
Make homemade raspberry sauce (aka raspberry coulis) for your desserts or breakfast using fresh raspberries with this simple 4-ingredient recipe. When raspberries aren’t in season, you can use frozen raspberries. If you’re looking to fill a layer cake, use my thick raspberry cake filling instead.
This raspberry dessert sauce is wonderful to have on hand, because you can use it to finish so many recipes, like cheesecake, brownies, pound cake, lemon cupcakes, or chocolate mousse pie. A homemade raspberry sauce can even turn a simple bowl of vanilla ice cream into a guest-worthy dessert. And don’t forget breakfast like pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, or yogurt!
You could even try mixing it with some sparkling water, or include it in a cocktail—the possibilities for this homemade berry sauce are endless!
Here’s Why You’ll Love This Raspberry Sauce
- Fresh-tasting, a bit tangy, & not overly sweet
- Just 4 easy ingredients plus water
- You can use fresh or frozen raspberries… so convenient
- Less than 10 minutes on the stove
- Strain it or keep it thick & chunky
- Like salted caramel & lemon curd, it’s extremely versatile and can be used on many dishes
- So good on easy cheesecake pie or even ice cream cake!
Grab These Ingredients:
Raspberries are so convenient—no chopping or peeling required.
Just 4 Steps to Make This Raspberry Sauce
This raspberry sauce cooks on the stove in just under 10 minutes. It’s similar to the swirl recipe we use in these white chocolate raspberry cheesecake bars.
Strained vs. Keeping the Seeds
When strained, this sauce is on the thin side, as sauces go, and great for drizzling. This strained version is also known as a raspberry coulis. If you’d prefer a thicker sauce and don’t mind the seeds, you can skip Step 3 altogether!
Mixture is very hot right off the stove:
Strain the warm mixture with a fine mesh strainer:
Or keep it chunky:
This recipe yields about 1 cup of raspberry sauce if straining, or about 1 and 1/2 cups if not straining.
Uses for Raspberry Sauce
There are so many ways to enjoy this raspberry dessert sauce, and here are many suggestions:
Can I Use This to Fill a Cake?
No, because it is too thin. Instead, try my raspberry cake filling.

Easy Raspberry Sauce Recipe
Ingredients You’ll Need
Instructions
- Whisk the cornstarch and water together until all the cornstarch has dissolved. (I just use a fork to mix—very easy.) Combine cornstarch mixture, raspberries, granulated sugar, and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Using a silicone spatula, stir the mixture, lightly mashing the raspberries as they begin to heat.
- Bring to a boil and let it boil for 3 full minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from heat and—if desired for a richer flavor—stir in vanilla extract.
- Press the warm sauce through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds, if desired. I use the back of a spoon to press the liquid through the strainer, held over a bowl. It takes a couple minutes to really squeeze it all out.
- Feel free to serve warm over warm desserts, but it should be cooled to really thicken up. Cool the sauce completely at room temperature or in the refrigerator. The sauce will thicken slightly as it cools, but the strained version is still liquid and perfect for drizzling.
- Cover and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator.