Mexican Spicy Nuts: Quick & Easy Spiced Mixed Nuts
Take a protein-packed snack, like nuts, add some Mexican-flavored spices and roast them for a few minutes to give them a nice kick. These are the best tasting Mexican Spicy Nuts made in minutes with readily available pantry items.
If you’re looking for camping snacks with amazing flavor and aroma, you’ve just found one!
Non-Perishable Ingredients
I love making non refrigerated meals when I’m short on cold storage space on longer camp trips. So, when I received an invitation to participate in a challenge, I said YES!
I was so excited to submit 5 different meal ideas as part of an emergency preparedness campaign to show people how to eat from their pantry using non-perishable foods during emergency situations.
Emergency Preparedness Tip: These Spicy Mexican Nuts pair well with a frosted mug and your favorite cold beer, but, don’t forget to have plenty of water too. The recommended amount for emergency preparedness is 1 gallon/person/day. Make sure you have water for your furry family members too!
Shelf-stable ingredients are great when you need boondocking recipes that don’t dirty lots of dishes.
Cooking Methods & Equipment
This tasty snack is one of our favorite campfire meals in foil. Cooking in foil packets is a great way to do minimal cleanup.
As one of our easy campfire recipes, you’ll need to get your fire going in order to cook over coals generating a medium heat.
If you’d rather use charcoal briquettes or a propane grill, prepare these nuts as one of our camping grill recipes.
You can also just put the nut mixture on a baking sheet and cook them in a conventional or RV oven at 350 F degrees.
Hand Test For Cooking Temperatures
You don’t need a thermometer to determine the temperature of your heat source for cooking. Here are steps for the “hand test”.
- Hold the palm of your hand about 5 inches above the heat source (campfire coals, charcoal briquettes, propane grill etc.) you’re using for cooking. (Make sure nothing is flammable, like clothing or jewelry.)
- Pull your hand away from the heat before it hurts and note how many seconds have passed. Example: 6-7 seconds = medium heat.
| Heat Level | Temperature Range | Time |
| High Heat | 450-550°F (230-290C) | 2-4 seconds |
| Medium-High | 375-450°F (190-230C) | 5 seconds |
| Medium Heat | 350-375°F (175-190C) | 6-7 seconds |
| Low-Medium | 325-350°F (160-175C) | 8 seconds |
| Low Heat | 250-325°F (120-160C) | 9-10 seconds |
Recipe Steps
Step 1. Prepare your ingredients, heat source and equipment as directed.
Step 2. Combine ingredients into foil pouch. Place a piece of heavy duty foil (or double layer of regular foil) on a flat surface. Pile the mixed nuts, chipotle chili powder, cumin, pepper, honey and olive oil in the center of the foil. Using your hands, mix the ingredients together, spread into single layer then fold into a packet.
Step 3. Cook the nuts. Place the packet over your campfire, on your grill or in your oven. Turn the packet frequently until the nuts are toasted, about 10 minutes.
Step 4. Cool slightly and serve warm. Remove the packet from the heat, let it cool slightly then give them a quick stir before serving warm.
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Substitutions
I call for salted mixed nuts here so you can use any combination of nuts you prefer. We eat a lot of nuts and this is one of my regular purchases when I shop for our Costco camping food.
I like their extra fancy nut mix that contains cashews, almonds, pecans, Brazil nuts and macadamia nuts.
Fancy nuts can be pricy, to save a little cash on your grocery bill just make Mexican spicy peanuts by using 2 cups of salted peanuts in place of the mixed nuts.
If you don’t have honey you can substitute 2 teaspoons of maple syrup or 1 tbsp white sugar but you won’t get that nice stickiness you get when using honey.
Pairings
If I have a bigger group, I like serving several Mexican appetizers along with these nuts.
My Sweet Onion Salsa Recipe is so delicious. You’ll see my brother-in-law share his secret ingredient. Spoiler alert: he uses lemon juice instead of fresh lime juice for the acid in his dish.
These Camping Dutch Oven Nachos are loaded but meatless. They are a great “heavy appetizer” that can almost be an entire meal. This is one of my favorite vegetarian camping recipes.
Meal Planning
Use my camping menu planner to stay organized when planning meals for your next trip. It’s FREE and you’ll get it delivered instantly to your inbox!
Leftovers
I like making a large bowl of these nuts so I have leftovers. They make a great snack on day hikes rather than just ordinary nuts. Just keep them in an airtight container and toss them in your backpack. They’re also perfect for traveling and a great addition to road trip camping meals.
Similar Recipes
Nuts are great options when preparing gluten free camping food. This Rosemary Spiced Nuts Recipe uses butter and brown sugar to add a deep rich flavor while a bit of fresh rosemary provides a zest of freshness. Warm and spicy nuts are wonderful winter camping recipes.
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Recipe
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Mexican Spicy Nuts Camping Recipe
Equipment
- Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil (if cooking over campfire or on grill)
- Baking sheet lined with parchment paper (to bake in oven)
Ingredients
- 2 cups salted mixed nuts (see * Note)
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Lay one sheet of heavy duty foil (or double layer of regular foil) on a flat surface.
- Toss all ingredients together in center of foil then spread evenly into a single layer.
- Seal foil pouch by bringing short ends together folding twice; then fold in the remaining sides making a packet.
- Place on grill or campfire with medium heat turning often until toasted, approximately 10 minutes. If you don’t have a thermometer, use the “hand test”: hold the palm of your hand about 5 inches above the heat source, pull it away before it hurts, 5-6 seconds = medium heat.
- Remove from heat, let cool slightly and give them a quick stir before serving warm.
Sounds like a great salty snack, If I could just make popcorn at the campsite I’d be set.
You are in luck! I will be doing popcorn several ways in upcoming posts! Stay tuned!