Many candied pecans recipes call for baking in the oven. Toasted candied pecans are far quicker with just a few easy steps. And you can make them any time of year without heating up the kitchen.
I’ve been making candied pecans on the stove since I learned to make them in New Orleans. Toasted candied pecans have a crackle candy coating rather than a chewy caramel or sugary praline coating. They are perfect sprinkled over ice cream or as a sweet crunchy topping for salads.
You can make these in large or small batches so easily on the stove top. It’s a great recipe when cooking for one or two. To be honest, if you keep too many of these around, you’ll never be able to keep your hands off of them. They are that good.
Toasted Candied Pecans
Candied pecans with a crunch; a hard candy coating rather than a chewy caramel or sugared praline coating. Perfect sprinkled over ice cream or as a sweet crunchy topping for salads.
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole pecans
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
- Toast pecans in a skillet, tossing with a spatula or wooden spoon, until fragrant and just toasted but not too brown or blackened. Set aside.
- In a medium or large saucepan, combine sugar, salt, cinnamon and water. Cook over medium heat for a minute or two, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is really bubbling. Check the temperature of sugar mixture with a candy thermometer. It should read 300° in order to achieve a crackle coating on the pecans. If the temperature is too low you will have chewy, sticky pecans. (See notes below.)
- Add the toasted pecans and cook for an additional 3 minutes, stirring to coat the pecans in the glaze.
- Remove from the heat, and spread the pecans out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let the pecans cool completely.
- Break apart, and enjoy.
- Try adding a dash of cayenne to the sugar mixture or combine different spices, like cardamom, nutmeg or cloves. It's a very adaptable recipe and can easily be doubled to make larger batches.
- Toasted candied pecans can be stored in an airtight jar for about one week. A quick and easy foodie gift to take to a host or give for the holidays.
Notes
Hard Crack:
The hard-crack stage is the highest temperature you are likely to see specified in a candy recipe. At these temperatures, there is almost no water left in the syrup. Syrup dropped into ice water will separate into hard, brittle threads that break when bent.
Hard-Crack Stage
300° F–310° F
/148° C–154° C
sugar concentration: 99% https://www.craftybaking.com/howto/candy-sugar-syrup-temperature-chart
300° F–310° F
/148° C–154° C
sugar concentration: 99% https://www.craftybaking.com/howto/candy-sugar-syrup-temperature-chart