Traditional South African Condensed Milk Fudge
Desserts

Traditional South African Condensed Milk Fudge

A rich and creamy caramel-colored fudge made with condensed milk and butter.

10 mins Serves 24Shared by gareth

Origin & History

This recipe is a staple at South African bazaars and school cake sales across the country.

Adjust servings:
24 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 tin (385g) condensed milk\n500g white sugar\n125g salted butter\n15ml vinegar\n5ml vanilla essence\n75ml water

Method

  1. 1

    Place sugar and water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves.\n2. Add butter and condensed milk, stirring constantly.\n3. Bring to a boil and simmer while stirring for 15-20 minutes until it reaches the soft ball stage.\n4. Remove from heat and stir in vinegar and vanilla essence.\n5. Beat the mixture with a wooden spoon until it thickens and loses its gloss.\n6. Pour into a greased pan and allow to set before cutting.

Top Tips

  • Use a heavy-bottomed pot to prevent burning.|Test the temperature with a sugar thermometer for accuracy.|Stir continuously to ensure a smooth texture.|Cut the fudge while it is still slightly warm for clean lines.

Serve with

Traditionally paired with other South African classics:

Community Kitchen

Every South African family has their own version of this recipe — small tweaks passed down through generations. Do you make yours differently? Share your family variation with the community.

Share the recipe

Free email · no account needed

Recipes, braai days and match days — in one email

New South African recipes, SA events near you and every Springboks, Proteas and Bafana fixture with the UK channel. Free.

Email only, unsubscribe any time. Privacy notice

Analytics

We'd like to use Google Analytics to count visits and see which pages get read. It stores an ID on your device. Say no and the site works exactly the same — nothing here affects signing in, the match-day poll or the newsletter, which don't need your permission because they only do what you asked for.

You can change this any time on our cookies and storage page.