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If you have milk, heavy cream, and sugar in your kitchen, you can make Homemade Sweetened Condensed Milk that’s far better than anything from a can. I discovered this recipe when I wanted to make coconut macaroons, but didn’t have any sweetened condensed milk on hand. What I did have was BraveTart: Iconic American Desserts by Stella Parks, , and it turned out to be exactly what I needed.
As you’ve guessed, she included a very precise sweetened condensed milk recipe. What a revelation this recipe turned out to be! Maybe it’s the heavy cream in addition to the milk (which helps keep the mixture from curdling), but the texture and, more importantly the flavor, is far superior to any store bought version. I chose not to add any aromatics like cinnamon or vanilla bean, but I may in the future for making no-churn ice cream or some other treat.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Whole Milk: Don’t try to substitute lower-fat milk here – the fat content is essential for proper texture and richness.
- Heavy Cream: This helps prevent curdling and creates a silky-smooth final product. Make sure it’s heavy cream, not half and half.
- Granulated Sugar: Regular white sugar works perfectly – no need for anything special.
- Kosher Salt: Just a tiny amount enhances all the flavors. This recipe is precise – weigh your ingredients if you can.
4 Recipe Tips
- Watch your simmer time: I found that it took a bit longer on my stove for the mixture to reduce by half, but appreciated Stella’s advice to pay attention to how long it takes your dairy mixture to come to a simmer: shorter than 12 minutes, turn the burner down slightly; longer than 12 minutes, turn it up slightly.
- Choose the right sweetener: Stick with regular granulated sugar. Other sweeteners like agave, maple syrup, honey, or brown sugar can make the dairy curdle due to their acidity.
- About measuring: The version of the recipe I’m posting here is slightly simplified from the original, skipping the instruction to weigh on a digital scale before and after simmering. You can certainly go that route if you like and will find her instructions to do so here.
- Check your reduction: The mixture will suddenly turn foamy when it’s reduced by half. Keep stirring until the foam subsides, then measure to make sure you have exactly 2 cups.
Evaporated Milk vs. Sweetened Condensed Milk
Sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk are not the same. Both are heated until reduced by about half of their original volume, evaporating off water content. But evaporated milk is not sweetened and can’t be used in recipes interchangeably.
Once you’ve made your own sweetened condensed milk, it’s hard to go back to the store-bought version. The superior flavor and silky texture make it worth the effort. There’s something so satisfying about creating this kitchen staple from scratch – especially when you taste how it transforms other desserts, from macaroons to no-churn ice cream.
More Better-Than-Store-Bought Recipes
How to Make Sweetened Condensed Milk
Combine milk, cream, sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium heat; bring to simmer, about 12 minutes.
Stir and simmer until mixture has reduced by half, about 30 minutes more. It will foam suddenly just before it’s finished. Let the foam subside and transfer to an airtight container. Let cool completely; refrigerate for up to a month. Bring to room temperature before using.
Homemade Sweetened Condensed Milk
Video
Ingredients
- 4 cups whole milk 32 ounces
- 3/4 cup heavy cream 6 ounces
- 1 cup granulated white sugar 7 ounces
- 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- In a 5-quart saucepan, combine milk, cream, sugar and kosher salt. Place on stovetop over medium heat; stirring occasionally with a silicone or other heat resistant spatula. The mixture should begin to simmer at about 12 minutes, if much faster, reduce heat slightly; much slower, increase heat slightly.
- Stirring constantly, simmer for another 30 minutes, scraping the sides often. When the mixture has reduced by about half it will suddenly turn foamy. Keep stirring until the foam subsides and pour mixture into a glass measuring pitcher. You should have 2 cups, if less, you can top with milk and blend to emulsify. If you have more than two cups, return to pan and continue to simmer until reduced to 2 cups.
- Store in a sealed, airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a month. Bring to room temperature before using.
Notes
- This makes about 2 cups, or 16 2-tablespoon servings.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi! My mom left me her Peruvian cookie recipe (alfajores) that calls for dulce de leche. Now, with your recipe, I can make it all organic!
What would happen if the milk was omitted and only heavy cream was reduced/used?
Hi Miki! That’s a great question. I haven’t made this with just heavy cream, but other than thickening faster and being a richer version, I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
I think I will try it before I make the cookies, and I will report back. *fingers crossed* If it works, awesome. If not, I am sure it’ll be yummy anyway 😆
Thanks for the recipe!
how did it go with just heavy cream?
I’m going to try this recipe, because I want to start making my own flavored coffee creamer. It had to have sweetened condensed milk. Could I use stevia in place of sugar? If so would the measurement be the same as regular sugar?
Hi Crystal! I haven’t tested this with alternative sweeteners. Stevia is about 30x sweeter than sugar, so you’ll want to greatly reduce the amount. If I were making it this way, I’d make an unsweetened version of the milk and sweeten to taste once it cooled a bit. I hope that’s helpful!
I’ve been using your recipe for over a year and I can’t even bring myself to use the canned stuff anymore! Me and my 3 yr old granddaughter eat it right out the jar!!! Soooo easy and soooo YUMMY!!!! Works beautifully with my Tres Leches Cake!! Thank you for this wonderfully tasting and easy recipe!
This is wonderful to hear, Rhonda! So glad you’re enjoying the recipe and I’d love to try your Tres Leches Cake!
Can I use straight half and half to make condensed milk?
