This Hot Fudge Sauce is smooth, thick, and intensely rich. With only five ingredients and 10 minutes of prep, you may never go back to packaged hot fudge sauce again!
Our Favorite Hot Fudge Sauce
Nothing beats homemade and especially when it comes to a homemade hot fudge sauce! Never being very impressed with packaged sauces, I made my own and have never gone back. Truthfully, I don’t even know if my family would let me go back to store-bought, ha!
Because while a lot of store-bought condiments can be huge time-savers, it turns out that making your own hot fudge is actually incredibly quick and easy to do. It comes out thick, fudge-y, and indulgent tasting every single time. And it doesn’t take hours to get there, either — about ten minutes, one pot, and a handful of pantry ingredients, and you’re well on your way to fudge sauce heaven!
Where does this genius Hot Fudge Sauce recipe come from? None other than the Pioneer Woman — Ree Drummond! I’ve tried just about every hot fudge sauce recipe on the internet and this is the one we keep coming back to. I’ve made just a few adjustments to her recipe, but the base recipe is hers. 🙂
What Is The Difference Between Hot Fudge And Chocolate Sauce?
The main difference comes down to texture. Hot fudge is intended to be thicker and has a richer flavor, while chocolate sauce is much thinner and more subtle in flavor. These differences come down to different ingredients being used; typically hot fudge has butter and cream while chocolate sauce relies on sugar and corn syrup.
Hot Fudge Sauce Ingredients
- Special dark cocoa powder. The cocoa powder really sets this hot fudge sauce recipe apart; Dutch-process cocoa powder offers a more robust and intensely deep chocolate flavor. Hershey’s® “Special Dark” cocoa powder is a Dutch-process cocoa powder and is readily found at most grocery stores.
- Butter. We prefer unsalted, so you have complete control over the flavor of the sauce. The amount of salt in salted butter can vary drastically from brand to brand and even stick to stick.
- Heavy whipping cream. The best-tasting heavy cream doesn’t have additives; if possible, find a brand that lists only one ingredient: cream.
- White sugar. We tested white and brown and while either work, testers preferred the white sugar!
- Flavor additions. Vanilla and salt are the perfect finishing touches to the sauce and help emphasize all the other flavors present.
Quick Tip
If you’d like to make a hot fudge sauce without cream, replace it with evaporated milk instead!
How To Make Hot Fudge Sauce
- Combine butter, cocoa powder, sugar, salt, and heavy cream in a medium-sized pot. Cook and stir over medium heat until the butter melts and ingredients are incorporated.
- Remove from heat, add in the vanilla and then transfer to a glass jar to store in the fridge. The sauce continues to harden as it cools into a thick fudgey sauce!
How To Use This Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe
Now that you know how to make Hot Fudge Sauce for ice cream, here are some other ways to use it:
- Drizzle the fudge sauce over of a bowl of ice cream or make an ice cream banana split with ice cream, bananas (or strawberries), and loads of this Hot Fudge Sauce.
- Add to a milkshake (replace the chocolate sauce with hot fudge in this malted milkshake).
- Use in one of these popular desserts: Brownie Oreo Ice Cream Bars, Mint Ice Cream Bars, Oreo Ice Cream bars, or these Brownie Ice Cream Bars.
- Make a dessert parfait layering chunks from this Brownie Recipe with ice cream and fudge sauce.
- Add to some cookies — these Fudge Brownie Cookies are our favorite!
Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe FAQs
Why is my Hot Fudge Sauce grainy?
The sauce can become grainy if it is cooked for too long, at too high of temperatures, or in a thin-bottomed pan. The graininess comes because the chocolate is scorched.
Why does fudge taste different than chocolate?
The main ingredient in chocolate is cocoa — cocoa solids and cocoa butter while the fudge is a concoction made primarily with sugar and cream!
What is Hot Fudge Sauce made of?
One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it uses pantry staples — you likely have most of the ingredients already in your cupboard! This recipe uses cocoa powder, sugar, butter, cream, vanilla, and salt.
Storage
How To Store Hot Fudge Sauce
Because there is cream (dairy) in this recipe, it needs to be refrigerated. Store in an airtight container or jar for up to two weeks. As the fudge is stored in the fridge, it will continue to thicken. When ready to use, heat in the microwave or over medium-low heat on the stovetop. Add a splash more of cream if needed to thin it a bit.
This recipe cuts down nicely — halve it if you won’t be able to consume the hot fudge within 2 weeks. You can also freeze leftovers of this hot fudge sauce recipe. When ready to use, thaw overnight in the fridge and then warm using the directions mentioned above.
More Dessert Recipes
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie with an Oreo cookie crust
- Bakery Style Chocolate Cookies with chocolate chips
- Chocolate Rice Krispie Treats triple chocolate!
- Edible Cookie Dough with miniature chocolate chips
- Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies with pudding mix in the dough
Hot Fudge Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
- 1 cup white, granulated sugar
- 1 cup dark cocoa powder Note 2
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- COMBINE: Cut butter into 8 tablespoon-sized slices and place in the bottom of a heavy-bottomed medium-sized pot. Place over medium heat and add in the sugar, cocoa powder, and cream. Using a whisk, briskly mix until ingredients are combined and butter is fully melted.
- FINISH: Remove from heat. Whisk in the vanilla extract and salt. Taste and add more salt if desired. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.
- STORAGE: Transfer sauce to an airtight container or glass jar and store in the fridge for up to two weeks. As the fudge is stored in the fridge, it will continue to thicken. When ready to use, heat in the microwave or over medium-low heat on the stovetop. Add a splash more of cream if needed to thin it a bit.
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
It was EXACTLY what I needed, perfect hot fudge recipe to make in a snap. Thank you!
SO thrilled to hear you loved this! Thanks Victoria!