Ingredients
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
Preparation
Step 1Transfer sweetened condensed milk to a clean, pint-sized mason jar. Screw on lid.Step 2Place trivet in Instant Pot and place sealed jar in center of trivet. Fill instant pot with enough water to come 1" below the jar’s lid. Close Instant Pot lid and cook on the Manual setting on high heat for 35 minutes.Step 3Quick release the steam and use tongs or oven mitts to remove jar. Important: Let cool completely before opening jar.
Step 1Remove label from sealed can and place in a large pot or Dutch oven. Fill pot with water until can is submerged by at least 2" of water.Step 2Heat pot on high until water comes to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook, (adding water to submerge can as necessary) for 2 1/2 hours. Remove can with tongs and (important!), let can cool completely to room temperature before opening.
Dulce de leche is not exactly caramel. It’s actually carmalized milk so it has a bit more of a creamy, toasty flavor to it. And for centuries you had to sit over a pot of milk and sugar, waiting for the liquid to evaporate. But some brilliant cook realized that you can accomplish the same thing but popping a can of sweetened condensed milk into a pot of boiling water. No need to even pick up a whisk or a spatula! Important! We note this in the recipe below, but please let your dulce de leche cool completely before opening—pressure builds up in the can when heated, which can cause molten-hot dulce to shoot out if opened warm. This also means if you are cooking in a regular old pot, you may need to top up the water a few times as the dulce de leche cooks to ensure that the can stays submerged and properly pressurized. Once you have a jar of this stuff you’re going to want to use it in everything but we especially love adding it to brownies and frosting. Made a batch? Let us know how it went in the comment section below!
