What could possibly be better than homemade chocolate syrup? For a coffee lover like myself, homemade mocha syrup (or mocha sauce) definitely wins the day. All it took was a simple twist of my homemade chocolate syrup recipe and voila, we have mocha syrup. Now I just need to label the jar so the coffee haters in my house don’t use the wrong thing in their chocolate milk.
Is it sauce or syrup?
Just a few minutes difference in cooking time really determines the answer to this. If you stop the cook time while the mixture is still a bit think you’ll end up with mocha syrup. If you boil it just a bit longer until it’s just a little thinner than the consistency you’d like, it will cool into a beautiful thick mocha sauce.
What is mocha sauce?
Mocha Sauce is like chocolate syrup/sauce except it’s made with strong brewed coffee (double brewed coffee or espresso) in place of water. This gives it a rich chocolaty flavor with a hint of coffee.
Perfect with your morning cup, in a homemade iced latte, over ice cream, over fruit, or straight up with a spoon. Rich decadent chocolate with just a hint of coffee is sure to make any day better. That is, unless you don’t like coffee, you hater, you.
PrintHomemade Mocha Syrup
- Yield: 1.5 cups 1x
Ingredients
- 1 cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup strongly brewed coffee – I use decaf
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients in a pan over low heat.
- Whisk often, bringing to a boil.
- Once mixture is boiling, stir constantly until thick.
- Cool.
- Refrigerate.
Hello there!
I was wondering if it is possible to get the same or similar consistency with honey or maple syrup in place of the sugar?
Thank you so much!! 🙂
This is a great question. I have not tested it, but I intend to soon now that you ask as I am curious the ratios needed. If you are comfortable playing with ingredients and testing it out, here are my suggestions. I cannot guarantee results, but because the recipe is quite simple and if you are prepared for the slight difference in taste of using honey or maple syrup, you will likely get good results. Feel free to reach out via email realthekitchenandbeyond @ gmail if you do and have questions along the way. I try to answer as quickly as possible.
Honey has more liquid and tends to taste sweeter than sugar. Here is what I would try. I would start with 1/2 cup honey, 3/4 cup liquid, and 1 cup cocoa powder. Cook. Taste and see how you like it. If it is too thick, add a small amount of water and whisk it in well. If it’s not sweet enough you can add a little more honey about a tablespoon at a time, stirring in well and tasting before adding more as desired. If it’s thinner than you like, you can cook it a bit longer to see if it thickens to a sauce, but even if it is thinner, it will still work fine. If it tastes too strongly of honey, maybe add a splash of vanilla and a tablespoon more or so of cocoa powder.
With maple syrup, it’s a bit more similar to sugar in sweetness level and is thinner than honey. I would start with 3/4 cup maple syrup in place of the sugar and cut back to 3/4 cup liquid. Follow the recipe, cooking it. Then, after it’s cooked, follow the same suggestions as I noted above for the honey to adjust thickness, sweetness, etc.
Would love to hear how it goes if you do try it!
Good morning, I just found this recipe as my hubby always gets a mocha latte from Starbucks when we get coffee out and about. How can I make this with less sugar? Can I can it for longer shelf life if I make a big batch? If I use espresso for my coffee base would I still use espresso for the syrup base? Thank you in advance
Hi Misty! These are great questions. My suggestion is to make the recipe as-is the first time. Then you can start bumping back the sugar a tablespoon or 2 at a time to get to the level sweetness you would like. Just note that as the ratio of sugar to cocoa powder and liquid gets smaller the syrup will also get thinner. This is not necessarily a bad thing if you are simply adding to drinks.
This recipe has not been tested for canning so I can’t advise on that.
Personally, I would still use espresso because I love a strong coffee flavor. However, if you don’t prefer it, you can make this chocolate syrup recipe instead: https://www.realthekitchenandbeyond.com/homemade-chocolate-syrup-recipe/. You can use the same process as I stated above to cut back the sugar in that recipe as well. 🙂
Enjoy!
Have not made yet but was wondering how much to use in a cup of coffee please?
You will add to taste depending how sweet you like your coffee, but I would start with about a tablespoon.
To my surprise, The best mocha sauce I have ever had,has no chocolate whatsoever. Pure rich taste of coffee,vanilla,marshmallow and three other surprised ingredients! searched and searched for this recipe and finally found it. Dates back to the year I was born (1953) and in an establishment in the town of North Adams where I lived!
Hi Barbara, that’s interesting. I’m curious why they call it mocha sauce since mocha is coffee + chocolate flavor.
Thank you a million for this recipe it actually made my day. My husband was getting ready to buy mocha syrup with a much of crazy ingredients for $22. I used Tb peppermint instead of vanilla and we are all in love with this mocha syrup. I used your advice for the thinner version, SUPERB. Now thinking of the so many other ways to use the mocha besides in coffee. Again thank you for posting this recipe.
I love this so much! Thank you for taking the time to share. Here are some other ways to use it;): ice cream, fruit, chocolate cake, peppermint chocolate milk, stirred into peanut butter as a dessert spread or dip.
Thank you a million for this recipe it actually made my day. My husband was getting ready to buy mocha syrup with a much of crazy ingredients for $22. I used Tb peppermint instead of vanilla and we are all in love with this mocha syrup. I used your advice for the thinner version, SURPERB. Now thinking of the so many other ways to use the mocha besides in coffee. Again thank you for posting this recipe.
You are so welcome! I am glad you love it. And also, you can have peppermint mochas year-round now. 🙂
Brewed coffee over instant espresso all day! How long do you keep this for/do you have a shelf life? Thinking of gifting some! 🎄
Oh my goodness! I am so sorry I missed this comment. General rule of thumb is that it should be good in the refrigerator up to 3 months.
Oh my gosh this is exactly what I’ve been looking for. Superb!!!
So glad you found what you were looking for. This is one of my favorites.
I’m thinking of making these for gifts for Christmas. Does one batch make about 2 cups? I’m wondering what size/kind of jars to get.
Thank you!
Hi Niki, that is correct. It makes approximately 2 cups. I think half pints would be a lovely size to give as a gift. Enjoy!
How long does it last?
It should keep in the refrigerator a couple weeks. However, it may keep longer than that. Simply check for mold before using as it is fine to use until that point.
Perfect! It was super easy and turned out so yummy! I used stevia instead and that worked very well. I did like you did and used decaf coffee so I can still use just before bedtime. It has almost a fudge sauce taste and texture. Mmmmm! ? Can’t wait to try with ice cream!
I’m glad you liked it and now I need to go make some! It’s good to hear it worked with stevia also. Thank you for taking the time to let me know.