{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (2024)

by Sarah Toney | Recipes | 5 comments

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In this article: Learn how to make goat milk caramel sauce with this easy cajeta recipe!

Do you have extra milk hanging around the house? Why not try making this delicious goat milk caramel sauce called cajeta?

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Cajeta is a traditional Mexican sauce made with goat milk. It is very similar to dulce de leche, which is traditionally made with cow’s milk. This cajeta recipe takes all day to cook down, but it is so, so good!

{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (1)

Make a Delicious Goat Milk Caramel Sauce with this Cajeta Recipe!

To make this cajeta recipe you will need the following:

1/2 gallon goat milk
2 cups sugar
Seeds of 1 vanilla bean
dash of cinnamon/ 1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 T water

You can make this on the stove top (quicker, but more hands-on) or in the crock pot (much longer, but does not require constant attention).

{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (2)

Crockpot Cajeta Recipe Directions:

Place the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and sugar in the crock pot and turn on to high. Stir every so often until the milk is hot and sugar is dissolved. Stir in the baking soda water.

Continue cooking on high stirring every so often. I just stirred as I came into the kitchen, maybe once an hour or so. Keep the lid off since the goal is for the milk to reduce and caramelize.

It took about 12 hours to thicken up to the consistency I wanted (like a sauce/topping) if you want it thicker just cook a little longer.

If you like this recipe, check out it and 24 other fabulous goat milk recipes in my Goat Milk Recipe e-Book! With recipes for cheeses, yogurt, kefir and treats like ice cream and fudge!

{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (3)

Stovetop Cajeta Directions:

Place the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and sugar in a large pot. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently to prevent a skin from forming on top.

Once the mixture begins to boil stir in the baking soda water. Remove from heat and stir until it no longer threatens to bubble over the top of the pot.

Return to heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to thicken and turn golden. This should take about 1- 1 1/2 hours.

At this point start stirring more frequently so the bottom doesn’t stick or burn. Remove from heat when it has reached your desired consistency.

Remember it will also thicken up as it cools. Pour into a jar and keep in the refrigerator for up to a month. Makes a great apple dip or ice cream topping- here’s my favorite homemade soft serve recipe which is goes great with this cajeta recipe!

Related Goat Milk Recipes:

How to Make Goat Milk Mozzarella- Successfully!

How to Make Goat Milk Yogurt (with 3 incubation options!)

{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (4)

Cajeta- Goat Milk Caramel Sauce

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours

Total Time: 2 hours 5 minutes

A sweet, caramel sauce made from goat milk- similar to dulce de leche

Ingredients

  • 1/2 gallon goat milk
  • 2 cups sugar
  • Seeds of 1 vanilla bean
  • dash of cinnamon/ 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 T water

Instructions

Crockpot Cajeta Directions:

  1. Place the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and sugar in the crock pot and turn on to high. Stir every so often until the milk is hot and sugar is dissolved. Stir in the baking soda water.
  2. Continue cooking on high stirring occasionally. Keep the lid off so the milk can reduce and caramelize.
  3. Cook until thick and at the desired consistency (up to 12 hours)

Cajeta Stovetop Directions:

  1. Place the milk, vanilla, cinnamon and sugar in a large pot. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently to prevent a skin from forming on top.
  2. Once the mixture begins to boil stir in the baking soda water. Remove from heat and stir until it no longer threatens to bubble over the top of the pot.
  3. Return to heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to thicken and turn golden. This should take about 1- 1 1/2 hours.
  4. At this point start stirring more frequently so the bottom doesn’t stick or burn. Remove from heat when it has reached your desired consistency.
  1. Alannaon March 8, 2018 at 4:00 pm

    Hope much caramel sauce does this recipe yield?

    Reply

    • Alannaon March 9, 2018 at 4:58 pm

      *How

      Reply

  2. Leslie Holdenon July 9, 2018 at 10:42 pm

    Mine keeps forming a skin that later develops into a strange texture! What am I doing wrong?!

    Reply

    • KimQon September 30, 2021 at 5:21 pm

      I would say, like with pudding, when you take it off the heat lay a piece of saran wrap touching it, over it. When it is all cooled and you pull it off, any skin will come away with it.

      Reply

  3. Dessire FOWLERon April 17, 2021 at 10:06 am

    How would you be about canning this?

    Reply

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{Cajeta Recipe} How to Make Goat Milk Caramel Sauce! (2024)

FAQs

Why is my cajeta not thickening? ›

If it's too thin, continue simmering; if it's too thick, stir in a little water. (The slower this final simmering goes, the darker the cajeta.) Strain into a storage container. Once cool, store tightly covered in the refrigerator for a month or more.

