These easy Keto Candied Pecans are the perfect crunchy, salty-sweet snack. They take only 5 ingredients and you can make them in your slow cooker or on the stovetop. They make a great last minute gift too!
Chances are that you have all of your holiday menu planned and you don’t need any more ideas to add to the mix. But I just can’t help myself, I have to throw another great recipe your way.
Trust me, though, these Keto Candied Pecans are unbelievably easy to make. They also happen to be unbelievably tasty. Possibly even a little bit addictive. I should know, as I ate nearly the full 3 cups all by myself.
It was over a period of about 2 weeks but still! I love these crunchy, cinnamon-coated pecans so much, I just didn’t want to share. They top my list of delicious and easy keto snacks.
You will love this keto snack
If you do choose to work these into your holiday plans, be prepared. You may find, as I did, that it’s hard to share. Or if you put them out at a holiday party, you may find that one or two guests gobble them all up. They really are hard to resist.
They have everything you want in a snack. A little bit of sweet, a little bit of salt, and plenty of satisfying crunch. And you can add a little spiciness to them as well, if you like.
Best of all, you can make them in your crockpot so that they don’t take up any precious oven real estate. Alternatively, you can make them very quickly on the stovetop.
And they have only 1.3g of net carbs per serving. Now that’s my kind of snacking!
Ingredients you need
- Pecan halves: Use raw pecans, as they will become toasted during the cooking process.
- Swerve Brown: Let me be clear that only erythritol based sweeteners will work for keto candied pecans. Any amount of allulose, BochaSweet, will keep the coating from becoming hard and crunchy. I like brown sugar replacements like Swerve Brown best for this recipe.
- Butter: Use salted or unsalted, as you see fit. I like to use salted, because it goes so well with the pecans.
- Cinnamon: You can adjust the cinnamon to your liking but 1 teaspoon seems about right.
- Chipotle powder: A little spice plays off the sweet and cinnamon really well, but this is entirely optional. Chipotle adds a lovely smoky quality as well, but you can use cayenne instead.
- Salt: Kosher sea salt works well.
Step by Step Directions
Slow Cooker:
1. Place all of the ingredients in a slow cooker and cook on low for 3 hours. Stir a few times during cooking.
2. Spread the pecans out on a parchment lined baking sheet and let cool completely.
Stovetop:
1. In a large saucepan, combine the sweetener, butter, cinnamon, and chipotle over medium heat. Cook until the sweetener dissolves.
2. Stir in the pecans and continue to cook another 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
3. Spread the pecans out on a parchment lined baking sheet and let cool completely.
Expert Tips
It is really important to use the right sweetener in these keto candied pecans, as only erythritol-based sweeteners will create a crunchy, hard coating. This includes Swerve, Lakanto, and monk fruit sweeteners that contain just erythritol and monk fruit.
Feel free to double this recipe if you plan on gifting the pecans. It will take the same amount of time in a slow cooker or on the stovetop. Just make sure to use a very large pan if you are cooking them on the stove.
Store the cooled pecans in an airtight container on the counter for up to two weeks. You can also refrigerate them for up to a month or freeze them for 3 months.
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe for keto candied pecans makes 12 servings of ¼ cup each. They have 4g of carbohydrate and 2.7g of fiber. This means that each serving has only 1.3g net carbs.
If your pecans are sticky or chewy, it means you didn’t use the right sweetener. Any amount of allulose, xylitol, or BochaSweet will prevent the candy coating from hardening properly. You really need to use an erythritol sweetener for this recipe.
Pecans are an excellent choice for keto diets, as they have only 4g of carbs per serving. They also contain a variety of important nutrients, such as magnesium, Vitamin A, Vitamin E, and folates.
More recipes for pecan lovers
Are you a nut for anything with pecans? Me too! I have so many delicious recipes that include these buttery, rich nuts. Make sure you check out the best keto pecan pie, as it’s one of my most popular recipes. And Keto Pecan Pie Muffins are a delicious breakfast treat any time of year.
Readers also love the shortbread texture of my Keto Butter Pecan Cookies. And I promise that my Keto Maple Pecan Scones are better than Starbucks.
Pecans go so well with caramel too. Check out both Keto Pecan Turtles and my ultra-gooey Slow Cooker Brownies.
Keto Candied Pecans Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups pecan halves
- ½ cup brown sugar substitute
- ¼ cup butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon chipotle powder optional
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Grease a 4 to 6 quart slow cooker.
- Place all of the ingredients into the slow cooker and set to low for 3 hours. Stir a few times during cooking to coat the pecans.
- Spread the mixture out on a parchment lined baking sheet to cool. Break apart any clumps once the nuts are cool.
Cheryl Reed says
Love love love these. Taste exactly like Grandma always made at Christmas. Without the extreme amount of sugar
MayBe says
I made it stovetop. I wasn’t sure if i have the old or new swerve, I don’t know how to hehe. But i still made it. And it was sooo good. It worked so well. Better than the recipe I’ve been using. Thank you so much.
Cynthia says
Awesome goodness!
