Homemade Browning Sauce

July 12, 2023 by Charla 138 Comments

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Learn how to make some homemade browning sauce. A extremely popular condiment for many Jamaican and Caribbean recipes. This sauce comes together using only 3 ingredients in less than 20 minutes.

Browning in a sauce bottle with a bowl of brown sugar.

Browning sauce is probably one of the most important ingredients you'll ever encounter in Caribbean cooking.

Seriously, I mean if you've ever browsed the pantry of an Islander you're guaranteed to find a stash of this stuff (my family included).

**If this is your first time making browning, please, please watch my YouTube video. It is detailed and shows you how to make the sauce perfect the first time!**

What is browning sauce?

Browning sauce is often referred to as simply "browning" by many Jamaicans. It is made with sugar, typically sugar that contains molasses i.e brown sugar, cane sugar or even more recently coconut sugar is used.

The sugar is cooked in a saucepan on the stove until it starts to dissolve and caramelise and continues to cook until it becomes dark, almost black in appearance.

Hot water is immediately added while the sugar is still hot to create a dark smokey sauce.

Once the sauce has been made, addition ingredients such as salt can now be added.

The importance of this sauce

Browning plays a VERY crucial role in cooking, it has a distinctive deep enriched hue that is vital for many dishes.

The sauce adds a lot of depth, flavour and a beautiful dark colour to gravy, meat, stews and even baked goods.

The primary reason for using browning is purely for aesthetic purposes rather than for it's nutritional value.

Burnt sugar vs browning

In the Caribbean community both methods are used. I would say Jamaicans are more partial to using browning in it's liquid form in their recipes.

On the other hand, the Eastern Caribbean islands such as Trinidad and Tobago, like to use the burnt sugar method especially when they are stewing meat.

Browning sauce is simply charred sugar that is made into a sauce with hot water. Make no mistake that both methods are embrace with the Caribbean.

Although, depending on what you are making, you may use the sauce over the burnt sugar method.

For example, if you are making black cake, you would use the sauce instead.

Reasons to make your own browning from scratch

It's incredibly easy and relatively cheap to make
You have complete control over what ingredients are being used
Free from additives, fillers and preservatives
Never have to worry about running out of it again
Perfect for people who want to make Caribbean recipes but don't have access to the store bought kind
It isn't as bitter and concentrated as what's sold in the supermarket

The taste and texture of the homemade version

The taste of the sauce should have a hint of smokiness to it with very very faint sweet undertones which is to be expected from charring sugar.

A stronger taste of smoke will permeate your sauce if you let it cook for too long.

Therefore, It is very important to strike the right balance.

On the contrary, homemade browning isn't as concentrated as what you will find in the supermarket.

You may notice that the colour isn't as deep and also the texture is thinner because no thickeners/fillers are used.

Unlike the store bought brands that tends to be quite bitter in taste, your homemade version won't be which means you can afford to be a bit more heavy handed for culinary use.

My recipes on the blog will always make it clear the exact amount that is needed. I did this to take away any guess work with how much to use.

I personally prefer to add some pink salt to my sauce when it is in its liquid state because it helps to balance out that smokiness and slightly sweet note.

You can omit the pink salt if you want to but just know that by using it, it won't make your recipes exceedingly salty.

Again! please DO NOT use cold water as this will ruin the recipe because the sugar will harden and not dissolve.

Browning sauce vs Worcestershire

Browning sauce and Worcestershire sauce are NOT interchangeable and are not the same.

Worcestershire sauce is a fermented condiment with vinegar (white or malt) being the base ingredient. Other flavours such as anchovies, molasses, tamarind, onion, garlic and other flavours i.e salt, sugar are used.

It has a distinct flavour of sweet, savoury and tanginess from the tamarind.

Unlike browning Worcestershire is NOT used in cakes, instead it is used to add flavour and serves as a marinade especially when making a stir fry, salads or a meat dish.

Interestingly enough, it does play a key role in a bloody Mary mix.

On the other hand, browning sauce isn't used for flavour, rather, its primary focus is to darken food i.e cakes, meat and stews.

