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Learn how to make crunchy coated peanuts from scratch! Super crunchy and nutty, these coated peanuts make an amazing appetizer or snack. Plus, you can customize the flavors to your liking!
Do you know those insanely addicting peanuts that are coated with a crunchy shell?
Well, today, we are making our own! Introducing super crunchy peanuts infused with a smoky flavor! Warning: the addictiveness is real.
⭐️ Why You Should Try This Recipe
- It tastes better than store-bought, without the preservatives. That’s right. These coated peanuts have the same crunchy coating as the ones you can find at the store, except you know exactly what’s inside.
- It’s versatile. You can easily switch up the spices or herbs to create different flavors.
- It’s a fun experiment. The process of this recipe is quite unique and interesting, so if you like experimenting with new recipes, this one is for you!
- Jane, a reader, said: “★★★★★ This recipe is one of my favorite snack recipes. I really love how crunchy the peanuts tasted. It’s very simple to make and perfect for movie time as well. “
🥜 What Are Coated Peanuts
Coated peanuts are raw peanuts that are coated with a flour mixture and then fried until golden brown. It is usually enjoyed as a snack, or served with drinks before dinner.
🥥 Ingredient Notes
Making crunchy peanuts requires about 30 minutes and just 9 basic ingredients. Here is what you will need:
- Raw peanuts – You absolutely need to use raw peanuts with their skin on. Other types of peanuts won’t work.
- Coconut milk – Both full-fat and light coconut milk work. Don’t worry, you cannot taste it. If you don’t have coconut milk on hand, any other type of milk should work!
- Sugar – We use sugar to create a syrup that will allow the flour to coat the peanuts. It doesn’t make the peanuts overly sweet, though.
- Flour – Use all-purpose flour. I haven’t tried it with gluten-free flour yet, but I doubt it will create the same texture.
- Cornstarch – The addition of cornstarch helps make the coating a bit lighter.
- Spices – Onion, garlic powder, and salt for flavor. And finally, smoked paprika and chili for some heat.
🥣 How to Make Coated Peanuts
Here is the process of making coated peanuts:
- Prepare a light syrup. Combine the coconut milk and sugar, and heat them over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Once the sugar has dissolved, stir in half of a teaspoon of liquid smoke (optional). Set aside.
- Prepare the flour coating. Whisk the flour, cornstarch, salt, onion, and garlic powder in a small bowl.
- Coat the peanuts. Now comes the fun part, coating the peanuts! To do so, place the peanuts in a large mixing bowl. Pour in about a tablespoon of syrup while shaking the bowl to make sure the peanuts are coated evenly.
- Next, sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture over the peanuts, shaking as you add it, to coat evenly. Cover the bowl with plastic film and shake, shake, shake! This will allow the peanuts to get an even coating of flour.
- Repeat. Once the peanuts are coated with the flour, repeat with more syrup and flour, about 4-5 times. Each time you add syrup and flour, the coating will thicken around the peanuts.
Tip: It’s possible that some peanuts clump together, simply separate them and continue with the process. If it happens again, it means you are not adding enough flour and too much syrup.
Finally, it’s time to fry! Heat some frying oil over low-medium heat and fry the peanuts in two batches for 5-8 minutes or until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove the peanuts from the oil and transfer them to a plate lined with a kitchen paper towel to remove the excess oil.
For extra flavor, sprinkle smoked paprika and ground chili over the fried peanuts and stir to coat.
📔 Tips
- Use raw peanuts WITH the skin on. You want to start with raw peanuts, which will develop their nuttiness during the frying step. Raw peanuts must have their skin on for the coating to stick to them.
- Fry the peanuts over low-medium heat. Frying them over high heat would cause the coating to brown too quickly, and the peanuts would stay raw on the inside.
- Do not over-fry the peanuts. As soon as the coating is golden brown, remove it from the oil. Otherwise, it will get a bitter flavor.
- Tweak the flavors to your liking! For a sweet version, simply omit the liquid smoke, garlic, and onion powder. You can also add spices like cinnamon to the flour coating or vanilla extract to the syrup.
- Keep them in an airtight container. To keep their crunchiness, store the peanuts in an airtight container at room temperature.
