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5-minute Hot Fudge Sauce has just three ingredients and is perfect to use all summer long! This simple recipe tastes like melted fudge and you can reheat leftovers to thin!
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Easy Hot Fudge Recipe
If there is one thing I want all summer long it’s ice cream!! I crave it in summer, probably because it’s so hot here in Sacramento. (Well…let’s be honest. I crave ice cream all the time because it’s so darn good!)
Recently Jordan had some friends over and they wanted ice cream sundaes. We had the ice cream covered but, to my dismay, we were out of chocolate sauce. Now, as a food blogger, I took this as a huge fail: I always have all the sauces on hand. I have chocolate sauce when I make pie and need a drizzle and caramel sauce for when I’m making something gooey. So how in the WORLD was I out of ALL OF THEM at once?! #momfail #bloggerfail
So I did what a good blogger does in these situations: I made my own hot fudge sauce. And, dare I say, it’s BETTER than the kind you buy?
5-minute hot fudge sauce has just 3 ingredients and is perfect for all your ice cream sundaes!
What’s the difference between hot fudge and chocolate sauce?
It’s so easy to buy hot fudge and chocolate sauce that making it homemade has to be easy or why bother, right? Well, I got you covered because this hot fudge recipe is the BEST.
Honestly, I’ve always wondered this! The main difference is the texture. Hot fudge is thicker and more rich while chocolate sauce is thinner and more pourable. Chocolate sauce stays sauce in the refrigerator, while hot fudge gets cold and thick…like fudge.
And, let me tell you, my hot fudge sauce recipe tastes like melted fudge! It’s PERFECT to put on top of your favorite O Organics ice cream!
3 Ingredients Needed
Some recipes are for hot fudge with cocoa powder, but this recipe uses sweetened condensed milk! There are only three total ingredients:
- Chocolate Chips – use your favorite flavor, but use a good brand! We love Trader Joe’s, Guittard, and Guirradelli.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Butter – unsalted or salted. The butter might seem like an odd ingredient, but it’s necessary. Without it the hot fudge will seize and not act properly, so don’t skip it.
How to make hot fudge
- Add sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips to a saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate chips are melted.
- Remove from heat and stir in butter. Stir until butter is melted.
- Place hot fudge in a jar. Use while hot.
Favorite Recipes using liquid fudge:
- Drizzle it on peanut butter dip
- Make Hula Pie with it
- Pour it over Peanut Butter Ice Cream Brownies
5-minute Hot Fudge Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 (14 ounce) can (396g) sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup (170g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips to a saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate chips are melted.
- Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla. Stir until butter is melted.
- Place hot fudge in a jar. Use while hot.
- Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. To reheat: place jar in microwave and heat in 30 second increments, stirring between each, until melted and smooth.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- This is a very thick sauce – the hotter it is the thinner, but it’s hot fudge, not chocolate sauce.
- You can use salted or unsalted butter.
- Leftovers – store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will thicken and harden as it cools so heat to thin.
Recipe Nutrition
**Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!**
Last Updated on April 29, 2023
Very nice. Made two changes…. added 2 Tbl of milk for texture and a splash of vanilla. But now part of my recipe list. TY
Just made this to drizzle over cheesecake and top with whipped cream and sliced, toasted almonds (I’m bringing dessert to my sister’s Sunday dinner). It literally took 5 minutes and tastes like warm fudge…silky and creamy and rich. I imagine it would be absolutely delicious over ice cream. I did use Ghirardelli’s bittersweet chocolate chips instead of semi-sweet because it was what I had on hand and I don’t like things to be too sicky-sweet. It has a nice chocolate flavor without being too sweet. I think everyone will like it. (I think I may put some espresso powder in with the milk and chips next time to add even more depth to the flavor)
This recipe made 2 jars full (I used empty glass jam jars because they had wide mouths which made them easy to fill and, I expect, easy to empty! No need to buy store bought when you can make it so easily!
I absolutely love this hot fudge! I made a dairy-free version substituting the condensed milk for coconut condensed milk and the chocolate chips with vegan chocolate chips and plant-based butter. It came out absolutely great! I’m so grateful because sometimes substitutions don’t always work out but this one did! Thank you so much!
I think this amazingly rich fudge sauce took less than 5 minutes to make. I’m going to let it cool, then add it to my homemade chocolate ice cream as a fudge swirl before it hardens. Thanks for the perfect recipe!
So quick and easy!!!! I probably won’t be buying hot fudge in the store again….Great recipe..
Video does not show butter being added. However it does state, “add Vanilla”, which is not listed in the recipe. Which way is best?
Easy and delicious! 3 ingredients you most likely have in your pantry. It was a hit with the family!
Thank you for this! My husband is addicted to bananas and hot fudge on ice cream and has been killing me to make my own hot fudge! It’s absolutely delicious!!
It was good the first night but to thick and hard to ‘melt’ the second night. It was fine but I will stick with my Mothers old recipe.
But this is real good in a pinch when the grandkids are over, cut the recipe in half and that will work.
I’ve been craving ice cream with hot fudge, but even the store bought stuff has gotten so expensive. All I needed to buy for this was the condensed milk. I’m glad I tried it because it was so good! I used mostly semisweet chocolate chips, but was just shy of a cup so I filled it the rest of the way with milk chocolate chips both Ghirardelli brand. I have issues standing too long so something so quick and easy to make is a big perk.
I did make a few changes to the recipe but It was Delicious! Everyone loved it at my family gathering! I recommend adding a teaspoon vanilla, 3 tablespoons milk and use salted butter or add a few pinches of salt.
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