How to Make Chocolate Covered Pecans Recipe

Try our Chocolate Covered Pecans recipe: easy & delicious! We guide you through coating pecans in chocolate for a decadent treat or gift for friends.

The 18th century saw confectioners discover the long-standing affinity between chocolate and nuts. The combination of chocolate and pecans became popular all over Europe and America due to their complementary flavors and textures.

Pecans make excellent candidates for dipping in chocolate and the natural buttery flavors are enhanced when they are gently roasted. This perfectly balances the richness of the chocolate. A barrier separating the nut and the chocolate is created by dipping the pecans in a hard candy shell. This prevents the nut’s oil from transferring into the chocolate, where it could cause discoloration.

You can apply a little melted butter to the pecans when you choose to toast them before dipping. This will bring out the flavor of the butter naturally, making the finished nuts even more decadent.

Chocolate Covered Pecans Recipe

Equipment

• small pan to heat the coating syrup
• pastry brush
• sugar thermometer or digital probe
• paper towels
• measuring jug
• scales
• spoon for stirring syrup
• fork for dipping or tweezers
• bowl for melting chocolate
• spoon for stirring chocolate
• flat baking tray
• baking parchment to cover the tray
• fork for dipping

Ingredients (including quantities)

Toasting the pecans

• 1 tsp salt flakes
• a little melted butter for brushing (optional)
• 300g (3 cups) pecan halves

Syrup

• 150 ml water
• 300g sugar
• 75g corn syrup (or 35 g glucose syrup and 35 g golden syrup mixed)

Dipping nuts

• 500g (20 oz) milk or dark chocolate pieces
• 1 tbs coconut oil (optional)

Chocolate Covered Pecans Recipe: Cooking Method

Toast the Pecans

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C)
   1. Spread the pecan halves evenly on parchment on a baking sheet
   1. Add the salt flakes to the butter and melt
   1. Brush each pecan top with a little of the salted, melted butter
   1. Roast the pecans for about 6-7 minutes. Watch them carefully as they burn very easily.
   1. Towards the end of cooking, they should be giving off a delicious nutty aroma.
   1. Let them cool slightly and then dab each one with a paper towel to remove any excess butter. This will make the candy coating adhere better.

Dipping the pecans in a hard candy coating (Optional)

To make a hard coating, mix the syrup ingredients in a small saucepan, and if you can’t buy corn syrup, equal quantities of glucose syrup and golden syrup are a good substitute.

1. Without stirring, heat the syrup ingredients in a small pan until the sugar dissolves.
2. Heat until the syrup reaches the hard crack stage 300-310° F (150-155° C).
3. Wearing gloves for protection remove the pan from the heat and allow it to cool slightly.
4. Cover a baking tray with parchment.
5. Using a dipping fork coat each pecan half in the syrup. Drain each one on the edge of the pan and place them on the parchment.
6. Allow them to cool in the open air. Don’t cool them in the fridge as the moisture will make the candy-coating sticky.
7. If you’re not dipping the pecans in chocolate immediately store them in a sealable plastic box.

Dipping the pecans in chocolate

1. Choose between preparing a dark chocolate or a milk chocolate covered pecans recipe. Use a double boiler or the microwave to melt the chocolate as directed by the manufacturer.
2. Add a little coconut oil to the melted chocolate if it’s too thick. This will thin the chocolate. With this method the resulting chocolate pecans will have a softer texture and the chocolate will taste slightly of coconut.
3. Make sure you use a large enough bowl so that after the pecans are dropped into the chocolate, you can easily pick them up with a fork or tweezers.
4. Drop five or six pecan halves into the chocolate and turn them all to ensure they are well coated.
5. Using either a dipping fork or kitchen tweezers pick up each half. Gently tap the fork or tweezers on the rim of the bowl to dislodge excess chocolate.
6. Transfer the pecans to the parchment paper and allow them to set at room temperature.

Conclusion

If you decide to make the recipe in its entirety it will take extra time, but you will be rewarded with a far superior finished product. But, if you are going to be eating the pecans soon after making them then it is quite practical to leave out the candy-coating section. The oil migration from the pecan into the chocolate, which the candy coating inhibits, takes some time to occur making it unnecessary if they’re going to be eaten soon.