Boiled Peanuts

Boiled peanuts are a southern roadside staple. Learn to make the deliciously savory treat at home with just three ingredients!

How to Make Boiled Peanuts

You'll find a detailed ingredient list and step-by-step instructions in the recipe below, but let's go over the basics:

How to Season Boiled Peanuts

These basic boiled peanuts are simply seasoned with salt. Of course, you can adjust the recipe to suit your taste with your favorite spices and seasonings, such as: cayenne pepper, garlic powder, crushed red pepper, Old Bay, paprika, Cajun seasoning, and so much more. 

How to Boil Peanuts

Simply boil the ingredients, adding seasonings to taste, until the desired consistency is reached. Find the full, step-by-step recipe with detailed instructions below. 

How Long to Boil Peanuts

Boil the peanuts for at least three hours. After three hours, take out a peanut and try it – if it’s not soft enough, keep boiling until the desired softness is reached. If you like melt-in-your-mouth boiled peanuts, you may prefer to boil them all day. 

How to Eat Boiled Peanuts

To eat boiled peanuts, simply crack the shell with your fingers and eat the cooked peanuts inside the shell. Don’t forget to slurp up all those savory juices! 

Though the shell will be soft and tender, it contains no nutritional value and may upset your digestive system. It’s best to discard the shells. 

Test Kitchen Tips

“If you’ve never made or had boiled peanuts, give it a try this summer,” says culinary producer Nicole McLaughlin (a.k.a. NicoleMcMom). “I promise you won’t regret it.” Here are a few expert, test kitchen-approved peanut boiling tips and tricks from Nicole: 

• Traditional boiled peanuts are made with green peanuts, according to Nicole. Since those are only available for a month or two in the late summer, you’ll likely end up using dried peanuts. If you are able to get your hands on green peanuts, you’ll cook them for a much shorter time. 
• The dry peanuts will float on top of the water, but they need to be fully submerged. Nicole uses a smaller pot 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. 
• After the peanuts have boiled for a few hours, Nicole likes to turn off the heat and allow them to soak for a few more hours (the longer the better, she says). This will result in the soft, juiciest boiled peanuts imaginable. 

Allrecipes Community Tips and Praise

“Delicious recipe,” raves Faith N. “My go-to for years. I usually let them cook a bit longer but they turn out perfect every time.”

“Great basic recipe to share a southern staple,” according to REGINAHARRIS. “You can spice it up however you want - I add Old Bay to mine. If you want to store them, you can actually just pop them into freezer bags and freeze them for quite some time.”

"The trick to this recipe is to use a LARGE pot if you're going to do five pounds of peanuts,” says FIGHTPILOTSWIFE. “You won't have any fear of running out of water if they have plenty of water to begin with. I added four beef bouillon cubes to the water to make it richer.”

Editorial contributions by Corey Williams