It is made from caramelizing brown sugar, once the sugar is caramelized to the point of being almost dark in appearance hot water is added to make the sauce which yields a smoky flavour.

The store bought browning is more concentrated than the homemade version.

Typically when you are working with the store bought kind, you only need a small amount i.e less than a teaspoon.

A little goes a long way, use too much and it imparts a bitter flavour into your finished dish.

The steps

Add the sugar to an old (preferably non stick) large saucepan and turn on medium heat.
Use a wooden spoon or spatula and begin to slowly stir. The sugar will start to dissolve and turn into a syrup consistency then gradually darken (this will take several minutes).
If the sugar begins to smoke too quickly then reduce the flame or switch off the stove and continue to stir while charring the sugar.

Steps 5-10 adding the pink salt and pouring the browning in a bottle

Once the sugar turns to a very dark almost black colour, it will begin to bubble (don't let it go too black or it will be too bitter)
Immediately, remove the saucepan from the stove and carefully add the hot water. The saucepan will yield plenty of steam and may splutter which is normal but please be very careful when following this step and add the water slowly - keep on stirring the liquid.
Once the sauce is formed add the pink salt and allow to completely cool.
Pour into a sauce bottle or a pour-able jar .
Refrigerate and use accordingly in your recipes.

Is kitchen bouquet the same as browning?

Although both condiments are used for yielding colour in food, they aren't the same thing.

Kitchen bouquet is made from caramel with a vegetable base and can be used in alcoholic beverages.

On the other hand, browning is used for food purposes only.

Is there a substitute for browning?

If for whatever you should need a substitute the closest would be molasses, it shares a similar dark hue, although molasses has slightly more sweet hint and is thicker in texture.

Why does my browning taste sweet and not look like yours?

Something has gone wrong, if this has happened then the sugar hasn't been browned for long enough.

The deep dark due and bubbles are a indication of its readiness, browning is NEVER light brown, it is virtually black in colour when made correctly.

Is brown sauce the same as browning sauce?

No, brown sauce is a stand alone condiment that is commonly used to dress food. Browning is used as a food enhancer, namely for colour.

Help, my browning is hard/lumpy, can I save it?

Yes you can! This can happen for two reasons, the water wasn't hot enough, it needs to be boiling or you let it cool down.

Another reason could be that you allowed the sugar to cool when it became dark and it started to firm up.

If you're browning is lumpy, return it to the stove on very low heat and stir until the hard sugar lumps begin to dissolve (it should take a few minutes to liquidise).

You can then continue with bottling it up once it has cooled down.

Notes and tips

Use hot water to dissolve the sugar NEVER cold or the sugar will become hard and not dissolve.
Be sure to shake the bottle that the browning is stored in before using it.
You don't have to use coconut sugar, I initially did when I first started blogging but cane sugar or brown sugar works just fine.
Invest in a sauce bottle, you will want something like what is pictured. It will come in handy when you want to use it for your recipes.
It is very important to use a large saucepan NOT small to accommodate the sugar expanding and to prevent any injuries.
NEVER leave your sugar unattended, this is dangerous! Constantly stirring and attending to the recipe is essential.
Don't let the sugar turn BLACK FOR TOO LONG or it will result in a bitter tasting browning sauce.
Be very careful when adding the hot water as the sugar may splutter and raise up.
Use a non-stick saucepan or preferably an old saucepan. DON'T use one of your fancy or brand new saucepans.
When adding the hot water you may want to do this in the kitchen sink or far away from your stove to reduce accidents.
Store in the refrigerator for several months to over a year once chilled.
Keep the fan extractor on/leave a window open to reduce a build up of smoke.

Bottle of browning with sugar in a bowl.

Other recipes to use this sauce in

Jamaican Black cake
Brown Stew Jackfruit (Jackfruit Stew)
Brown Stew Fish
Brown Stew Turkey Neck
Slow Cooker Brown Stew Chicken
Caribbean Turkey Steaks Recipe
Jamaican Sweet Potato Pudding
Caramelized Onions
Oxtail Stew

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