Home Made Popcorn Recipes!

O. Faulkner · Sep 12, 2018

When I moved out of the house, my mother gifted me a big jar of popcorn kernels. Growing up I always made popcorn with the microwave pack and was too afraid of burning stove top corn. But once I found a good recipe for a half-cup of kernels I am officially hooked. I've been doing the usual light salt and a bit of melted butter, but I'm so ready to try new recipes like kettle corn or caramel corn! Does anybody have any favorite popcorn recipes they'd like to share?

cornflake · Sep 12, 2018

You may be doing it wrong, heh.

Maryn · Sep 13, 2018

Hardcob Cornography

I've shared my family caramel corn recipe here before, but I'm too lazy to find a link. Once more, with feeling!

MARYN'S HARDCOB CORNOGRAPHY

5 quarts popped popcorn*
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup light or dark corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 c. almonds or pecans, optional

Yield: About 5-7 quarts caramel corn
Prep time: approximately 90 minutes

Note: Requires very large bowl or pot for mixing. Can NOT be mixed in one bowl/pot used twice.

Pop the popcorn. Spray 2 or 3 large cookie sheets with a nonstick spray product (even if you cover with foil, spray the foil) and spray a large container in which you will stir the popcorn (and nuts if you're using them). Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit (low heat, about 120C). Mix the popcorn (and nuts) in your large container.

In a 2.5- or 3-quart saucepan, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. (This takes 10-15 minutes.) Boil without stirring 5 minutes. (This takes 5 minutes, silly.) Remove from heat; stir in soda and vanilla. The mixture will swell up and bubble considerably. Stir until this seems to have stopped, about a minute.

Pour caramel mixture over popped corn (and nuts), mixing well. It will be impossible to coat every kernel. Work somewhat quickly, because once it starts to cool, the caramel won’t spread well or leave the pan voluntarily. It's more important to get it out of the pan than to attempt to coat every kernel. Turn coated popcorn onto the baking pans, flattening and separating clumps as much as you can. Bake at 250 degrees for 10 minutes five times.

Huh? Remove both sheets from the oven after ten minutes of oven time. Stir and rearrange caramel coating, which will be semi-liquid, to cover as much popcorn as you can, then return to the oven for the next 10 minutes of baking, for a total of five sessions of 10-minutes-of-baking. (This takes more than an hour, usually.) Alternate which of the two cookie sheets is on top and rotate them end-for-end for more even cooking.

Note: Do not block airflow in the oven by filling it side-to-side with cookie sheets. (This will make the sugar burn, and the whole batch taste of char.) If you can't fit two in without blocking it, do them one at a time until one tray is finished, then start on the second tray. It's okay if it stands and its caramel hardens before you begin.

Remove finished caramel corn from oven and cool completely on wire racks over waxed paper or foil (to catch what falls through). Break apart. Store in tins. Ha, as if it wouldn’t all be eaten immediately. In reality: Pick warm caramel corn off the foil with fingers. If you have metal fillings, check carefully for clinging shreds of foil and remove before eating.

* Measure using the 2.5 or 3 quart saucepan you’ll make the caramel in. Less popcorn equals more kernels fully coated. Or go with approximate values:
1/2 c. kernels = 12 c. popped, or 2 Tbsp. kernels = 1 quart popped

RedRajah · Sep 13, 2018

Our air-popper died about a month ago, so it's back to stovetop for us for the time being.

Cobalt Jade · Sep 13, 2018

Does anyone have a recipe for popcorn balls?

Maryn · Sep 13, 2018

I might. Let me take a look... (Sound of receding footsteps, then silence.)

Yeah, I have three, but two of them are cheater recipes relying on marshmallows. This one's the real deal.

OLD-FASHIONED POPCORN BALLS (no marshmallows)

1 c. corn syrup, light or dark
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. water
2 tsp. vinegar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. margarine or butter
2 quarts popped popcorn

In a heavy 2-quart saucepan, stir the corn syrup, sugar, water, vinegar and salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until temperature reaches 260 degrees on a candy thermometer or until a small amount dropped into very cold water forms a ball which is hard enough to hold its shape, yet plastic.

Remove from heat and stir in 2 tablespoons margarine or butter. Slowly pour over 2 quarts of unsalted popped popcorn, mixing well. When cool enough to handle, quickly shape into balls with buttered hands. Makes about 10 balls.

benbenberi · Sep 13, 2018

RedRajah said:
Our air-popper died about a month ago, so it's back to stovetop for us for the time being.

Stovetop popcorn is SO MUCH BETTER-tasting! (But IMO what comes out of an air-popper is packing peanuts, not food, so I'm biased...)

The topping I like? is salt. Just salt. (Coarse finishing salt is nice, but normal kosher salt is fine.) On corn popped in a little peanut oil. Simple, delicious.

Cobalt Jade · Sep 14, 2018

Maryn, can you post the cheater recipe with the marshmallows too?

Maryn · Sep 14, 2018

Sure, let me open that document up again. In essence, these popcorn balls are Rice Krispie Treats using popcorn instead of cereal.

EASY-DO POPCORN BALLS (Marshmallow-based)

3 quarts popped popcorn, unsalted
1 (16-oz.) package marshmallows (minis melt faster)
1/4 cup butter or margarine
Food coloring, optional

Yield: 14 balls, 2-1/2 inches

Place popped popcorn in a large bowl. In a large saucepan, cook marshmallows and butter over low heat until melted and smooth. Add a few drops of food coloring, if desired, at this stage. Mix well to distribute color evenly, then pour over popcorn and toss gently to mix well. Cool 5 minutes. Butter hands well and form 2-1/2-inch balls.

Me again. When our kids were the right ages, they were fond of making these (or the Rice Krispie Treats) with orange food coloring and a sprinkling of chocolate jimmies for Halloween. You could, of course, color them all kinds of seasonal shades--perfect treat for every occasion, right?

Home Made Popcorn Recipes!

O. Faulkner

cornflake

practical experience, FTW

Maryn

At Sea

RedRajah

Special Snowflake? No. Hailstone

Cobalt Jade

Maryn

At Sea

benbenberi

practical experience, FTW

Cobalt Jade

Maryn

At Sea