Candied Pecans
These 5-minute Stovetop Candied Pecans are a quick and easy way to make sweet glazed pecans for salads, snacking, food gifts, and more! It’s all made in one pan for minimal mess, and it’s overall much quicker and easier than the oven method. Plus, no candy thermometer needed!
Whether you eat these pecans on their own or add them to a variety of dishes, they’re such an easy way to add flavor and texture to so many recipes, using simple ingredients.
The typical candied pecans recipe usually calls for making them in the oven, but something about that feels a bit too fussy and long to me. I’ve been making candied pecans on the stove for as long as I can remember, and it only takes me 5 minutes to make them. It’s so easy!
I like not having to turn the oven on, especially when I only want to make a smaller batch. I try not to keep too many of these around because they’re so good, I want to eat them all in one sitting. Whenever I make them for the holiday season and set them out, they disappear within minutes.
Tips for Best Results
Use a nonstick pan – While you can get away with using any stainless steel pan, the nonstick pan helps all of the sweetness stick to the nut. It glazes easier, in my experience.
Use brown sugar or maple syrup – I love honey, but I don’t recommend using it here. Brown sugar or maple syrup will give you the best results.
Toast the pecans first – Totally optional, and sometimes it’s easier to just use raw nuts straight out of the bag. But if you have the time, toast the pecans for a few minutes (you can use the same skillet) to begin bringing out the flavor in the nuts. Most importantly, make sure to use fresh pecans that aren’t rancid or expired.
These candied pecans are really wonderful, especially for sprinkling on salads like Kale Salad or Warm Brussel Sprout Salad with Crispy Goat Cheese! They are also well-suited for food gifts during Christmas and the holidays.
I actually grew up with candied pecans, sugared pecans, and maple glazed pecans of all sorts in my house at Christmas time because my dad loved ordering them every year. Simply place the nuts in a mason jar with ribbon or in pretty holiday tins for last-minute gifts.
Step by Step Overview:
To get started, combine brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and kosher salt in a skillet, and add a splash of water so the sugar has an easier time dissolving:
Ingredient Variations and Substitutions
This is a great recipe for accommodating several different substitutions. I recommend trying the recipe once as written, then you can experiment with changes.
Spices: You can pretty much use whatever spices you’d like. I like to keep it simple with cinnamon, but you may add cloves, cardamom, allspice, or pumpkin pie spice. You may also try options like cayenne pepper, ancho chile powder, or even smoked paprika.
The Sugar: I like using brown sugar for its slight molasses tastes, but you can also use granulated white sugar or even coconut sugar. For maple syrup, follow this Maple Pecans recipe instead (it is also a quick and easy stovetop recipe). I do not recommend corn syrup.
Fat: It is not necessary to add fat here, but if you’d like it for richness, add a tablespoon of butter or coconut oil with the rest of the ingredients.
Vanilla extract: Add up to 1 teaspoon with the rest of the ingredients.
Egg whites: Egg should not be used here at all. This is only used for the oven method for helping the coating stick.
Stir it all around to combine:
Cook the sugar mixture over medium heat until it gets hot and bubbly and looks like a glaze:
Throw in pecan halves, making sure they are more or less in a single layer:
Raw or toasted both work, but I personally think toasted pecans taste better.
Can you use other nuts?
Absolutely, it does not matter what kind of nut you use. Walnuts, macadamia nuts, peanuts, almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, and really any other nut will work well here.
Cook the pecan halves for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until the liquid cooks down and glazes the nuts:
If the pecans still look sticky, keep cooking for a few more minutes. Different stoves have different heat output.
Once the liquid has cooked down and coated the pecans, spread them out on parchment paper to cool. Then break apart and enjoy your sweet snack:
If you’d like to make a big batch, use a larger skillet, and try to make sure the pecans are more or less in an even layer. You don’t want to overcrowd the pan.
Suggested Uses
Here are some of my favorite ways to enjoy this easy candied pecans recipe, in ways sweet and savory!
- Add to a Kale Salad or Brussels Sprouts with Candied Pecans and Ricotta Salata.
- Add to a cheese and charcuterie board.
- Sprinkle on Chocolate Bark.
- Chop them up and add to Butter Shortbread Cookies, The Very Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies, or this Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe.
- Sprinkle on Overnight Oats or Maple Scones.
- Make your Pecan Sticky Buns even better.
- Sprinkle on Grilled Peaches with Bourbon Brown Butter Sauce.
- Toss them into this Granola Recipe for an extra delicious snack.
