or milk, sugar, and butter are slowly boiled down until slightly thickened and light caramel-colored. This boiling-down process not only gives the sauce it's great gooey texture, but also contributes that special “fudgey” taste to the chocolate.

Grainy Fudge

If the melting sugar splashes onto the sides of the pan, it turns back into crystals and causes the fudge to seize up. To avoid this issue, swirl the pan instead of stirring it with a spoon. You can use a wet pastry brush to wipe down any sugar that sticks to the sides of the pot.

Overall, hot fudge sauce is a richer, creamier, and more indulgent option for chocolate lovers, while chocolate syrup is a thinner and more versatile topping that can be used in a variety of different ways, including for chocolate milk.

Why has my Fudge not set? The main reason is that your Fudge has not reached the optimum temperature. If your mixture only reaches 110 or 112 degrees Celsius it will always be soft.

What is McDonald's hot fudge made of? ›

Ingredients: Sugars (sugar, glucose syrup), Water, Milk ingredients, Hydrogenated palm kernel oil or hydrogenated coconut oil, Cocoa, Salt, Disodium phosphate, Potassium sorbate, Natural flavour (plant source), Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, Soy lecithin.

Overcooked fudge, which goes beyond 239 F, evaporates the water, which isn't what you want. It also matters how you treat the fudge after it's cooked. Avoid too much stirring while you are heating the fudge since this agitates the sugar and causes it to clump into sugar crystals again.

To keep fudge fresh, it's important to keep it cool. With proper storage, fudge can last in the fridge for 2 to 3 weeks.

Or, place over a saucepan with 2” simmering water (bring to a boil, turn down to medium/medium-low) and stir constantly until melted and completely smooth. Use right away or store in a sealed container in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave just as when you first made it or immersed halfway in a simmering pot of water.

Let the fudge rest at room temperature for 15 minutes before placing in the refrigerator, uncovered. Refrigerate until the fudge is firm, about 2-3 hours (or overnight), before slicing and serving.

If there is too much evaporation, when the cooking time is too long, there will not be enough water left in the fudge and it will be too hard. Conversely, if the cooking time is too brief and there is not enough evaporation, too much water will remain and the fudge will be too soft.