Help Needed For Peanut Brittle and Hokey Pokey Problems

Our answer

The Brittle and Hokey Pokey recipes are similar and both rely on boiling sugar and syrup to a high enough temperature to remove almost all of the water. This what chefs refer to as the "hard crack" stage, resulting in a firm candy with a good "snap". Once the sugar and syrup mixture is boiling you need to watch the saucepan very carefully. All pans are different and the cooking time for the candy will be affected by the thickness of the base of the pan and also its diameter, a larger pan will take less time to cook. Also do not stir the pan when the mixture is boiling, as this can cause the sugar to crystallize and give a grainy texture.

The boiling sugar should turn a deep amber colour when it reaches the correct stage. Too pale and the candy will not set, too dark and the sugar will have burnt. If you feel the outside edge of the boiling sugar is turning too dark too quickly then you can swirl the pan gently once or twice to even out the boiling sugar mixture but do protect your hands from splashes and again, do not stir. Watch for a wisp of of smoke as this is also a signal that your sugar has reached the correct stage. If you are still unsure about how far to cook the sugar then use a sugar/candy thermometer - the hard crack stage is 150-154c/300-310F (and most thermometers have the various stages marked on them). This should give consistent results and is helpful if you want to make slightly larger quantities. Also leave the candy to set in a cool, dry place and store in an airtight container. If it is humid the moisture in the air will dissolve some of the sugar and the candy will turn soft.