What's the difference between cajeta and caramel? ›

The difference between cajeta and other caramel sauces such as caramel and dulce de leche is that cajeta is made out of goat's milk whereas most others are usually made out of cow's milk.

Why isn t my caramel sauce thickening? ›

2. Too short of a cooling time: Caramel sauce thickens significantly as it cools, so let the caramel cool for the appropriate time to achieve the right thickness. If the sauce is still too thin after cooling completely, place it back on the stovetop and reheat it on low heat for a few additional minutes.

What does baking soda do in cajeta? ›

For best results, simmer; if it starts to boil, simply lower the temperature, stirring every few minutes, and it should be fine. The baking soda neutralizes the milk's pH levels and makes cajeta smooth. It also assists with the Maillard reaction, the browning of amino acids with sugars to create caramel.

How do you fix caramel that didn't set? ›

If caramels are too soft, that means the temperature didn't get high enough. Again place the caramel back into a sauce pan with a couple of tablespoons of water and heat to 244°F. If you don't have a candy thermometer, you can test with a cold water test.

How do you make caramel more liquidy? ›

Add corn syrup, honey, or lemon juice to keep the sauce thin.
  1. Use lemon juice instead if you don't mind the citrus taste. Use ½ tablespoon (7.4 mL) of lemon juice per cup (236.6 mL) of sauce. ...
  2. The lemon juice should prevent your caramel from crystallizing, but it may alter the taste of your caramel.

Why is my cajeta grainy? ›

Raw or low-temperature pasteurized goat's milk (often found in local markets) will coagulate toward the end of the cooking process, giving the cajeta a slightly grainy consistency, so save those delicately flavored milks for fresh applications.

What are the three types of caramel? ›

Caramel can be produced in so many forms such as, sauce, a chewy candy, or a hard candy because of how much of an ingredient is added and the temperature it is being prepared at.

Is cajeta better than caramel? ›

Though they are both pretty delicious, and pair well with plenty of desserts, there are some important distinctions between the two. Cajeta requires the use of two ingredients not found in caramel sauces — goat's milk and baking soda — as well as a different, cooler cooking temperature.

How do you thicken cajeta? ›

Homemade Cajeta

Keep it at a steady medium simmer for about one hour and a half, stirring occasionally, every 15 to 20 minutes or so, with a wooden spatula or spoon. The mix will gradually thicken and darken. After about an hour and a half, the liquid will have thickened and reduced and the simmer will become stronger.

Why did my homemade caramel get hard? ›

The water evaporates, leaving sugar crystals behind. If even one sugar crystal falls back into the pan of cooking caramel, it starts a chain reaction of sugar crystals and the entire pan will harden. The result? Gross, grainy caramel that is unusable in most recipes.

What happens when you add baking soda to caramel? ›

Salt: To balance the sweet. Baking Soda: Arguably the most important ingredient! The purpose of baking soda in the caramel is to react with the acidic ingredients (brown sugar, cream of tartar, and corn syrup), which creates tiny carbon dioxide air bubbles.

Do I need to refrigerate cajeta? ›

No it doesn't need to be refrigerated, You Can ...but if you do,it will harden and won't c… BlueBell Enterprises. Q: I have never seen Cajeta Quemada??

What can I substitute for cajeta? ›

Cajeta is a thick, sweet caramel spread made from caramelized sugar and goat's milk. Cajeta is available at well-stocked grocery stores and at Mexican markets. If unable to locate cajeta, substitute 3/4 cup dulce de leche spread from a 13.4-oz can.

Why won't my caramel harden? ›

you simply haven't cooked it enough-- possibly your microwave is less powerful (the original recipe doesn't specify a wattage for cooking the caramel) or the butter you used has a higher water content. You could try cooking the mixture for a little longer, and seeing if it sets up firmer.

Why is my dulce de leche not thickening? ›

Note that the thickness and darkness of the dulce de leche will depend on how long you cook. Cooking time of the sweetened condensed milk can should be from 2.5 to 4 hours, ALWAYS making sure it's covered in water, and always making sure the can is completely cooled down before moving it and opening.

How do you thicken runny dulce de leche? ›

Tip: To thicken stovetop dulce de leche, make a slurry of 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch with 1 1/4 teaspoons milk. Bring it to a very slow boil over medium heat, whisk this slurry into the dulce de leche, and continue to boil slowly for five minutes before removing from heat and cooling.

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