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These candied cashews are addictive! They make the perfect homemade gift or topping for a salad. The best part? Only 3 ingredients are needed and they’re ready in 15 minutes.

candied cashews in a bowl

These caramelized cashews are really tasty. Dangerously so. I only made a fairly small quantity, but the recipe easy doubles, triples, etc. if you need to feed a crowd.

The recipe is written for 1 cup of nuts. I used a pretty small saucepan to make these. Just use a skillet or larger pan if you are doubling/tripling/etc. the recipe.

loose candied cashews on counter

This recipe is pretty foolproof as long as you watch the nuts closely. At first it won’t seem like they’re really doing anything, but it’s important to keep stirring them or else you will end up with a mess that is NOT fun to clean. Don’t ask me how I know this. 😉

Candied nuts always scream Christmas to me, but really they’d work for any occasion where you want candied nuts haha.

bowl of candied cashews with a few loose cashews beside it

How to make candied cashews

Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat, then add the sugar and nuts.

You will see the sugar begin to melt after a few minutes. It then melts at a faster rate, and you need to keep stirring to ensure they won’t burn.

Once the sugar is totally melted and the nuts are coated, they’re done! This process takes about 10-15 minutes total. Possibly a little longer if you’re doing more nuts.

close-up of loose candied cashews on a flat surface

I used cashews for this recipe, but it would also work with most nuts. Go nuts! (See what I did there?).

You may also like my maple roasted pecan recipe.

Hope you love these candied cashews!

These candied cashews are addictive! They make the perfect homemade gift or topping for a salad. The best part? Only 3 ingredients are needed and they're ready in 15 minutes.
4.19 from 16 votes

Easy Candied Cashews

These candied cashews are addictive! They make the perfect homemade gift or topping for a salad. The best part? Only 3 ingredients are needed and they're ready in 15 minutes.
Prep: 1 minute
Cook: 14 minutes
Total: 15 minutes
Servings: 1 cup

Ingredients 

  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 cup unsalted cashews
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • Pinch of salt (optional)

Instructions 

  • Add the butter to a small saucepan over medium heat and let it melt.
  • Add the sugar and cashews.
  • Stir the mixture frequently (it burns easily so watch it closely) until the sugar melts and caramelizes over the nuts. Once all the sugar has melted and coated the nuts, they're done.
  • Spread them onto a plate or piece of parchment paper so they don't all stick together. Some will clump together, which is fine.
  • Allow them to cool then store them in a sealed container. 

Notes

  • Recipe easily doubles, triples, etc. 

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Hi! Iโ€™m Natasha.

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4.19 from 16 votes (1 rating without comment)

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68 Comments

  1. Rosalie says:

    5 stars
    I made them last night they came out delicious. Thank you for the recipe very easy ๐Ÿ˜˜Have a Happy & Healthy Christmas
    โ›„๏ธโ„๏ธ I’m making more today!

    1. Natasha says:

      You are very welcome, Rosalie!! ๐Ÿ˜€ Thanks for your review and merry Christmas!

  2. Cynthia Purnell says:

    5 stars
    I love this recipe! It was a delicious snack for one๐Ÿ˜ƒ This was an easy make and I’ll do it again to share over the holidays.

    1. Natasha says:

      Thank you, Cynthia!

  3. cliff allen says:

    3 stars
    Too much sugar IMO. I halved the sugar and they were much better. Also, if you wait until all the sugar melts, they’re more like toffee nuts. You want to catch it when the sugar is melted barely enough to coat the nuts, but still a bit granular.

  4. james brandon says:

    2 stars
    Way too much caramel for the amount of nuts

  5. Margaret buckman says:

    What is 1.5 Cup?

    1. Natasha says:

      I am not sure what you’re asking?

      1. Renita Vitalone says:

        One and one half cups.

  6. Coriya says:

    5 stars
    Stumbled upon this and after reading through most if not all of the comments I did it! This recipe is a lesson in patience so for those that said the sugar didn’t caramelize I promise it was simply that you did not wait long enough. I didn’t rush, I didn’t turn up the heat I just kept checking and stirring and soon I started to see that light brown liquid gold peak through. I did a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg and baby! Delicious!

    1. Natasha says:

      Yes! I am so glad you enjoyed it and it worked out for you. ๐Ÿ˜€ Appreciate you taking the time to write me a review!

  7. Laurence Johnson says:

    5 stars
    Honestly incredible, and so easy! I make more of a brittle than candied nuts. I’d recommend this recipe with pecans, I’ve tried several nuts and it’s by far the best!

    1. Natasha says:

      I’m thrilled to hear that, Laurence! Thanks for your review! ๐Ÿ˜€

  8. Berta says:

    Darn, came out more like cashew brittle. Any thoughts?

    1. Natasha says:

      So you mean it all clumped together? I try to separate them really quickly since they will clump together as the sugar hardens. It’s normal for a bit of clumping, though.

  9. F says:

    Works great! I plan to use this for salads. Thanks for sharing!

    1. Natasha says:

      Enjoy!! ๐Ÿ™‚

  10. Susan says:

    5 stars
    These turned out great! I sprinkled cinnamon on top of half of them and they were even better. Thank you!

    1. Natasha says:

      Fantastic!! ๐Ÿ™‚