Easy Homemade Caramel Corn & Kettle Corn Recipes

Popcorn two easy ways! Caramel corn & Kettle corn recipes you can make right in the comfort of your own home. Gluten-free and full of great flavor make these two recipes so good!

I have always loved popcorn. I think my love for it is genetic. My dad has consumed mass quantities of popcorn on a regular basis over his lifetime! He loves to eat air-popped, lightly salted popcorn while watching a sports game. 

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When it isn't doused in butter, popcorn can really be a healthy and satisfying snack.

When I need something sweet to snack on I love to make a batch of homemade kettle corn or homemade caramel corn. It is a sweet treat that I like to indulge in for special occasions...or anytime really. 

If you are intimidated about making homemade kettle corn or caramel corn you don't have to be any longer! My caramel corn and kettle corn recipes are super simple, quick, and DELICIOUS!  

Ingredients for Caramel:

6Tbsp unsalted butter

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3-4 Tbsp light corn syrup

1/4 tsp. Salt

1/8 tsp. Baking soda

1/8 tsp. Vanilla extract

How To Make The Best Caramel Corn:

• Preheat your oven to 315 degrees Fahrenheit. 

• Pop your popcorn either in an air popper or in a traditional popcorn popper. Make 6-8 cups of popped popcorn then pour the popped popcorn in a large roasting pan and set aside. 

• In a medium size saucepan mix the following ingredients (below) - except for the baking soda and vanilla extract over medium high heat, stirring constantly.

• Let boil for five minutes continuing to stir. Turn off heat and add the vanilla and baking soda stirring to combine. 

• Pour the caramel mixture over the popcorn in the roasting pan and stir to coat evenly. Put the roasting pan with the caramel covered popcorn into the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

• Stir the caramel corn and bake an additional five minutes. 

• After it is done baking scoop the caramel corn into a large bowl (or two) and stir occasionally to break up the chunks as it cools.

• Let the caramel corn cool for about 10 minutes and then enjoy!

Pour the cooled caramel corn into your favorite bowl and prepare to dig in! Be careful - it is very easy to eat it all in one sitting, I may or may not be speaking from experience!

Here is the printable recipe card for this amazing recipe!!

PRINTABLE CARAMEL CORN RECIPE CARD

Let's try my homemade kettle corn recipe. This recipe requires the popcorn to be made in a traditional oil popcorn machine. If you don't have one (you should get one) you can use a large pot with a lid to make the popcorn in instead. 

* My all-time favorite popcorn popper is the Whirley Popper!! Trust me when I tell you this is the best because I have tried tons of different kinds of popcorn poppers and this is by far the best. 

Homemade Kettle Corn Recipe

• Pour 2-3 tablespoons of vegetable oil in the popcorn popper or pot along with 2/3 cup of popcorn kernels. ( I prefer yellow popcorn versus white but use whatever you like best. ) 

• Next, sprinkle  2-3 tablespoons of granulated sugar (white sugar) over the un-popped kernels. 

• Over medium-high heat using a Whirley popper popcorn machine begin to pop your popcorn or if you are making it in a pot on the stove, put the lid on and turn the heat to medium-high. Shake the pot every few seconds to keep the kernels moving.

• Once the popping stops remove the pot from the stove or turn off your popcorn machine and pour the popcorn into a large bowl. Lightly salt the kettle corn if you desire. 

Here is a printable for the Kettle Corn Recipe:

Printable Kettle Corn Recipe Card

Since this post is all about popcorn I thought I'd share with you the tools I use to make the best popcorn. 

My favorite traditional popcorn maker is the Whirley Popper Popcorn Machine. It is the most amazing popcorn popper. This popper can make 6 quarts of popped popcorn in 3 minutes! (I timed it and sure enough it only takes 3 minutes). You can make the kettle corn recipe (above) right in this popper too!

Amazon

Since I am a popcorn junkie it would be a big tragedy if my popper broke and I was left popcorn-less! To make sure this never happens I keep a backup popcorn popper.  My backup popper is this cute air popper machine from West Bend called the Stir Crazy Popcorn Maker.

click HERE

If you are really in a bind and don't have access to a popcorn machine you can just use what you have on hand like a large stockpot with a lid. This method too can make a pretty tasty batch of popcorn. I got my large stock pot on Amazon.

I'm not overly picky about popcorn kernels however I do prefer yellow popcorn over white. I think yellow popcorn is bigger and has that fluffy appearance whereas white looks small and crumbles easier. White popcorn is the perfect kind to use when making popcorn balls though because of its size.

Did you know that there are blue popcorn kernels? The blue (or purple) corn tastes similar to standard popcorn and is fluffy with very little crunch. Some would say it has a sweeter taste with a milder popcorn flavor. I recommend this Amish Country popcorn that comes in a 3lbs bag. If you have never had it you should give it a try!


On a side note - did you know Home Depot sells popcorn? Weird (but totally awesome) right? I discovered this the other day when my husband and I were there shopping for some plumbing parts. I love wandering around the store just looking at things! That is when I discovered popcorn! Here is one of my favorites - a 4 lb. Yellow Popcorn in a plastic container with a screw-on lid! Keeps it fresh and 4 lbs should last a little while.

Other Popcorn Toppings

Since I am a huge fan of popcorn it won't surprise you that I've tried a variety of different toppings as well.  Right now my favorite flavors are white cheddar, cheddar and ranch. I've lost count as to the number of times I've ordered these flavors on Amazon but I haven't tired of them yet. 

What is your favorite popcorn topping? The fact that you can put just about anything on popcorn as a topping makes this treat so much fun! 

Enjoy your popcorn, I know I will.