caramelize
Americanverb (used with or without object)
-
caramelizes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
caramelized,
past participle, past
-
caramelizing
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
caramelizesimple
-
caramelizessimple
-
have caramelizedperfect
-
has caramelizedperfect
-
am caramelizingprogressive
-
are caramelizingprogressive
-
is caramelizingprogressive
-
have been caramelizingperfect progressive
-
has been caramelizingperfect progressive
Past
-
caramelizedsimple
-
had caramelizedperfect
-
was caramelizingprogressive
-
were caramelizingprogressive
-
had been caramelizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of caramelize
Explanation
To caramelize is to slowly cook a food until it turns sweet, nutty, and brown. You can also caramelize pure sugar, or cook it until it melts, becoming golden-brown, sweet, and thick. When a cook caramelizes chopped onion, she gently cooks it in butter or oil, usually for a long time at a low temperature, until the sugars in the onion begin to brown and become very sweet. She caramelizes sugar by cooking it until it melts and reaches a certain temperature. The verb caramelize comes from caramel, or "burnt sugar" in French.
Vocabulary lists containing caramelize
Blanch, Poach, and Scald: Cooking Methods
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Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet
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When Clouds Touch Us
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Brown it deeply, until the edges caramelize and the fat renders into the pan.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
When the chicken is done, slather it in Sanders BBQ Supply Co Sticky Icky Peach Wing Sauce and let it caramelize for a few minutes over the heat.
From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2025
The crushed cane and fibers are dried and fuel the fire used to boil the juice, evaporate the water and caramelize the sugars.
From Seattle Times ● May 6, 2024
They will soften, and then turn golden, and then — quite a lot later — caramelize.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 13, 2024
Laughing as they chop onions and caramelize them with garam masala and turmeric and ginger and garlic, trying to replicate my nanni’s kheema.
From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed
The sugar in glazes caramelizes in the oven, adding deep sweet-savory notes and intensifying browning.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 19, 2023
Then, and only then, does Smith fry the patty, obsessively ladling rendered beef fat over the meat until the surface caramelizes to wring out that Maillard reaction.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 27, 2023
The whole shebang caramelizes and solidifies once baked, creating the classic flavor that has been cherished for years on end.
From Salon ● Nov. 11, 2022
But using flour comes with another benefit: The flour left behind in the pan caramelizes, helping to both flavor and thicken the pan sauce.
From Washington Post ● May 12, 2022
A final coating of brown sugar and honey, speckled with mustard seeds, caramelizes onto the ham in the oven.
From New York Times ● Apr. 8, 2022
When cooked, it forms a lightly tangy, almost caramelized coating that makes it seem like you put in more effort than you did.
From Salon ● Apr. 28, 2026
I tend to order tartare whenever I see it, and Redbird’s version stands out: served over a crisp potato tosti with caramelized onion crema, egg jam, pickled pearl onion, and shaved marrow.
From Salon ● Mar. 31, 2026
Roast for about 30 minutes or until the edges are brown and caramelized.
From Salon ● Feb. 7, 2026
A caramelized garlic steak bowl sells for $17.95, and a garden cobb salad is $15.75.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 16, 2026
The Tribeca Grill serves caramelized endive with poached lobster.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
Roasting, grilling or caramelizing can bring out natural flavors in foods.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 4, 2024
The near-direct heat chars the peaks of the skewered meat, and the valleys catch little pools of caramelizing sauce.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 11, 2023
In response to Coffey, chef Thomasina Miers' suggested caramelizing turnips in butter.
From Salon ● Mar. 30, 2023
The steaks and onions would brown quickly and evenly, caramelizing into a sweet, deep mahogany brown.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 12, 2023
When sugar is caramelizing, it reaches a high temperature.
From School and Home Cooking by Carlotta Cherryholmes Greer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