Hi Jaci! Sure, that should work just fine.
I use sweetened condensed milk in recipes a lot and I don’t know why I never thought to make my own. Now I will! 🙂 ~Valentina
I love to hear that, Valentina!
Hi Marissa, random question: do you happen to know where you got that glass pitcher you use in the first couple of photos? The one that says 0,5l at the top?
Hi Dimi! I don’t remember where I bought the pitcher in the photo, but this one is very similar. Hope that helps!
Making this for a 2nd time using A2 milk and A2 cream. Then using it in homemade Irish cream for St. Patrick’s Day. We did this over Christmas and it was well received by all. Slainte ☘️
I’m so glad to hear that you’re enjoying the recipe!
This is so great. I can’t wait to try it. Using all my own ingredients is key, and I can avoid those nasty metal cans. Thank you!
My pleasure, Maria! I hope you’ll love it.
Hi! Absolutely fantastic, it came out perfect!
Also a quick note, not sure if this is a typo but in step 1 it states the following:
In a 5-quart saucepan, combine milk, cream, sugar and kosher salt. Place on stovetop over medium heat; stirring occasionally with a silicone or other heat resistant spatula. The mixture should begin to simmer at about 12 minutes, if much faster, reduce heat slightly; much slower, decrease heat slightly.
Should it be:
, if much faster, reduce heat slightly; much slower, INCREASE heat slightly.
So glad this is a hit for you, Rick! And yes, that’s a typo – thank you so much for pointing it out. Fixed now.
Hi Deniece from Dalton,Ga
I made this using half the regular white sugar and half truvia and it worked. Made homemade cherry ice cream with fresh cherries and it was so deevviinneeeee. Made a custard
Using truvia The whole thing was less than half of the sugar.
My family all loved it so much.
Thanks for your tasty recipe. Who knew. Homemade s. Cond. milk 🧐
My pleasure! So glad you enjoyed and made it your own!
I love discovering American food creations which are actually quite numerous. I did a small research on condensed milk and read that it was invented in Texas in 1854! I had no idea it’s been around that long. I remember lots of people I knew using it regularly in everything. when I was growing up. I’m going to make this and get that book. Sounds just too intriguing. Thanks so much!
Hi Cassandra! I had no idea it had been around that long!! Be warned about that book – you’ll want to try everything! 😉 Thanks for your sweet comment.
I use this recipe now every time I make my pumpkin pie (with fresh pumpkins I grow, puree and freeze so I can enjoy it all year round!) and let me tell you, it really makes a difference. Just try it. You wont be sorry. 🙂
I love to hear this, Dawn! Thank you so much for coming back to let me know!
I found a recipe for ice cream with only three ingredients that you don’t need a machine for. It called for sweetened condensed milk but due to numerous allergies I was looking for a recipe that I could make from scratch. This turned out perfectly. The only thing was I need to increase the heat a little because it took an hour to cook down instead of just 30 minutes. Am looking forward to making it again. Can it be frozen so that I can have some on hand?
I’m so glad you enjoyed this, Christine! The timing is tricky – depends so much on individual stovetops. 🙂 On your freezing question, I haven’t frozen it myself, but have a look at this article that gives some great tips on how to do it properly.
This recipe is DELICIOUS!! I halved it because I only needed 1 cup for my recipe, and it tasted AMAZING!! I just finished making it, and I can hardly wait for it to cool down so I can make my candy bars. This flavor will DEFINITELY add a new dynamic. No more Eagle Brand for me!! Now I’m actually glad I didn’t have any on hand! Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so glad you’re happy with it, Juanita!! Thank you for coming back to let me know!
I am working on making this recipe right now – so far, I’m up to 1 hour 15 minutes and the reduction is only to slightly less than 3 cups! I think I went wrong on the heat level. I followed the advice of increasing the heat if it wasn’t simmering at 12 minutes, but then it was doing a rolling boil, so I lowered it. I think my visual of simmer is wrong. I’m letting it boil away now, and it’s reducing but still very slowly – I’ve stopped at every 10 minute point (after the original 42) to measure. I started with Fairlife whole mile because I’m trying to make a lactose-almost-free version – could that be affecting it?
ETA: at 1 hr 20 min, it’s almost dulce de leche, and just very slightly over 2 cups.
Hi Melinda! Interesting that it took so long. I haven’t made this with low lactose milk, but I don’t know why that would cause any issues. I’ve read that it can be used interchangeably with regular milk in recipes. My best guess is that it’s a temperature regulation issue, which admittedly can be tricky with this recipe. I hope that you’re happy with the end product!
Thanks – unfortunately, the end result was also very lumpy, not free flowing at all, and it did not work in my recipe. I’ll try it again and see if I can reduce it well before the sugar caramelizes next time. I should probably start with regular milk just to get the hang of it. Thanks for posting this recipe – the science of it was half the fun!
I’m sorry to hear that, Melinda! I wish I knew the exact cause. I’m glad you’re up for giving it a try with regular milk and hope that it goes just perfectly. 🙂
The reason it did not work is because FairLife milk has a lot less sugar in it. I used the same milk. About half way through the reduction I tasted it and figured out the problem after comparing regular milk to Fairlife milk. I too was trying to make a lactose free desert. Mine turned out delicious but looks like caramel instead of milk. I think it could work with half the milk and twice the sugar on the fair life milk.
So helpful, Gina. Thank you for weighing in!