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Huasheng tang (peanut brittle)
花生糖: roasted peanuts bound in malt sugar, rolled flat and cut into crunchy slabs
Huasheng tang is a fixture on the Taiwanese New Year candy tray, set out for every visitor who comes to wish the family a happy new year. Peanuts are called 'long-life nuts' in Chinese, so the brittle carries a wish for long life and, with so many nuts in each piece, for many children and a full house. Taiwanese brittle is thinner and less sweet than many, packed with crackly roasted peanuts held together by malt sugar. Serve with oolong tea alongside dried fruit and melon seeds. Chef's tip: cut the slab while it is still warm and pliable; once cold it shatters.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
- 14 oz raw peanutsshelled
- 5 ½ oz maltose
- 4 oz sugar
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp neutral oilfor the tray and rolling pin
- 2 tbsp white sesame seeds (optional)toasted
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Method
0/8 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 325°F (275°F fan). Spread 14 oz raw peanuts on a tray and roast for 15–18 minutes, shaking once, until the nuts inside the skins are golden and crunchy when you bite one.
18 minStep 2: Cool for a few minutes, then rub the peanuts between your palms to loosen the skins and blow or pick them away. Keep the peanuts warm in the switched-off oven.
5 minStep 3: Brush a baking tray, a sheet of baking paper and a rolling pin with 1 tsp neutral oil.
1 minStep 4: Put 5 ½ oz maltose, 4 oz sugar, ¼ cup water and ¼ tsp salt in a heavy pan over a medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves, then stop stirring and boil for 6–8 minutes, until the syrup reaches 275°F, or a drop in cold water sets hard and snaps. Take great care: the syrup is far hotter than boiling water.
8 minStep 5: Take off the heat, tip in the warm peanuts and 2 tbsp white sesame seeds, if using, and stir quickly until every nut is coated.
1 minStep 6: Scrape onto the oiled tray, cover with the oiled paper and roll out with the oiled pin to an even 1 cm thick slab.
2 minStep 7: Leave for 3–4 minutes, until just firm but still warm and bendy, then cut into 3 x 4 cm pieces with a heavy oiled knife. Common mistake: waiting until it is cold to cut; it shatters into shards instead of neat slabs.
4 minStep 8: Cool completely, until hard and crisp, then store airtight with baking paper between the layers for up to 2 weeks.
15 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 275 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 27 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does huasheng tang (peanut brittle) take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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