Old Fashioned Peanut Brittle Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What does baking soda do in peanut brittle? ›

Be sure to use a candy thermometer to ensure it reaches 300 degrees F or hard crack stage. What does baking soda do to peanut brittle? Adding a little baking soda aerates the peanut brittle causing it to expand slightly for a crunchy texture that won't break your teeth when you chew it.

The main reason why peanut brittle doesn't get hard and have the crunch we expect is because the sugar was not cooked long enough. The sugar needs to be cooked to what is called the hard crack stage, 300ºF.

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir sugar and salt with melted butter to dissolve completely. Remove saucepan from heat, add peanuts, and stir to coat completely; immediately pour onto prepared pan and spread into an even layer. Refrigerate until brittle, at least 30 minutes.

Those other liquid sugars have impurities that will burn at the higher temperature of making caramel, leading to a bitter-tasting brittle.

This is because you did not cook it long enough in the microwave. If the texture of the peanut brittle is sticky, and not crunchy, this means that you need to cook the mixture longer, until it reaches 300°F.

What's important to know is that the corn syrup controls the grain of the brittle so adding too little and you have a grainy textured brittle, while adding too much will result in a stringy and sticky brittle.

If you overcook the brittle, it could be bitter or burnt. If you undercook it, the brittle won't properly set and the end result will be sticky.

It is important to coat cookie sheets with butter and put in the freezer to get them really cold before you need to pour the brittle. After you pour the candy you should put the pans in the fridge or outside if it is cold, so the brittle will set up quickly and stay fluffy.

You will want the cookie sheet to be non-stick. Use parchment paper, a silicone baking sheet or a greased cookie sheet. Spread the peanut brittle as thin as you can. Immediately add your sea salt.

Heavy 6 quart Dutch Oven pot. Mine is an old 1970's Club Aluminum. It's perfect! You need a heavy THICK pot so it won't scorch.

Should homemade peanut brittle be refrigerated? ›

Making Ahead, Storing and Freezing Peanut Brittle:

It stays fresh at room temperature for 6-8 weeks. To store: Once it's completely cooled, store peanut brittle in an airtight container at room temperature. Do not refrigerate as the moisture from the fridge will cause the brittle to soften.

Related. If you don't think a peanut brittle business can sustain itself, think again -- while it may sound like a niche product, if you make it well, you can make a living from it. Of course, making the best brittle around isn't all it takes.

Peanut brittle has one redeeming quality: peanuts. Outside of that single ingredient, peanut brittle is painfully unhealthy. It contains: sugar, corn syrup, and butter, all of which are unhealthy for your body in different ways.

If you need a wine to pair with Peanut Brittle or the best wine for Peanut Brittle, you could try a Pinot Noir to go with it. (PEE-noh NWAHR): A red wine with red berry, cherry, cinnamon and cola.

The flavor of jumbo Virginia peanuts goes perfectly with the thick, rich, sweetness of our golden brittle. Old-fashioned Peanut Brittle is a sweet treat for holidays, get togethers with friends and family, or just because.

Baking soda helps to aerate brittle — it literally makes the molten candy bubble in the pot — to create a brittle with an airy, almost honeycomblike texture that crunches easily when eaten.

To keep the brittle light and airy, do not spread or flatten the mixture.

The candy syrup is slightly acidic. When baking soda is added, it reacts with the acid and releases bubbles of carbon dioxide. This makes the syrup foam and expand so the finished candy is not so hard and dense.

Baking soda helps to neutralize the acidity in the candy, and in some cases makes it lighter. According to the book "Cookwise," by Shirley O. Corriher: Some specialty brittles on the market are very flaky and airy.