Whey Caramel
Luscious caramel with just a little tang to cut through the sweetness - made from a cheesemaking by product. What could be better?
If you make cheese at home, you already know one unavoidable truth: you end up with a lot of whey.
Gallons of it.
While whey can be used many ways, a fun alternative to use it is by turning it into rich, tangy whey caramel. It’s deeply flavored, slightly complex, and a beautiful way to transform something that often gets poured down the drain into something truly special.
If you're looking for a practical way to use extra whey from cheesemaking, this recipe might become one of your favorites. The slow reduction caramelizes the natural sugars in the whey, creating a caramel that’s similar to dulce de leche but with a subtle tang from the lactic acid.
How to Make Whey Caramel from Cheesemaking Whey
One of the first things you learn when making cheese is just how much whey is left behind. A single batch of cheese can leave you with several gallons of it.
Instead of wasting it, you can slowly cook it down and transform it into a thick, spoonable caramel that’s wonderful on ice cream, pancakes, cheesecake, or even stirred into coffee.
This recipe starts with one gallon of whey and slowly reduces it until the flavors concentrate and deepen.
Step by Step:
Step 1: Put your whey on the burner and begin boiling.
Step 2: Make ricotta if you choose - when your whey reaches a certain temperature, any solids leftover in the whey will begin to come to the surface - this is ricotta. If you’d like to save it, remove your pot from the heat and let it sit for awhile. Remove the curds then continue on with the recipe. See the notes below the recipe for detailed information on making ricotta.
Step 3: Continue cooking whey down until reduced by half.
Step 4: Strain your whey through a fine mesh colander to remove any solids in the whey.
Step 5: Add sugar, brush down the sides of the pot to remove any sugar residue to avoid graininess. Add a squeeze of lemon as well.
Step 6: Reduce by half again.
At this point, you have thin, pourable caramel perfect for drizzling on ice cream, cheesecake, coffee.. whatever your heart desires. Add your cream, salt and vanilla, stir to combine, then remove from heat and put into jars to cool.
If you’d prefer thick, scoop-able caramel, continue cooking down for about 10 minutes after adding your cream, salt and vanilla. See the recipe card for how to perform the cold plate test to determine thickness.
Don’t forget to let your family lick the spoon when you are all done!
Helpful Tips for Making Whey Caramel
Preventing Grainy Caramel
Three things will prevent most graininess issues:
Fully dissolve sugar before boiling
Brush sugar crystals from the sides of the pot
Add a squeeze of lemon juice
Also avoid stirring vigorously once the mixture begins boiling.
What to Do if Your Caramel Turns Grainy
If crystals form, don’t panic.
Gently reheat the caramel with:
a splash of water
a small squeeze of lemon juice
Stir slowly over low heat until the sugar dissolves again.
Cream vs Butter
This recipe uses heavy cream rather than butter.
Cream adds richness while also helping thicken the caramel.
If you prefer a more buttery flavor, substitute 2 tablespoons butter for 2 tablespoons of the cream.
I found when I used all butter my caramel didn’t thicken as well as it did with cream and the butter separated itself out after rose to the top.
FAQ: Whey Caramel
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Whey contains natural sugars (lactose) and proteins that caramelize when slowly reduced. When sugar and cream are added, the result is a rich caramel with a subtle tang. Also, it is a wonderful way to use up a product that often gets wasted.
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Fresh whey from most cheesemaking recipes works well. Sweet whey from rennet cheeses tends to produce a milder flavor, while acid whey (from yogurt or cheeses that use an acid (ie vinegar) to curdle it may produce a slightly tangier caramel.
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You can, but the sugar helps with both sweetness and thickening. Reducing the sugar will result in a thinner caramel or require longer cooking time. I have already reduced the sugar from the original recipe by half.
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The tang comes from lactic acid naturally present in whey.
More content you might enjoy:
Ricotta from whey - coming soon!
Parmesan style cheese - coming soon!
Whey Caramel
A rich, tangy caramel made from cheesemaking whey. Complex, deeply flavored, and a great way to use leftover whey.
Ingredients
- 1 gallon whey - leftover from cheesemaking
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp vanilla
Instructions
- Pour 1 gallon fresh whey into a heavy-bottomed pot. Bring to a boil. See notes now for tips on making Ricotta. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half. The liquid will darken slightly and smell nutty.
- Pour the reduced whey through a fine mesh strainer into a clean heavy-bottomed pot.
- Add 2 cups granulated sugar to the strained whey. Stir over LOW heat until the sugar is completely dissolved before allowing the mixture to boil. This is the most important step for preventing graininess. Once dissolved, brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to remove any remaining sugar crystals. Add a small squeeze of lemon juice to further discourage crystallization.
- Second reduction — cook at a steady boil until your whey has reduced by half again, down to 1 quart.
- Do the cold plate test: drop a small amount onto a cold plate, wait 30 seconds, and check the texture. That is what it will be like at room temperature.
- Add 1/2 cup heavy cream, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon vanilla. Stir until fully incorporated. If you are wanting pourable caramel for ice cream, cheesecakes, etc, heat just until incorporated. For thick, scoop able caramel, continue cooking down until it reaches your desired texture, maybe another 5-10 minutes.
- 6. Cool and store: Pour into jars while warm. Let cool uncovered at room temperature — the caramel will thicken significantly as it cools. Store in the fridge for up to 3 weeks. Reheat gently in a warm water bath or microwave in short bursts.
Notes
**Scaling:** This recipe is written per gallon of whey. For a 4-gallon batch, use 8 cups sugar and 2 cups heavy cream. Scale salt and vanilla proportionally.
**On sugar quantity:** The original recipe this is based on uses 1 cup of sugar per quart of starting whey. This is a lot of sugar, but sugar is doing significant thickening work in addition to sweetening. Reducing the sugar will give you a thinner result or will take significantly longer to thicken. If you don't mind more sugar, go ahead and use the 1 cup of sugar to 1 quart of whey rule of thumb.
**Preventing graininess:** Three rules — dissolve sugar fully before boiling, brush down pan sides with a wet pastry brush, and add a small squeeze of lemon juice. The acid interferes with crystallization. Do not stir vigorously once the mixture is boiling.
**Rescuing a grainy batch:** Gently reheat with a splash of water and a small squeeze of lemon juice, stirring over low heat until the crystals dissolve and the mixture is smooth again.
**Cream vs. butter:** This recipe uses cream rather than butter. Cream adds body and richness while helping thicken the final caramel. Butter would add richness but thin the caramel slightly. If you prefer a more buttery flavor, substitute 2 tablespoons of butter for 2 tablespoons of the cream.
**The cold plate test:** Keep a small plate in the freezer while you cook. Drop a small amount of caramel on it, wait 30 seconds, and check the texture with your finger. This tells you exactly how it will behave at room temperature — much more reliable than guessing by appearance in the pot.
**Tanginess:** The tangy flavor comes from the lactic acid in the whey and will mellow slightly as the caramel cools and the cream is added. If you want more tang, use less cream. If you want less, use more.
**On making ricotta:** Bring your whey to 195-200 degrees F. Remove from the heat source and allow to cool to 190 degrees. Let set for 5 to 20 minutes. The curds should float to the top of the whey. Ladle curds into a cloth lined seive and allow to drain until your desired texture is reached then add salt to taste. Once the curds are removed from the whey, put your whey back on the burner and continue on with step 1 - cooking down until it is reduced by half.
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