Bring the delicious movie snack home with this easy recipe for crunchy salted caramel popcorn!
Jump to:
Taste and Occasion
You can buy ready-made caramel popcorn at the supermarket. But it's like so often: your own creations are even better! And it is not complicated at all to make good caramel popcorn in a pot. I've even tested different preparation methods for you to find the best one.
Ingredients
There are many recipes for the caramel itself. The way to make the result nice and crunchy often differs, too. After all, who wants soggy popcorn? The foundation of my salted caramel popcorn recipe: butter, brown sugar, spices to taste, and some cream (the latter can be omitted if necessary). Caution: Do not immediately nibble away all of the deliciously sticky-sweet cream 😉 . In addition to the standard ingredients, you will, of course, need the popcorn corn. If you're in a hurry, you can even caramelize ready-made popcorn. By the way: My salted caramel popcorn is not, as in many other recipes, just dried in the air. It also goes into the oven to become wonderfully crunchy instead of "mushy".
Well, did you now get the desire to make the caramel popcorn yourself? Once you see what's in the store-bought alternative (lots of emulsifiers, acidity regulators, flavorings, etc), there's no question about making it yourself. By the way, the portion size in the recipe is arbitrarily chosen. Because although, of course, 4 or 6 people can eat of it, there is quite the risk that one nibbles the bag completely itself 😉.
How to make the Salted Caramel Popcorn
First of all, pour enough oil into a large saucepan to cover the bottom very thinly. Heat, add popcorn corn, and let pop over medium heat with lid closed (!). This may take 5 minutes.
As soon as the popping sounds become less, remove the pot from heat and remove the lid when you no longer hear anything. First, put about half of the popcorn in a bowl to help spread the caramel.
Now, Ppreheat the oven to 200°F/100°C. For the caramel, simmer the butter and sugar over medium heat for a few minutes until the sugar has dissolved. Stir a little more until a homogeneous mass is formed. Stir in the salt, cinnamon, and cream. Finally, add the baking soda. This will make the caramel a little frothy. Spread the caramel on the first portion of popcorn and mix well, e.g. with two wooden spoons, so that everything is thinly coated. Spread on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Do the same with the rest of the popcorn and caramel.
In the end, bake popcorn for about 40 minutes until golden and crispy; meanwhile, mix occasionally. Make sure the popcorn is crunchy but not too dark.
Top Tip
Another trick: baking soda. Sounds weird. But it results, among other things, in a better spreading of the caramel. I got this tip from some US recipe sites. For me, flavoring the popcorn with toffee caramel is also essential. A good portion of (sea) salt makes it easy! Add to that some cinnamon, maybe vanilla. How that smells!
Recipe Card
Salted Caramel Popcorn
Ingredients
- 70 grams (½ cup) popcorn corn
- 20 grams (1 ⅖ tablespoons) sunflower oil, coarse
- 100 grams (0.4 cups) butter
- 100 grams (0.5 cups) brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon (⅓ teaspoon) salt, to taste
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons cream
Instructions
- Pour enough oil into a large saucepan to cover the bottom very thinly. Heat, add popcorn corn, and let pop over medium heat with lid closed (!). This may take 5 minutes.
- As soon as the popping sounds become less, remove the pot from heat and remove the lid when you no longer hear anything. First, put about half of the popcorn in a bowl to help spread the caramel.
- Preheat the oven to 200°F/100°C. For the caramel, simmer the butter and sugar over medium heat for a few minutes until the sugar has dissolved. Stir a little more until a homogeneous mass is formed. Stir in the salt, cinnamon, and cream. Finally, add the baking soda. This will make the caramel a little frothy.
- Spread the caramel on the first portion of popcorn and mix well, e.g. with two wooden spoons, so that everything is thinly coated. Spread on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Do the same with the rest of the popcorn and caramel.
- Let popcorn bake for about 40 minutes until golden and crispy; meanwhile, mix occasionally. Make sure the popcorn is crunchy but not too dark.
Notes
- If you want it to go extra fast, there are 2 options: Either use store-bought, ready-made popcorn and coat it with the caramel, or forgo the baking. Simply spread the caramel popcorn on a baking sheet covered with baking paper and let it dry.
- However, it is less crunchy and caramelized this way.
- Cream and baking soda can be omitted if necessary.
- The popcorn tastes best freshly baked. It can be stored in an airtight container for 1-2 days after cooling.
Ingredient substitutions
Variations
Besides this recipe, I highly recommend the following treats: the millionaires shortbread, my apple caramel cupcakes, or this cheesecake. The caramel cream is also brilliant. Pure indulgence!
About Kathrin & Jan
It's like a little miracle to me every time. Seemingly simple ingredients are made into something that can brighten up your life. Butter, sugar, eggs, and flour melt into an airy biscuit, a fine tart, a juicy cake, or a crispy biscuit. Baking simply makes you happy. Welcome and enjoy our blog!
Kathrin & Jan
Comments
No Comments