caramelize

verb

car·​a·​mel·​ize ˈkär-mə-ˌlīz 

ˈker-ə-mə-,

ˈka-rə-mə-

caramelized; caramelizing

1

transitive : to subject (sugar or the sugar content of a food) to caramelization : to change into caramel (see caramel sense 1) by heating at high temperature

… flan bathed in caramelized sugar and topped with whipped cream …

—Penelope Casas

At a restaurant, some unlucky prep cook gets to peel, slice, and caramelize bags of onions in the morning.

—Stephanie Alleyne

2

intransitive : to change to caramel

Fructose begins to rapidly caramelize at around 200 degrees …

—Matthew Card

: to undergo caramelization

These sweet potatoes caramelize slightly in the oven, which gives them a sweet crunch as their flesh remains creamy.

—Lesley Porcelli

Examples of caramelize in a Sentence

The onions will take five minutes to caramelize.

Caramelize two cups of sugar.

Continue stirring until the sugar caramelizes.

Recent Examples on the Web

Each slice has irresistibly crispy, caramelized cheese edges that contrast with its soft, chewy center. —Chrissy Suttles, Axios, 27 Feb. 2025

Bake until bacon is caramelized and desired doneness, 18 to 20 minutes. —Katlyn Moncada, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Feb. 2025

On others, Walker nods to his Jamaican and Cuban heritage with morsels of jerk chicken and caramelized lobes of plantain. —Elazar Sontag, Bon Appétit, 20 Feb. 2025

Some of the works’ unofficial titles, such as My mind lives in a hot wet hole in my body, suggest an illicit inner monologue that elsewhere caramelizes into quasi-sadomasochistic confession: Someone’s flesh is under my fingernails. —Jeremy Lybarger, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for caramelize

• actualize
• antagonize
• apologise
• apologize
• capitalize
• categorize
• characterize
• commercialize
• conceptualize
• contrariwise
• criminalize
• decentralize