The Sichuan pepper adds such fragrant spicy floral notes to this and, along with the pleasant flush of heat from the chilli, balances the sweet and richly nutty brittle.
1 egg white
1/2 tsp salt flakes
1 tsp ground chilli flakes
1/2 tsp finely crushed Sichuan peppercorns
150g salted cashews
250g salted peanuts
1/3 tsp baking soda
30g unsalted butter, softened
265g castor sugar
120g honey
1. Preheat your oven to 180C fan-forced or 200C conventional.
2. Lightly whisk the egg white in a large bowl until foamy. Mix in the salt, chilli and Sichuan pepper. Add the cashews and peanuts and mix to thoroughly coat the nuts. Spread in a thin layer on a large tray lined with baking paper and roast for five minutes, then stir through and roast for a couple more minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
3. Crush a large handful of the nuts to a rough powder in a mortar. Mix the crushed nuts and the baking soda through the whole nuts in a large bowl. Add the softened butter and set aside.
4. Bring the sugar, honey and 100 millilitres of water to a simmer in a medium pot. Cook until it forms a caramel and reaches 145C on a candy thermometer. Tip in the nut mix, stirring through until the foaming subsides and the butter is completely incorporated. Immediately pour the mix on to a tray lined with baking paper and, working quickly, spread flat with an oiled spatula. Lay a piece of parchment on top of the brittle and press down with a second tray until as flat as possible.
5. Set aside to cool completely before breaking into pieces. Store in an airtight container.
Drink Rutherglen topaque
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