💬 FAQ
Unfortunately, no, this recipe only works with frying.
I haven’t tried it yet, but I guess it would work with almonds and hazelnuts as well.
If stored in an airtight container, these peanuts will stay crunchy for up to one week.
These peanuts are so good! The crunchy coating is smoky with notes of garlic and onion. I swear you will not stop at a handful!
🌿 More Snack Recipes
Let me know in the comments if you try this recipe!
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Crunchy Coated Peanuts (Bacon Flavored!)
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup raw peanuts with skin
Syrup
- 1/4 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 tsp liquid smoke optional, for a smoky flavor
Coating
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 cup oil for frying
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/8 tsp ground chili
Instructions
- Prepare the syrup: Add the full-fat coconut milk and sugar to a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring regularly until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat, and stir in the liquid smoke. Let cool a little bit while you prepare the flour coating.
- Make the flour coating: To a medium size mixing bowl, add the flour, cornstarch, onion powder, salt, and garlic powder. Whisk until combined.
- Coat the peanuts: Add the raw peanuts to a large mixing bowl. Pour about one tablespoon of the syrup over the peanuts and shake the bowl to coat. Next, sprinkle a couple of tablespoons of the flour mixture over the peanuts and shake again to coat the peanuts evenly. (I cover the mixing bowl with a plastic film while shaking ir to prevent peanuts from jumping out of it.)
- Repeat the same process 4-5 times: add syrup and shake to coat. Then add flour and shake again. The peanuts will have a thick flour coating once you have used up all the syrup and flour.
- Fry the peanuts: Heat the oil in a deep saucepan or skillet over low-medium heat. Once hot, add half of the peanuts and fry for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown. Note: do not heat over medium-high heat, otherwise the coating will brown too quickly, and the peanuts will not cook inside.
- Remove the peanuts from the oil using a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with a kitchen paper towel to remove excess oil. Repeat with the remaining peanuts.
- Finally, sprinkle smoked paprika and chili over the fried peanuts and stir to coat. Let cool completely and enjoy!
- Crunchy peanuts will keep for up to 1 week at room temperature in an airtight container.
Notes
- Use raw peanuts WITH the skin on. You want to start with raw peanuts, which will develop their nuttiness during the frying step. Raw peanuts must have their skin on for the coating to stick to them.
- Fry the peanuts over low-medium heat. Frying them over high heat would cause the coating to brown too quickly, and the peanuts would stay raw on the inside.
- Do not over-fry the peanuts. As soon as the coating is golden brown, remove it from the oil. Otherwise, it will get a bitter flavor.
- Tweak the flavors to your liking! For a sweet version, simply omit the liquid smoke, garlic, and onion powder. You can also add spices like cinnamon to the flour coating or vanilla extract to the syrup.
- Keep them in an airtight container. To keep their crunchiness, store the peanuts in an airtight container at room temperature.
Nutrition
About the Author
Thomas Pagot is the founder, photographer, and recipe developer behind Full of Plants. He created the blog in 2016 as a personal cookbook for vegan recipes. Through years of recipe development, Thomas has successfully grown Full of Plants into a trusted resource for plant-based recipes.
Leave a Comment
Rough idea of oil temp?
This is my favorite snack. But until now I buy them. This time I’ll try to do it myself. Thank you Thomas.
You’re welcome Emy!
This recipe is one of my favorite snack recipes. I really love how crunchy the peanuts tasted. It’s very simple to make and perfect for movie time as well. 5 stars for you, Thomas!
Thanks so much for your feedback and rating Jane!
No, with roasted peanuts and without the skin, the flour coating does not stick to the peanuts
Looks good and tasty, how long the life span a month? It’s still crunchy ?
thanks
The shelf life is one week, and yes it stays crunchy.
Could I bake those ?
I haven’t tried baking it, bur I doubt you will get good results.
I’m having difficulty finding unroasted/raw peanuts. Will this also work with roasted peanuts that do not have the skins? Thank you, it sounds amazing and I would like to try it!
I’m afraid that if you use already roasted peanuts, they will burn if you fry them.
I haven’t tried this yet, but it sounds yummy. Do you know if this will work for other nuts, like pecans or are there too many ridges on them?
Thank you for all you do!
I think it will work with pecans as well!