You know those candied pecans they sell from kiosks in shopping malls this time of year? The ones that beckon you from yards away with their buttery, nutty aroma? Well, I’m about to show you how to make them at home with just a few ingredients. They’re the perfect holiday snack for parties or as a little snacky snack while you’re wrapping gifts, watching a classic Christmas movie, or waiting for Christmas dinner to be ready. In other words, bookmark this candied pecans recipe because I promise you’ll be making them over and over for years to come.
What Are Candied Pecans?
This perfect little holiday snack is simply pecan halves that have a crunchy brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla-flavored coating. The nuts roast as they bake in the oven, giving them an even toastier, nutty flavor. These candied nuts are absolutely addictive and are the perfect item to bring to any holiday party, or to package up for easy homemade Christmas gifts.
Ingredients for Candied Pecans
You only need a handful of simple ingredients to make this recipe for candied pecans:
- Pecan Halves: You’ll need shelled pecan halves for this recipe. Chopped pecans or pecan pieces will be too small for this method. Make sure to check grocery store websites and circulars to find the best price for pecan halves in your area, as this is the most expensive ingredient in the recipe. We got a great deal at ALDI!
- Brown Sugar: Brown sugar gives the sugar coating on the pecans a really rich warm flavor, thanks to the molasses that gives brown sugar it’s characteristic color.
- White Sugar: White sugar is added to the brown sugar to create the crunchy coating on the nuts, helping it bake up a little crunchier than brown sugar alone.
- Cinnamon: A healthy dose of cinnamon gives the nuts a super warm and cozy flavor, perfect for the holidays
- Vanilla: Vanilla adds a warm element to the flavor profile and just pairs perfectly with the cinnamon and nuts.
- Egg: Egg white helps the sugar coat the nuts and it changes the texture of the sugar coating to be a really light, airy, and crispy texture instead of a smooth, glassy candy coating.
- Salt: A little bit of salt really goes a long way in this recipe to really make the candy coating extra flavorful. The salt balances the sugars and really makes everything pop.
How to Store Candied Pecans
Once the candied pecans are completely cooled, these candied pecans can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature for about a week, or frozen for longer storage. They’ll stay fresh in the freezer for about three months and can be thawed at room temperature.
You might also like our Small Batch Candied Walnuts (perfect for salads!) or our Candied Almonds!
Candied Pecans
Servings 16 (¼ cup each)Ingredients
- 1/3 cup brown sugar ($0.17)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar ($0.12)
- 1 tsp cinnamon ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 large egg, separated ($0.09)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract ($0.30)
- 1 lb. pecan halves ($5.60)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt to a bowl, then stir them together until evenly combined.
- Separate the egg and place the egg white in a large bowl. Lightly whisk the egg white until it is frothy, then add the vanilla extract and briefly whisk again to combine.
- Add the pecans to the egg white mixture and stir to coat. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the nuts and stir to coat again.
- Spread the coated nuts out onto a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake the nuts in the preheated 350ºF for 25 minutes, stirring once halfway through.
- Allow the nuts to cool completely before enjoying or storing for later.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
Nutrition
How to Make Candied Pecans – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Add ⅓ cup brown sugar, ⅓ cup white sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, and ½ tsp salt to a bowl and stir them together until they’re evenly combined.
Separate one large egg. Add the egg white to a large bowl and whisk it just until it gets a little frothy, then add ½ tsp vanilla extract and whisk briefly again to combine.
Add 1 lb. pecan halves to the lightly whisked egg whites and stir until the nuts are coated in the egg white. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the nuts and stir to coat again.
This is what they’ll look like when coated in egg and cinnamon-sugar.
Spread the pecans out onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake the pecans in the preheated 350ºF oven for about 25 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Allow the pecans to cool completely before enjoying or packing for storage.
Do you know if it’s possible to make this keto-friendly – that is without using sugar? We try to cut down on sugary foods as much as possible. Thanks!
We don’t really dabble in keto recipes so I’m not sure! The sugar is a pretty vital ingredient here so I don’t know how well a sugar substitute would work.
These are perfection! I used four cups of pecan halfs to estimate one pound.
Is there a vegan friendly substitute for the egg yolk?
I’ve heard people substituted aquafaba for the egg white with success, but we haven’t tried it ourselves!
These are really tasty, and easy to make! even stirring halfway through baking time was a piece of cake! I think I will try almonds next… :)
Absolute wonderful. We made them as a gift, but may keep them and make something for the gift.
Merry Christmas
Hi! Can I use whole almonds instead? I have those on hand.
You can! We also have the same recipe but with almonds if you just want to check that out! https://www.budgetbytes.com/candied-almonds/
I tried this. It’s not as good as another one I found d on tiktok. How can I send the recipe to you so you can tweak it and possibly make it better
Thanks for sharing! There are a lot of different ways to make candied pecans, but this is the simple version we thought would be a good fit for our readers needs!
Is the egg yolk not used?
Not in this recipe! Feel free to save it to add to breakfast in the morning!