Name: Candied Cashews with Black Pepper
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 1 cup whole cashews; 1/2 cup castor sugar; 2 tbsp water; 1 tbsp ghee or clarified butter; 1/4 tsp salt (or use rock salt or sendha namak during vrat/fast); 1/2 tsp black pepper powder; Additional water (if required)

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Follow this recipe and make crunchy candied cashews in under 15 minutes. These sugar-coated nuts are the perfect snack for any occasion. You can serve them at any party/gathering or enjoy them as a mid-day/evening snack.

It is a very simple recipe and requires only a few ingredients. The key ingredients are sugar and cashews. Along with that, a few other ingredients are also used. Like, ghee or clarified butter which gives a nice aroma to the nuts and black pepper makes them slightly spicy. A pinch of salt is added to enhance all the flavours.

This recipe is also great for Navratri vrat or fasting. And all the ingredients used in this recipe are allowed in vrat/fast. It takes no time to prepare and tastes delicious. You can make them before the Navratri festival starts and store them in an airtight container. Enjoy them throughout those 9 days.

Watch how to make Candied Cashews:

Prep Time: 5 min | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 15 min

Serves: 2 people

Ingredients:

1 cup whole cashews
1/2 cup castor sugar
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp ghee or clarified butter
1/4 tsp salt (or use rock salt or sendha namak during vrat/fast)
1/2 tsp black pepper powder
Additional water, if required

Cooking Directions:

Line a tray with parchment or baking paper and keep it aside.

To dry roast the cashews:

Heat a pan over low flame/temperature. Add the cashews and roast them for a few minutes until fragrant. Keep tossing or stirring frequently, to prevent them from burning.

Turn the heat off and transfer them to a bowl. Allow them to cool down.

To make the sugar syrup:

Clean the pan with tissue paper and again heat it over a low flame.

Add castor sugar and pour two tablespoons of water into the pan. Give the pan a swirl but don’t stir it. Allow the sugar to melt completely.

Once it melts completely, give it a stir and let it bubble for a few minutes.

Once the colour of the syrup turns slightly golden. Add melted ghee, salt and black pepper powder.

Note: If the syrup looks a little dry around the edges of the pan, then add a few tablespoons of water and give it a good mix. Here I have added 2 tablespoons of water. Boil it for 1-2 minutes.

Continuously stir the syrup. And once it becomes thick, turn the heat off and add the roasted cashews. Mix well so that all the cashews get coated with the syrup.

Immediately with the help of a spoon, transfer the cashews individually to the tray lined with parchment/baking paper. If you’ll pour all the cashews with the remaining sugar syrup on the tray then it will become very difficult to separate them later on. And keep in mind the sugar hardens really fast.

So you have to be very quick. Transfer them one by one to the tray. If some of them stick to one another, you can separate them with the help of a spoon.

Allow them to cool down completely. Once it cools down the sugar coating will harden.

Enjoy them as a mid-day snack or an evening snack with tea/coffee.

You can store them in an airtight container at room temperature. It will stay fresh and crunchy for up to a week (only if the weather is not too humid).

For more Navratri recipes, click here.