Monday, March 26, 2012

Easy Homemade Chocolate Sauce – I Really Wanted To Call This Hot Fudge

I would have gotten more search engine juice had I named this, “Hot Fudge Sauce,” but it wouldn’t have been technically correct, and you know what a stickler I am for using precise terminology (if you’re new to the blog, that was an attempt at self-effacing humor). 

So, while it’s true I generally play fast and loose with recipe titles, when they really do mean different things, I try to come correct.

What makes this a chocolate sauce, and not hot fudge, is the fact that it doesn’t firm up when it hits the ice cream. True hot fudge sauce is actually melted, liquefied fudge, and by the time it finishes its slow slalom down the side of your sundae, it will resemble its namesake.

Hot fudge requires the sauce to be cooked to a specific temperature, for a certain time, and is generally a trickier operation than the simple sauce you see here. Like I said in the video, I’m sure we will eventually do a hot fudge video, but in the meantime, this ultra easy chocolate sauce should work fine.

Unlike hot fudge, chocolate sauce (aka chocolate syrup) will stay in liquid form even after it hits the cold, creamy stuff. Of course it gets a bit thicker as it cools, but it will not harden into actual fudge. If you are looking for comparisons, this may remind you of a thicker version of a certain canned chocolate syrup from Pennsylvania.

Anyway, if you are a regular buyer of store-bought chocolate sauce, and didn’t realize how easy it is to make your own at home, then I hope you give this recipe a try. Enjoy!


Makes about 1 1/2 cups of Chocolate Sauce
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup high-quality, unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups milk
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla, or to taste
tiny pinch of salt

View the complete recipe

52 comments:

Mary F said...

chef john. how long does this keep for in the fridge?

Chef John said...

a long time, but not sure exactly

Monica said...

Can you use evaporated milk, and low/non fat milk?

Puro y Eterno Amor said...

Hummmmm!!!!!
Delicioso!!!!

Chef John said...

i used 2%, so yes. not sure about evaporated!

Morgan said...

Chef, for the love of god, ignore Mary F from now on. Pretty sure it's just some big, greasy man sitting in his mom's basement waiting for you to post so he can ask the most ridiculous questions that you've already made a point to answer in the video. This is referred to as "trolling."

But anyway, you know what would be good in this sauce? Cayenne! Spicy chocolate = WIN.

Michael said...

"its slow slalom down the side of your sundae" beautiful alliteration :)

Chef John said...

I was ignoring that sad troll, but wasn't paying attention! What a tool.

Demelza said...

Chef John,I want you to know that you are AWESOME.
You're on my list of people to meet before 21!
(19 right now)
Ahh sighh,one day :')

Lisa @ Snappy Gourmet said...

Whether you want to call it hot fudge or chocolate sauce, I don't care, because it looks delicious!!!! Wish I had ice cream in the house!

Anonymous said...

Hello Chef John,

I love your videos!!!! That chocolate sauce looks amazing I will give a try ;) I have a question, I would like to make a NY cheesecake with chocolate chip crust, that recipe looks so delicious, i clicked on a video but unfortunately that page wasn't found. Is it possible to get that video back? I really would like to give a shot. Thank you for the great recipes.
Kultay.

Anonymous said...

Made this yummy chocolate sauce, only to find out hubby had eaten the remainder of the ice-cream!

Poured it over some hazelnutbutter and added shredded coconut, instead.

OMG! I must be allergic to your chocolate sauce, because I've eaten hazlenutbutter and coconut before, so the only new item is your chocolate sauce.

Drat, the allergy that made my thighs swell up after eating this delicious mixture.

Bill Warner said...

Oh wow, this looks great. When I make ice cream, I'm always looking for a good sauce, but I hate that generic plastic stuff. This version looks easy enough, I'm gonna try it for sure.

Madonna said...

Thank you so much for this recipe. I think I told you before I am soy lecithin sensitive which pretty much rules out all purchased chocolate sauces. I feel like you gave me a present. Yum.

Anonymous said...

Chef John, I noticed that you didn't put this post into the 'Chocolate' category..

Maureen @ Orgasmic Chef said...

Now I don't have to import that stuff from Pennsylvania and pay the enormous shipping cost. Yay and a big win for this yank.

Now to make ice cream to go with it.

Anonymous said...

The "obvious" next question is whether I can make a healthier nutella by mixing cocoa (and sugar?) into my almond butter. Maybe with milk to make it easier to spread?

Rita said...

call it what you want, chef j. i'll call that the yummy-licious choklit sauce; or choco-licious sauce; or yummy-in-the-tummy choklit sauce? :)

Dana B said...

I have indeed become lazy and been buying the bottle. This is awesome! As soon as I get some more Penzey's cocoa, I am making it! :)

Itsnotjustabouttherecipe said...

I have never wanted to eat ice cream more in my life . . . I can't wait to make it!

Doug said...

Did you use natural cocoa powder or Dutch process?

Anonymous said...

I love your blog and I LOVE your videos!! So easy to follow! Thank you for existing!

Unknown said...

Hey CJ, this looks like what my grandma used to make us for breakfast. We called it chocolate gravy. Goes great with homemade biscuits or toast. Food that is good for the soul.

Anonymous said...

