Comments on: Homemade Dulce de Leche

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 19:27:15 +0000

Andrea – you are so right about the danger of explosion.
Years ago I shared an apartment with a Peruvian young woman who had a visible scar over her eyebrow…she was boiling the can of condensed milk but forgot to keep an eye on the water level.
It exploded as she leaned over the pot to check it.

When her mother came to visit, she made it the same way, but she didn’t forget.
Still I’ve never tried making it myself for that very reason. Never thought of recipe girl’s way, and I may just try that, now that I know there IS a safe way to make it.
Of course, it’s so popular now you can buy it jarred everywhere, which wasn’t the case during the time I shared the place w/ MariElena.

By: Lori Lange

Lori Lange — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:36:28 +0000

Not sure- this one is made w/ cornstarch, which makes it light and flaky.

By: GiaD

GiaD — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 00:23:14 +0000

I have seen the exact recipe for the cookie part with the 2 cups flour but never with the cornstarch. What does 1 cup cornstarch do in this recipe? isn’t a thickening agent? Have you ever made the cookie without it?

Thanks

By: Mel

Mel — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 20:08:47 +0000

Thanks for this alternative method! I have a can of condensed milk at home that I bought specifically for making into dulce de leche (I plan on trying it in apple pie, so I’m happy to have found your recipe for that as well). I see a lot of people claiming that the best way to cook it is actually in boiling water. I just wanted to throw out there that most recipes online mention that you should put at least two holes in the top of the can (obviously you keep the water level below the top) to release pressure while cooking. Maybe a safer alternative for people determined to cook it in the can.

By: Veronica

Veronica — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 05:31:19 +0000

The best way to do dulce de leche or manjar (that is how we call it in Chile) is to place the sealed condensed milk can in a pot, then cover it with water and boil it for about 2 hours or a little more if you want a thicker dulce de leche. Make sure that the can is always covered with water while is boiling.

By: Alina Meakin

Alina Meakin — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 08:20:56 +0000

I’m so so excited about this recipe.
I’m a horrible cook but a pretty good baker. I’m about to post this on my facebook and send to my super baker girlfriend as well.
My local candy shop (Mom and Pop Candy Shop in McKinney Tx) makes a Dulce de Leche fudge. It seems like a vanilla fudge base with an awesome giant swirl of dulce all over the top. It is so amazing, it’s almost impossible to stop eating. Which seems is the case for everyone, as anytime I go to buy it, they have already sold out. They also use that topping for their Praline version. (but I don’t like the chocolate fudge as much as the vanilla.)

I’m about to put this in the oven and it’s 2am. I’m hoping to get some kind of fudge whipped up in time for xmas parties at school tomorrow, and maybe this will be what makes mine stand out more than the other moms.
woo hoo!

AND ANYONE WHO IS BOLD ENOUGH TO PUT A CLOSED CAN IN BOILING WATER FOR FIVE MINUTES OR FIVE HOURS IS NUTS.
YOU ARE ASKING TO FILE INSURANCE CLAIMS FOR YOUR HEALTH AS WELL AS YOUR HOME, and who knows if they will even pay them for being so ignorant!
Don’t do it, even if your grandma and her grandma have always done it!

By: Andrea

Andrea — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 04:27:03 +0000

When I lived in Argentina, they used whole milk cooked in a large pot on the stove which was stirred almost constantly. As I recall, they put a pinch of baking soda in it, perhaps to keep it from curdling or maybe to help with color? It was basically an entire day event where the ladies would get together and stir the huge pot of milk for what seemed like all day. Then they’d put it in jars and give it out to friends and family. Making it from whole milk takes a long time since you are condensing it yourself, but makes a very pure, dark dulce de leche, which is very thick (not goey like your recipe). You don’t add any sugar – it’s just the milk and oh, so good! Homemade from milk works best for recipes which require the dulce de leche to stay put (like in alfajores). BTW, boiling a closed can is very dangerous as the internal pressure builds in the can will cause it to explode if you aren’t careful.