- Add to ice cream like Pumpkin Chip Gingersnap Cookie Ice Cream.
- Make homemade gifts of them along with any of these 12 shipping-friendly food gift ideas for Christmas and beyond, and pack in a care package!
- Toss with Roasted Sweet Potatoes.
Or you know, you could just eat them. I do that too.
Very similar to this method is also my 5-minute Sticky Honey Bananas, which you may enjoy as well. Or try my Pecan Praline Candy. Happy cooking!
Recipe FAQ:
If the pecans turn out sticky, this means the sugar never reached a high enough temperature to have that hard crack “brittle” coating on the outside. Electric stoves tend to have less heat power and responsiveness as compared to gas stoves, so cook for a few minutes longer if you have an electric stove or a weaker gas stove. They can be salvaged, even after they’ve cooled. Just cook more, and watch and smell to ensure the pecans don’t burn.
Once completely cooled, in an airtight container at room temperature for a week. You can get away with two weeks or longer, but the flavor won’t be as good. They taste best fresh.
Yes, let them cool completely, then store in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
No, but they will last for 4 weeks in the fridge, if you do want to extend the shelf life.
Absolutely, just make sure you use a larger skillet as needed.
These candied pecans are gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan.
Tried this recipe? Leave a rating and comment below — I’d love to hear how it turned out! Or, follow me on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest!
Candied Pecans
Ingredients
For the pecans:
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 cup pecan halves
Ideas for using the pecans (optional):
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients except the pecans in a skillet and cook over medium heat for a minute or two, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbling.
- Add the pecans and cook for an additional 3 minutes, stirring to coat in the glaze.
- Remove from the heat, and spread the pecans out on parchment paper to let them cool completely.
- Break apart, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
357 Comments on “Candied Pecans”
💕Almost want to say shame on you for sharing this delicious recipe. I literally just made this to top a salad and I am in love. So easy and so yummy.. doubled the recipe and I imagine they won’t last the evening.
Great recipe. Doubled the amount of pecans though cuz there was so much glaze! Will kick up the amount of spices next time also.
Can you use pecan pieces instead of halves?
Can you substitute sea salt for regular salt in the candied pecans 5 min stove top?
Yes, please use any salt you enjoy here.
Easy to make in a pinch and they didn’t take long. I was looking for a recipe I could make stovetop because they tend to stick if not stirred constantly. I’ll make these again…with more cinnamon
This recipe is not only quick & easy, but tastes fantastic. Since it is a very simple recipe with few ingredients, I feel the ingredients you choose should be of the highest quality. Also, there is advice given in regard to the optiom to toast or roast the pecan halves before beginning this recipe. I couldn’t agree more and highly recommend taking this quick and easy extra step as it enhances the flavor a great deal with only a very small effort.
My nuts stuck to the parchment paper? Is this typical?
Is it possible it was wax paper instead of parchment paper? Some people use these terms interchangeably and very few things stick to parchment. Let me know.
Love these!
These hit the spot!
I wanted something sweet without a lot of work.
Quick, tasty!
I will be making these a bit too often!!! 😉
By the way, I did add a couple of dashes of cayenne!!!
I made these today, July 5, 2022. They are fantastic and SO easy to make!!
Love them! A quick and easy recipe. I added pumpkin pie spice to mine. I was looking for a stove recipe instead of an oven recipe and I found the perfect one. Thank-you for sharing your recipe. 🙂
This recipe works, it was so nice to find a quick and easy candied pecan recipe – Thank you so much!!! This is going in my personal recipe book for life! Nice to be able to do this ahead of time on the stove and not use the oven. They taste great!
Decided to make these since I had some leftover pecans from when I made pecan pie…this is the perfect way to use them up! So delicious and easy!
I have made these for the last 3 years for family and they have always turned out great. Today I made them the same way as always but the sugar never really cooked down like it has in the past and I do have to cook them about 4 minutes on my electric stove. If the house is cold inside would that make a difference? I ended up cooking about 6 minutes when the pecans smelled like they were burning.
That’s odd. Did you use a different pan? I don’t think anything about the house being cold would change it that much.
No it was the same pan I have always used and the only difference was the house was a brisk 62 degrees with the windows open. That was the only thing I could think of since once I got it hot enough to add the pecans it never would keep the heat and I ended up throwing out two double batches.
I really like to make them for the holidays
I am making these for Christmas presents and just read that they last about a week? Hopefully they will last longer because there is 12 more days until Christmas! Can they be frozen?
How long do they usually take to cool?