Candied Walnuts Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you keep candied walnuts from sticking together? ›

Bake at 300 degrees F for 40-45 minutes. Make sure to toss everything with a spoon every 15 minutes. This is very important to allow even baking and prevent the nuts from sticking together.

Let the candied nuts cool for at least 20 minutes or until completely cool. You don't want to package warm nuts or the moisture will cause condensation which will soften the candy coating. STORE the nuts in an airtight container or ziploc bag for up to 2 weeks.

Pecans too sticky: If your nuts are still sticky after cooling, heat your oven to 325°F (162°C) and bake for 5 to 10 minutes to help harden the candy coating.

How to Store Candied Walnuts. Let your walnuts cool completely, then store them in an airtight container, like glass canning jar, at room temperature. As long as it's not too humid where you live (Moisture will cause the walnuts to become sticky!), they should stay crunchy for at least a week.

Walnuts contain natural compounds, including tannins, which contribute to their bitter taste. Soaking walnuts in water can help reduce the bitterness by leaching out some of these compounds. Many people find that soaked walnuts have a milder flavor and are more palatable compared to raw walnuts.

Experts agree that to reap the benefits, one should soak the walnuts for about 6-7 hours or overnight. And on an average, a healthy individual can have 3-4 soaked pieces of walnuts.

Nuts with higher fat content, like walnuts and pecans can also go rancid after a few months if stored at too warm a temperature. If you notice that your nuts have taken on a noticeably bitter, sour flavor, they may have entered this unfortunate phase.

So, if you forget or don't have the patience to wait 8 hours while the walnuts soak (I certainly don't), I suggest boiling them! This will soften them really quickly (only about 15-20 minutes, as opposed to 8+ hours of soaking) so they blend well and you end up with a silky smooth and creamy walnut milk.

If your candied pecans are sticky, it is likely because the sugar syrup coating has not completely hardened. The syrup may still be wet, or it may have started to crystalize. If the syrup is still wet, you can try putting the nuts in the oven for a few minutes to help the syrup harden.

If the sugar mixture is not cooked to the proper temperature (the hard-crack stage 300-310° F {149-154° C.} or if you are working in a kitchen with high humidity, chances are your candy is retaining too much moisture.

Do candied nuts go bad? ›

As long as it takes you to eat them! Ba-dum-dum. Okay, all bad dad jokes aside, these candied walnuts will last quite a while. All nuts do go rancid eventually, but as long as you cool them completely and then store them in an air-tight container, they should be good for about a month.

To get the spices to stick to the nuts, use egg whites, butter, coconut oil, olive oil or blanch the nuts in boiling water. Some recipes call for nuts to be fried in oil prior to seasoning, but this adds unnecessary fat – you can make them just a delicious without all the extra calories.

Walnuts go rancid when exposed to warm temperatures for long periods of time. Heat causes the fat in walnuts to change structure, which creates off odors and flavors. Fresh walnuts smell mildly nutty and taste sweet. If your walnuts smell like paint thinner, you know they're rancid.

You can tell walnuts are turning old if they are rubbery or shriveled. They have turned rancid if they have a strange odor similar to paint thinner. Throw away rancid walnuts! Store shelled or unshelled walnuts safely in an airtight container and store in a cool, dry place.

A heart-healthy snack, bulk nuts can become rancid quickly if not stored correctly. Especially when exposed to heat because of their high fat content. Once the oils in nuts go bad and they become rancid, there's no fixing them.

Storage Instructions: Candied nuts can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for several weeks. Freezing Instructions: They freeze well in an air-tight container for up to two months.

Under-cooking the pecans is the likely cause of stickiness, but the risk is low when they're oven-baked. After the sugar-coated nuts have darkened and turned very fragrant, about 20 minutes in the oven, stir the pecans and separate any pieces that have stuck together. Continue to bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Place walnuts in boiling water for five minutes to remove bitter taste. Remove from water and drain, then run cold water over the walnuts.