Homemade Strawberry Sauce
This strawberry sauce is so simple to make. It’s bursting with real berry flavor and comes together in a matter of minutes on the stove with just 6 ingredients! Once you taste it, you won’t reach for that store-bought canned strawberry topping ever again–trust me! This is a glossy, flavorful, and pourable sauce that pairs well with just about anything, from buttermilk pancakes and crepes to poundcake, cheesecake, and even ice cream. Or you can eat it like I do: by spoonful after glorious spoonful 🤤
5 things to know about this recipe:
Tastes best with fresh, summer berries, but frozen will still work too. Can be made as thick or thin as you’d like. Option to add a splash of vanilla extract for a more candied flavor. Finishes in just 15 minutes!
What You Need
This sauce is so simple–just 6 ingredients! You probably have them all on hand too. Here’s what you need:
Strawberries. While freshly picked summer berries are the BEST choice here, store-bought berries will also work. Frozen will work too, but just remember that you will get the best flavor from fresh, in-season berries. Cornstarch. Cornstarch encourages the sauce to be thick and glaze-like. You can skip the cornstarch, but you will need to cook your sauce for quite some time to get it thicken up, and it still won’t be quite as thick as it it would be with cornstarch. I highly recommend using it. Lemon juice. Just a splash of lemon juice brightens the flavor of our strawberry sauce and keeps it from being too sweet. Bottled or fresh squeezed lemon juice will work here since it is such a small amount. Don’t you dare use bottled lemon juice for strawberry lemonade though! Vanilla. This is optional. If you want a bright, pure strawberry flavor, skip the vanilla. But if you want a sweeter, more candied sauce, add it! Sugar. Not only does sugar add sweetness, but it also helps stabilize the sauce. You may need a small amount more or less than I have listed in the recipe; see my tip below.
SAM’S TIP: I touch on this in my strawberry cake recipe, but the sweetness of your strawberries really matters! If you have ripe, juicy, freshly picked berries, you might want to use a tablespoon less sugar in your strawberry sauce. Do not omit the sugar completely, though! It’s important for the consistency of your sauce. Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Strawberry Sauce
SAM’S TIP: If you do happen to overcook your sauce and it turns out thicker than you were hoping, don’t fret! Just stir in some water a tablespoon at a time until your desired consistency is reached. Looking for a strawberry topping that doesn’t need to be cooked? Try macerated strawberries! Enjoy! Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
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