Kettle Corn Recipe

An easy sweet and salty homemade Kettle Corn recipe plus tips on how to make the best kettle corn without burning the sugar.

Kettle corn is usually considered a fair-time or amusement park treat (who doesn’t love wandering around eating handfuls of the stuff out of a giant $9 bag??), but it’s actually incredibly easy to make at home and just as delicious.

Easy Kettle Corn

A delicious sweet and salty easy kettle corn recipe plus tips on how to make kettle corn without burning the sugar.

Prep: 2min

Total: 7min

Serving Size: 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: calories 450 kcal, servingSize 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or cooking oil of your choice)
• 1/4 cup popcorn kernels
• 2 tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instruction:

1. Set a large bowl on the counter to pour your popped kettle corn into.*
2. To a large heavy-bottomed pot (with a lid) add oil and 3 kernels of popcorn. Cover and heat over medium-high heat (medium if your stove runs hot) until you hear all 3 kernels pop.
3. Add the rest of your popcorn and shake the pan for a few seconds to coat the kernels. Pour sugar and salt directly over the popcorn. Cover and shake for 3 seconds, rest for 3 seconds, repeat, until popcorn begins to pop steadily.
4. Once that starts, shake pan mostly continuously, pausing occasionally to listen for breaks in popping. Once there is about a 2 second break between pops, pull from heat. Transfer popcorn immediately to your bowl.
5. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes (sugar will be VERY hot) before eating. Keep an eye out for unpopped kernels as you eat, and enjoy.

How to Make Kettle Corn at Home

You can easily have hot, freshly popped kettle corn at home with this easy stovetop kettle corn recipe. All you need is a large pot and 4 basic pantry ingredients for the best homemade kettle corn.

Prep: 2min

Serving Size: 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: calories 205 kcal, Sugar 6.2 g, Sodium 0.9 mg, Fat 20.6 g, Saturated Fat 12.9 g, Carbohydrate 6.2 g, servingSize 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup extra light olive oil (not extra virgin)
• 1/2 cup good quality (fresh popcorn kernels)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• table salt

Instruction:

1. Heat oil with 3 test kernels in large, deep, heavy pot with tight fitting lid, over medium-high heat. Once all 3 kernels pop, your oil is hot enough to start popping the rest of the kernels.
2. Add popcorn kernels and sugar; stir and cover. Shake pot vigorously every few seconds (yes, every few seconds). I alternate between setting pot down to rest a few seconds and shaking it a few seconds. This is a bit of an arm workout, but it must be done so sugar/popcorn won’t burn.
3. Once popping has slowed, remove pot from heat and keep shaking until popping ceases. Sprinkle evenly with a pinch or two of salt. Give it another good shake, and immediately pour kettle corn into a large bowl.
4. Break up clumps as needed, and let cool enough to eat. Store cooled popcorn in airtight container or zipper bag up to a week at room temp.

Homemade Kettle Corn

Learn how to make homemade kettle corn that is perfect for a movie night, game day, or to snack on! You won’t be able to stop eating this crunchy, salty and sweet popcorn.

Total: 10min

Yield: 8

Serving Size: 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: calories 81 kcal, Carbohydrate 9 g, Protein 1 g, Fat 5 g, Saturated Fat 1 g, Trans Fat 1 g, Sodium 168 mg, Fiber 1 g, Sugar 7 g, unSaturated Fat 5 g, servingSize 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons oil (vegetable, canola, peanut, or coconut)
• ½ cup corn kernels
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt

Instruction:

1. In a large pot with lid or a Whirly Pop Popcorn Maker, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add a couple corn kernels to the oil, when they pop it means that the oil is at the desired temperature.
2. Add Unpopped Popcorn Kernels to the oil, followed by the granulated sugar while shaking the pot constantly. Once all the sugar is added, cover with the lid and keep shaking the pot over medium heat. This will ensure that there are no burnt kernels or sugar stuck to the bottom of the pot.
3. Once all the popcorn kernels are popped, remove from heat and dump onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt while the popcorn is still warm, seperate the popcorn if needed (every kernel will have a thin layer of caramel on it, it’s kind of like candy! So the popcorn might stick a little).

Old Fashioned Kettle Corn

Take a trip back in time to the county fair with a bowl of this kettle corn, your family may never want plain popcorn again!

Prep: 5min

Total: 15min

Yield: 3-4 serving(s)

Nutrition Facts: calories 225.1, Fat 18.2, Saturated Fat 2.4, Cholesterol 0, Sodium 0.2, Carbohydrate 16.7, Fiber 0, Sugar 16.6, Protein 0

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup unpopped popcorn
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt (or use white salt) (optional)

Instruction:

1. Place the oil in the bottom of a large pot.
2. Add in the unpopped popcorn kernels with the sugar and salt.
3. Over a medium heat begin to pop the popcorn, constantly shaking the pot to ensure that the popcorn kernels and oil do not burn.
4. Once the popping has slowed down remove the pot from the heat.

How to Make Stove Top Kettle Corn at Home

FAQ

What gives kettle corn its flavor?

What is difference between kettle corn and popcorn?

How to make kettle corn without burning the sugar?