A thin pan causes a loss of control over how quickly the sugar heats, often resulting in burning. Meanwhile, a thick bottom holds steady and guarantees heat is distributed evenly.
Make sure the pan’s bottom is light enough in color to visually monitor the changes in the caramel's color. It also needs to be clean to keep food remnants from getting mixed in.
Any impurity in the sugar you use can cause it to burn faster, torching your caramel. Avoid any sort of brown sugar or sugars that are less granulated.
While dry caramel is a faster method, wet sugar cooking is more beginner-friendly. In the wet method, water is added to sugar as it dissolves over the heat.
Stirring caramel while cooking can cause the caramel to crystallize and might ruin the whole process. Once it crystalizes, you'll be left with a grainy texture.
It may be tempting to mix the water and sugar during the heating stage, but it’s better to gently swirl the pan to ensure an even distribution of color instead of stirring.
If you notice crystals starting to form in your pan, use a wet pastry brush and run it along the sides of your pan to sweep any sugar into the mixture.
Another trick is to cover the caramel for a little bit while it's heating. The moisture on the bottom of the lid will find its way back into the caramel, giving it some liquid.
One final way to prevent crystallization is by adding some form of acid, such as cream of tartar or a squeeze of lemon, to the sugar and water before heating the mixture.