Chef John, have enjoyed making your recipe for ciabatta from 2009, one thing I did differently, was use a technique I'd used from another recipe. To help get that thin crispy crust only achieved by steam, I place a shallow roasting pan on a lower rack, quarter fill it with hot water, then before I place the sheet pan w/the bread in the oven, I drop 2 to 3 cups of ice (depending on size of roasting pan) into it then place the bread pan in the oven and shut the door so the steam doesn't escape.

Mary from RI

DnR's MOM said...

thank you chef john for a true chocolate sauce recipe. i am not a fan of hot fudge, but a nice thick rich velvety chocolate sauce clinging lovingly to a mound of cold, creamy, vanilla bean ice cream...ummmmm, i gotta go......

Chef John said...

I used E. Guittard cocoa, but don't have the can anymore! Not sure, but may be on their website.

Doug said...

So I would guess you used their "Cocoa Rouge Unsweetened Cocoa Powder" which, according to their web site (http://guittard-online.stores.yahoo.net/bakingproducts.html), is dutched.

Anonymous said...

why was the video on youtube removed?

Mary F said...

shef john. your words against me are libelous.expect to hear from my church.

Unknown said...

That truly is fudgy love!

Anonymous said...

Wait a minute. Mary F?! Weren't you the one who was supposedly "boycotting" this site. Didn't you say you would encourage your church to do the same. WHY are you still here then? Just go away.

Damon said...

Okay, but why DO you pronounce it "surp"?

Anonymous said...

Is it weird that I made this and it turned into a super thick syrup that resembled fudge when cooled? XD Should I lower the heat next time or add more milk or something for teh same consistency as you had in the video?

Rafaela said...

Hi Chef John! I'm from Brazil and I must say that I ADORE your blog! Your recipes are just amazing! Great work!

Susanne said...

Maybe I am just too stupid, but... How can measuring butter in tablespoons ever be accurate? Not just in this recipe, but in general. Is it just me? Maybe because I'm German and don't know your American measuring methods? Am I supposed to melt the butter first and then measure it? I just don't understand how this works... I mean, if butter was liquid or some powder consistency like flour, no problem. But chunks of butter? (Same thing with measuring butter in cups, by the way.)
Please, can somebody explain that to me? I would really appreciate that. Thank you!

Chef John said...

very simple. American butter is always sold in 1/4 lb "sticks" which each have 8 tablespoon marks on the foil wrapper. So, you just slice off how many you need!

Fluffydungeoncatz said...

Chef john: And we are gonna pour this on...
Me: BROWNIES!
Chef john: Good guess,
Me: YES!
Chef john: Ice cream!!!! :D
Me: Are you serious?!

Lol, Thanks Chef john! :)

Sand said...

JUST tried this recipe.
WOW!
My husband said "another VOILA moment from Sandy's kitchen". Thanks for this REALLY really good sauce, Chef John. You are 100 thousand percent awesome.

Triple infinity.

Cantido said...

Wouldn't it be better to add the vanilla after the sauce has cooked down, so most of it doesn't evaporate from the couple minutes of cooking?

Chef John said...

Actually its the alcohol that evaporates, not the flavor, but sure!

Unknown said...

Chef, did you use dutch processed cocoa or just the regular unsweetened one? Thanks for this!

Chef John said...

this is what i use... http://www.amazon.com/Guittard-Cocoa-Powder-Unsweetened-Process/dp/B0049BJG8I

Unknown said...

Dear Chef John
I am from santa Cruz de la Sierra in the country of Bolivia, I am a Bolivian, and have discovered your blog where I have seen a recipe that I have been looking for some long time now, finally found it in your blog, this recipe is the home made chocolate sauce, we use it to pour it on top of a frozen cake, we know how to makwe the frozen cake, but did not have the sauce, let me tell you that our invited friends were delited with the ice cake and the chocolate topping, God bless you for this blog and I thak you a million times.

Chef John said...

Thank you!

George said...

The video said about cooking it for 6 minutes. At about a minute and a half the sauce thickened abruptly like a chocolate thick custard! Saved it by adding about 8 tablespoons milk, one at a time and it turned GREAT!!! Thank you Chef John!

Probably messed up my measurements as I don't have a proper "cup".

Unknown said...

great recipe, so much so that I can't wait for the hot fudge.

Unknown said...

Love your recipes. This came out way too thick for some reason. Had to add water.

Unknown said...

Thank you very much for the recipe. Everyone said that they have never tasted better!

Unknown said...

My husband when having this sauce served on top of Chef John's awesome Minute Chocolate Mug cake, going after every morsel intently:

"It's great but...but.."

Me:

"But? There's no 'but' here!"

Him: "BUT, it needs to be served with a tiny spatula so I can get it all out!"

Me, thinking to myself: "Yes! A freakishly small tiny spatula..."

Stark Radio said...

Chef oh, this is... this... is... AMAZING. It's just SO GOOD. It's so good, the ice cream paled in comparison. This is a keeper. I followed it exactly, and it's the best chocolate sauce I have EVER had.

Thank you so much. I love your blog, and your youtube channel. Please keep up the great work! More! More, I say....

yum yum yum!

Sanyieh said...

Chef John,

Can I omit the flour and substitute the milk for the flour? Would it still taste good?

Unknown said...

I made this tonight but used corn starch instead as I didn't have white flour and it turned out great ,thanks dear