Lisa Priola says
What a great gift this would make!!
Carolyn says
Yes, it’s great for that!
Dayna belt. says
I only cookied for 2 hours and stirred every 15 minutes but still burned in crock pot… going to try again but definite cool feeling in my mouth when done. Not really pleasant … I used brown Swerve. Any suggestions?
Carolyn says
Try cutting back on the Erythritol and adding a little stevia extract? I am not sure what kind of crockpot you’re using but it does sound like you need less time in yours.
Leah says
I checked on the slow cooker two hours in and found that some of the nuts had already burned. But the ones that didn’t, were very tasty.
Carolyn says
Are you sure you had it on low?
Sally says
I made the mistake of using allulose and have a gooey sticky mess. is there anyway at this point to reheat and add the erythritol to make crunchy?
Carolyn says
Sadly, no. Maybe make clusters with them and drizzle some chocolate overtop?
Linda A. says
I made these last night and they’re really good. It really upsets me when a manufacturer changes their products. I understand that mixing sweeteners can improve the taste, but I’d rather do the mixing myself! I’m getting groceries tomorrow and I think my store still has some of the original Swerve Brown. If so, I’m going to stock up. I just wonder how this change in the product will affect other recipes that call for Swerve brown.
Carolyn says
It is a little frustrating when you are used to a certain product. I find this Purecane Brown tends to be a good sub. But to me, it tastes sweeter so I have to use a little less. https://amzn.to/3RcbArg
Linda A. says
Thanks for the suggestion although it’s rather expensive. My store didn’t have any more of the original formula brown Swerve. I should have bought it last week. I DID buy the last of the granular original formula Swerve.
Carolyn says
That bag of Purecane is quite large. Please look at the weight on it.
Margery Reynolds says
I’m so disappointed! I always use your recipes and I put the entire exact ingredients together. I was reading through the comments in search of another topic re:the pot lid. I saw that the NEW brown Swerve will not work! I just spent the time to try and sift the pecans from the combined ingredients. PLEASE DO A GLOBAL SEARCH THROUGH YOUR RECIPES THAT CALL FORTHE OLD SWERVE and correct them!
Carolyn says
I’m sorry, but you have no idea how hard it is to fix the THOUSANDS of recipes I have. It’s not so simple as doing a quick search and correcting them all. If you follow my recipes, you already know that it depends on consistency and texture. Additionally, if you already follow me this closely, you know I’ve been saying that the new Swerve changes the game.
That is why the onus is on readers to read the tips in the post. The Expert Tips state: “It is really important to use the right sweetener in these keto candied pecans, as only erythritol-based sweeteners will create a crunchy, hard coating.”
Margery Reynolds says
Do I cover the slow cooker or leave the lid off? Thanks!
Gail says
Carolyn, these sound amazing!!! I was thinking of making them to send with a gift. Would they travel well for several days by post? What would be the best way to pack them for freshness, ziplock bag, tin, glass jar or ?? Thank you.
Carolyn says
They should travel well. A tin would be perfect!
Christiana Hancox says
This sounds yummy, can’t wait to try it, although I am a little puzzled by the time difference between stove top and slow cooker. 5 minutes equates to 3 hours? Have a read that correctly?
Carolyn says
Have you ever used a slow cooker on low? It takes much longer to cook things. Soups that take 30 minutes on the stove take 6 to 8 hours in a slow cooker.
Anita says
We love these! However, with the newly reformulated Swerve Brown, I am at a standstill. I still have original Swerve (not brown) and was thinking of adding a tablespoon of molasses. Would that work or would that take the carbs up too high? My only other option is to forget the molasses and try adding maple flavoring? Thoughts?
Carolyn says
That should be fine!
Carolyn says
Oh, but I don’t think you need a full tbsp… more like 2 teaspoons.
Angela Hoseney says
Is it okay to double the batch?
Carolyn says
I honesty don’t know how it will turn out. May take longer.
Susan Page says
Doubled in crockpot and they are delicious. Was so easy! Perfect!
MARCI HILLIARD says
The taste is Amazing. at hour 2 on low my nuts were beginning to burn even with stirring them I can certainly adjust my time to work, just wondering if my crockpot is running too high or if it was just I need to do my time down.
Carolyn says
Hard to say without knowing your crockpot so keep your eye on them next time. Not sure there is any way to set it lower than low! 🙂
Eva Howard says
Love this recipe but since swerve now has allulose in it, I tried Keto Sweet that is all erythritol but wondered if there was something I could add that would give the brown sugar flavor I now miss.
Margaret says
Yes I did, I always double check of the ingredients and instructions before beginning. Thank you
Margaret says
Hi, I made this recipe exactly but my nuts turned out very dark. The only thing I could think is that perhaps my crockpot is too old. I used coconut oil to grease the inside. They taste good but not pretty like yours. Any suggestions?
Thank you
Carolyn says
What sweetener did you use? Was it the new Swerve Brown that contains allulose?
Courtney k says
I make these all the time. Thanks!
Jen says
Made these last night. Yum! So easy to do in the crockpot.