Do I need a candy thermometer to make peanut brittle

A candy thermometer is essential in making peanut brittle. You don’t want your brittle to be too soft or too hard. A thermometer will remove the guessing game and get you to the perfect peanut brittle.

How long will homemade peanut brittle last?

Peanut Brittle is best stored at room temperature in an airtight container. It can last up to 6 weeks!

Why do you put baking soda in peanut brittle?

Adding baking soda adds the perfect crunch to peanut brittle because it creates tiny air pockets. I heard that peanut brittle was first invented after a woman accidentally put baking soda in instead of cream of tartar in when making taffy. A crunchy hard candy was her result!

How long does it take for peanut brittle to get hard?

You will want to use your candy thermometer and wait until the temperature reaches 300 degrees but it will most likely take about 20 minutes for peanut brittle to get hard.

Classic Peanut Brittle

Description

Everyone needs a good old fashioned Peanut Brittle recipe and this one is my go-to. This candy is perfect for the holiday season but can really be enjoyed all throughout the year.

Ingredients

Scale

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon water
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup light corn syrup
3 tablespoons butter
1 pound shelled unroasted peanuts

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Instructions

Heat oven to 300 degrees F. and then turn off (this is just to get it warm).
Butter 2 rimmed cookie sheets well and place them in warm oven.
Mix baking soda, 1 teaspoon water and vanilla together in a small bowl and set aside.
Mix sugar, 1 cup water and the corn syrup in 3 qt. saucepan.
Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until you reach 240 degrees F. on candy thermometer
Stir in butter and peanuts.
Continue cooking until you reach 300 degrees F. on candy thermometer while stirring constantly.
Immediately remove from heat and stir in baking soda mixture.
Remove cookie sheets from oven and pour half the candy mixture onto each sheet.
Quickly spread with the back of spoon to about ¼ inch thick.
Cool completely.
Break into pieces and enjoy!

Notes

Sometimes the raw peanuts are called Spanish peanuts and can found in the baking aisle by other nuts and the chocolate chips.
I have used roasted salted peanut butter for and liked it a lot, it gave it a sweet and salty taste.
Be careful about spreading the candy out once it has cooled, sometimes I'll tilt the pan a little or sometimes I just let it spread out to however thick it's going to be. If you mess with it too much it changes the texture so don't be too aggressive in your spreading and do it right away, not once it's started to cool.
After years of dealing with candy thermometers and ruining candy I bought a nice thermometer with an alarm (you can set it to beep at you at certain temperatures) and it was worth every penny. I got this digital thermometer for candy making (not an affiliate link) and we love it (great for making caramel too which takes a long time to cook). Highly recommend if you make candy.

Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 45 min
Category: dessert
Method: stove top
Cuisine: American

Keywords: peanut brittle, peanut brittle recipe, how to make peanut brittle