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Peanut Brittle · Classic

Classic Buttery Peanut Brittle

Sugar syrup cooked to the hard-crack stage, then stirred with butter, peanuts and a little baking soda for a light, snappy brittle. A candy thermometer keeps it simple.

New, no ratings yet0 reviewsby Simmerbee Kitchen

Prep
10 min
Cook
20 min
Total
1 hr 15 min
Serves
about 1 lb
Level
Medium
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Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter, for the pan and spatula
    Swaps for unsalted butter

    Instead of butter

    • Salted butter: The same amount, with about ¼ tsp less salt per stick (½ cup) elsewhere in the recipe. Nothing noticeable once you cut the salt.
    • Plant-based butter sticks: The same amount. The closest swap.
    • Refined coconut oil: The same amount: solid when the butter is soft or cold, melted when it is melted. It is all fat, so bakes are a bit more tender and rich, with no butter flavor.

    All 4 swaps for butter

    Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.

  • 1 tsp baking soda
    Swaps for baking soda

    Instead of baking soda

    • Baking powder: 3 tsp baking powder for each 1 tsp baking soda. It rises, but bakes come out paler and puffier, cookies spread less, and the extra powder can taste a little bitter.

    More for baking soda

  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
    Swaps for unsalted butter

    Instead of butter

    • Salted butter: The same amount, with about ¼ tsp less salt per stick (½ cup) elsewhere in the recipe. Nothing noticeable once you cut the salt.
    • Plant-based butter sticks: The same amount. The closest swap.
    • Refined coconut oil: The same amount: solid when the butter is soft or cold, melted when it is melted. It is all fat, so bakes are a bit more tender and rich, with no butter flavor.

    All 4 swaps for butter

    Cooking for an allergy? Check every label.

  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
    Swaps for vanilla extract

    Instead of vanilla extract

    • Vanilla bean paste: The same amount. Stronger, with visible vanilla seeds.
    • Vanilla bean: The seeds of 1 bean for each 1 tbsp extract. A deeper, floral flavor and visible seeds.
    • Alcohol-free vanilla: The same amount. Made with glycerin; a slightly milder taste.

    All 5 swaps for vanilla extract

  • 1 ½ cups roasted salted peanuts
  • 1 cup granulated sugar ≈ 200 g
    Swaps for granulated sugar

    Instead of sugar

    • Less sugar: Up to ¼ less in cookies, muffins and quick breads. Less browning and spread, a drier, more cake-like texture, and bakes go stale sooner.
    • Brown sugar: The same amount, packed. Moister and chewier, with a caramel flavor and darker color.
    • Coconut sugar: The same amount. Darker and caramel-like, a little less sweet; cookies spread slightly less.

    All 4 swaps for sugar

  • ½ cup light corn syrup ≈ 171 g
    Swaps for light corn syrup

    Instead of corn syrup

    • Golden syrup: The same amount. A buttery, toasty flavor and a little thicker; works the same in candy.
    • Honey: The same amount. Stronger flavor and browns faster; candy may set softer or turn grainy.
    • Brown rice syrup: The same amount. Less sweet with a toasty note; good binder in bars.

    More for corn syrup

  • ¼ cup water

Missing something? Tap Swaps next to an ingredient, or see all substitutions.

Steps

  1. Lay a silicone baking mat on a sheet pan, or butter the pan well. Butter an offset spatula too, and set both next to the stove.
  2. Measure the baking soda into a small cup. Put the butter pieces, vanilla and peanuts in a separate bowl. Everything has to go in quickly at the end.
  3. In a heavy saucepan, stir the sugar, corn syrup and water over medium heat until the sugar dissolves and the syrup
    boils (how to boil) Boil Heat liquid until big bubbles rise and break all over the surface. 1. Use a pot big enough that the water fills it no more than three quarters.2. Cover it to boil faster, over high heat.3. Salt pasta or vegetable water once it boils.4. Add the food, stir, and bring it back to a boil before you start timing. Done when: A rolling boil keeps bubbling hard even when you stir. Safety: Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove, and drain pasta into a colander in the sink, pouring away from you. Steam burns fast: lift lids and foil away from your face, tipping the far edge up first.How to boil water for pasta and vegetables: mistakes to avoid
    .
  4. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan with the tip in the syrup but not touching the bottom.
  5. Cook without stirring until the syrup reaches 300°F (hard-crack stage) and turns light amber. Watch closely after 280°F, since it climbs fast.
    300°F⏱ Cook to 300°F: 12 min
  6. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla and peanuts with a wooden spoon. It will sputter, so keep your hands back.
  7. Stir in the baking soda. The candy will foam up and turn lighter in color.
  8. Immediately pour the brittle onto the prepared pan and spread it thin with the buttered spatula. Never touch the hot candy with your fingers.
  9. Let the brittle cool completely until hard.
    ⏱ Cool: 45 min
  10. Break the brittle into pieces with your hands.

Tap an underlined word for how to do it, or see all techniques.

Tips

  • Hot sugar causes serious burns. Keep kids away from the stove and a bowl of cold water nearby in case of a splash.
  • Make brittle on a dry day. Humidity makes it sticky.
  • Soak the saucepan in hot water to dissolve the hardened sugar for easy cleanup.

Storage

Airtight at room temperature up to 2 weeks.

How long leftovers keep, and freezing and reheating: leftovers and storage.

Quick answers

What can I swap?

Answered from this recipe's own storage, make-ahead and swap notes.

Estimated nutrition per serving

Calories
240
Protein
5 g
Carbohydrates
30 g
Fiber
2 g
Sugars
28 g
Fat
12 g
Saturated fat
3.5 g
Sodium
170 mg

Whole recipe, 12 servings: about 2,870 calories.

Estimate from USDA FoodData Central; not medical or dietary advice. Based on 8 of 8 ingredients.

How we estimate

We add up USDA FoodData Central values for each measured ingredient as written and divide by the recipe's 12 servings, so changing the servings or units here doesn't change a serving. Brands, swaps, trimming and cooking all change the real numbers.

Estimated cost

About $0.30 a serving

About $3.40 for the recipe as written (12 servings).

Estimate; prices vary by store and region. U.S. average prices for September 2026 from BLS Average Price Data and USDA ERS Purchase to Plate prices updated with the BLS Consumer Price Index. Priced: 6 of 8 ingredients, 99% by weight.

How we estimate

Each measured ingredient is weighed as in the nutrition estimate and priced at the U.S. average: BLS's average price where BLS publishes one, else USDA ERS's Purchase to Plate price for 2017-18 raised to September 2026 with the CPI for that food group. Whole packages, store brands, sales and regions all change the real cost: treat it as a ballpark.

  • roasted salted peanuts $1.60 ERS
  • light corn syrup $0.95 ERS
  • granulated sugar $0.45 BLS
  • unsalted butter $0.25 BLS
  • unsalted butter $0.10 BLS

Free: water (tap water).

Not priced (no official average price we can match, so not in the total): baking soda, vanilla extract.

More dishes for less: cheap eats.

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Cleanup score 2/5 (more cleanup): 4 things to wash, saucepan, sheet pan, bowl 1, bowl 2.

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