Why are my candied pecans so sticky?

If your candied nuts pecans turn out sticky, they may need a little more time in the oven for the sugar to get to the brittle, candy coating state.

How do you keep candied pecans from sticking together?

When making candied pecans, spread them out in a single layer on the baking sheet, and stir them every 15 minutes during the baking time, making sure to spread them back out after stirring. If you have any large chunks stuck together, break them apart after the candied pecans cool.

Can you make candied pecans without egg whites?

The egg whites are needed – there’s no way around that. They’re a binding agent and without them, you won’t get candied pecans. You’ll get toasted pecans sitting on a pile of toasted sugar. If you want roasted nuts without egg whites, try my Honey Roasted Almonds recipe .

Easy Candied Nuts Pecans | A Sweet & Salty Treat

Candied Pecans

Print Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

These easy candied nuts pecans are the perfect blend of sweet and salty with just the right crunch. Learn how to make candied pecans for the holidays or anytime!

Author: Tiffany
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Yield: 1 pound 1x
Category: Snacks
Method: Bake
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

1 egg white
½ Tbsp vanilla extract (I used homemade)
½ tsp molasses (I used black strap molasses)
1 pound pecan halves
2 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
⅔ cup sugar (I used Turbinado)

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 250F.
In a very large bowl, whisk together the egg white, vanilla extract, and molasses until it’s frothy. Add the pecans and use a spatula to toss and thoroughly coat the nuts.
In a small bowl, combine cinnamon, salt, and sugar and mix well.
Add the sugar mixture to the pecans and again, use a spatula to toss and thoroughly coat the nuts with sugar.
Place the nuts on a large baking sheet in a mostly single layer (it’s okay if some are overlapping, but you don’t want huge mounds of nuts).
Bake at 250F for 1 hour, turning and stirring the nuts every 15 minutes (use a timer so you don’t forget).
Remove the nuts and set the pan on a cooling rack to cool. When the nuts have cooled completely, store them in an airtight container with a lid. Nuts are good for at least a week on the counter.

Notes

The egg whites are needed – there’s no way around that. They’re a binding agent and without them, you won’t get candied pecans. You’ll get toasted pecans sitting on a pile of toasted sugar. They also help the candied pecans turn out crispy.
Sweet and salty candied pecans. I’ve kept the salt to a minimum in my recipe. Some versions call for up to 5 times the amount of salt that I use, and that’s certainly something to experiment with if you specifically want sweet AND salty candied pecans. I wanted classic candied pecans, so I kept the salt low.
Try other nuts. Traditionally speaking, a candied pecans recipe uses only pecans (obviously), but you can really use any nut you want. Almonds are the most affordable, but walnuts, cashews, or macadamia nuts would be good too. Or save all the remnants of nuts you serve over the holidays and make one big batch of mixed candied nuts!

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 119

Find it online: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/healthier-candied-pecans/