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Cooking boiled peanuts on the stove top is simple and makes a delicious southern snack. Explore this unique twist by boiling peanuts for a few hours with salt to make a soft, not crunchy, treat. These peanuts might just become your new favorite snack!
Enjoy this great snack food at the big football game party, barbecues, picnics, and tailgate parties.
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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.
What are boiled peanuts?
These are a classic Southern snack made simply by boiling raw unshelled peanuts in salted water for a long time until they have become soft and tender. Their delicious salty brine flavor can’t be beat.
It’s a fun way to enjoy peanuts. Want another way to enjoy a fun peanut snack? Try my Fried Peanuts with garlic & basil.
You’ll eat this peanut treat kind of like we eat edamame now. The texture will remind you of cooked beans as well.
Boiled peanuts are usually served as a snack, but they also make a great substitute for dried cooked beans at any meal. And can be used as a side dish or taco filling. They can be eaten hot, at room temperature, or cold from the fridge.
For more great recipes using nuts, check out my collection of Great Pistachio Recipes.
What’s so special about boiled peanuts?
Besides the fun flavor and the way you’ll eat them (shelling them as you eat), these peanuts are an excellent source of energy that’s nutritious and packed with antioxidants.
The process of boiling peanuts actually draws antioxidants from their shells. Therefore, boiled peanuts can have four times the antioxidants of raw or roasted peanuts.
Can I use roasted peanuts?
No, you can’t use roasted peanut for this recipe. Roasted peanuts lack the moisture content necessary for achieving the right soft texture. You’ll want to use raw or green peanuts.
Raw peanuts have been air-dried to reduce their moisture content, making them shelf-stable and available year-round. These are probably what you’ll be able to find easily.
Green peanuts are raw peanuts that have been freshly dug from the field, and no moisture has been removed. They’re very perishable, and are only available during harvest season, end of July to late November.
Green peanuts and green almonds are kind of the same idea. Check out my post on Green Almonds too.
Traditionally boiled peanuts were made only with green peanuts. Green peanuts cook for a much shorter time than air-dried peanuts.
How to make
The full printable recipe ingredients and instructions are available in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. You can find important tips and tricks in the post.
prep
Sort through the peanuts and remove any empty shells, pieces, or bad peanuts. Rinse the peanuts and soak for 30 minutes in cold water. Soaking the peanuts helps speed up the cooking process, and allows any debris to be washed off before you go through the cooking process.
Drain the peanuts and add them to a 5-quart or larger pot.
If you use a smaller pot, you’ll want to reduce the amount of peanuts you boil at once. It’s very easy to burn boiled peanuts if you get too many crowded in a pot.
Sprinkle the salt over the top of the peanuts and pour water over the peanuts until the liquid is about an inch over the top of the peanuts.
The amount of salt is a preference that will change from person to person. Starting with ¼ cup is ideal. Halfway through cooking, taste a peanut, and if you would like more salt, you can add more then.
Air-dried peanuts will float to the top of the water, but they do need to be submerged. Use a plate or a pot lid to weigh them down. When they start to sink on their own (about halfway through the cooking time), you can take the plate out and replace it with a lid that fits the pot.
get cooking
Place the pot over medium-high heat and let the peanuts boil for 3 ½ hours or until the desired softness has been reached.
It’s important that you don’t turn up the stove too high or you will risk burning the peanuts before they’re done.
Tenderness level of the peanuts varies from person to person. Check the peanuts at about 2 hours to ensure you get the softness level you prefer.
You’ll probably need to add more water intermittently throughout the boiling process, to ensure the water does not get too low. If the water gets too low, the peanuts could burn.
Once the peanuts have achieved their desired degree of doneness, remove the pot from the heat and let the peanuts cool in the cooking liquid.
Once cooled, drain the peanuts and serve. Serve them hot, at room temperature, or cold from the fridge.
To eat, crack open the shells, eat the nuts inside, and discard the shells.
Storage
Store them in an airtight container, in the fridge, for up to a week. Be sure to drain all excess water from the boiled peanuts before storing.
Do not freeze.
Troubleshooting:
Why are the peanuts slimy or mushy?
Keep in mind that the texture of these peanuts is generally soft, not like crunchy like roasted.
Boiled peanuts become slimy or mushy if they are overcooked or if they sit in the brine for too long.
Make sure to cook the peanuts just until tender and to drain them shortly after cooling to avoid them getting soggy.
How to eat
Here’s how to eat these messy little bites of salty goodness.
Using both hands, pinch the seam of the shell between your thumb and finger. The top shell will pop open, pry it off. You can slurp the peanuts and brine out of the bottom shell like you would an oyster. This is the traditional way to eat them.
You can also use your fingers to pull out the peanuts and eat them.
The shell will be soft and tender, but I don’t recommend eating it, as it contains no nutritional value and may upset your digestive system. Just toss the shells after eating the peanuts.
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Recipe
Boiled Peanuts
Equipment
- 5-Quart Pot
Ingredients
- 2 pounds raw peanuts in the shell
- ¼ cup salt
- Water
Instructions
- Sort through the peanuts and remove any empty shells, pieces, or bad peanuts. Rinse the peanuts and soak for 30 minutes in cold water.
- Drain the peanuts and add them to a 5-quart or larger pot.
- Sprinkle the salt over the top of the peanuts and pour water over the peanuts until the liquid is about an inch over the top of the peanuts.
- Dry peanuts will float to the top of the water, but they need to be fully submerged. Use a plate or a small lid to weigh them down. When they start to sink on their own (about halfway through the cooking time), you can replace it with a lid that fits the pot.
- Set to medium-high heat and let the peanuts boil for 3 ½ hours or until the desired softness has been reached. Check the peanuts at about 2 hours to see how soft they are, and ensure you get the softness level you prefer.
- You will need to add more water intermittently throughout the boiling process, to ensure the water does not get too low. If the water gets too low, the peanuts could burn.
- Once the peanuts have achieved their desired degree of doneness, remove the pot from the heat and let the peanuts cool in the cooking liquid.
- Once cooled, drain the peanuts and serve. Peanuts can be served hot, room temperature, or cold from the fridge.
- To eat, crack open the shells, eat the nuts inside, and discard the shells.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
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