When faced with one of those knee-high metal tins subdivided into caramel, cheese, and buttered popcorn varieties, which do you go for first? I used to make equal forays into each, combining the boring butter with the more exciting cheese and caramel so I wouldn’t be left with an overflow of any one flavor. I always find caramel to be at its best when paired with something salty, so I’m constantly making a half batch of both this and my cheese popcorn (page 73) to sneak into the movies. Rather than popping fresh corn for this recipe, you can substitute 10 cups plain popped corn for the oil and kernels.
YIELD: approximately 10 cups
TOTAL TIME: 1 hour
DIFFICULTY: 2
POPCORN
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon yellow or white popcorn kernels
CARAMEL
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter
1/4 cup (2-3/4 ounces) light corn syrup
1 cup (7-1/2 ounces) packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
MAKE THE POPCORN:
Pour the vegetable oil into a 3 or 4-quart heavy-bottomed stockpot and add 2 or 3 popcorn kernels. Cover the pot and heat over medium heat until you hear 1 or 2 of the kernels pop.
Add the remaining corn kernels in an even layer and re-cover. Cook, shaking gently and frequently to evenly distribute the hot oil as the kernels pop. Once the popping sounds slow to a crawl, remove the pot from the burner and transfer the popped corn to a large bowl.
MAKE THE CARAMEL:
Preheat the oven to 200°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat liner.
In the same pot you used for the popcorn, melt the butter and corn syrup over medium heat. Add the sugar and salt and whisk until the sugar is no longer granular and pasty but opaque and smooth, with bubbles forming around the edges. Whisk in the baking soda and cream of tartar; the liquid will puff and bubble up. Continue to whisk frequently for 3 to 4 minutes as the caramel changes from pale to deep golden amber. You’ll start to smell the sugars caramelize as you whisk, and the caramel will look “broken” and curdled from time to time—don’t worry, this is normal.
Remove the caramel from the heat when the caramel is golden like a penny. Carefully fold the popcorn into the hot caramel a few cups at a time until each kernel is coated; if you’ve ever made Rice Krispies Treats, the process will be familiar. Slow and steady wins the race here.
When the popcorn is fully coated, turn it out onto the prepared baking sheet in an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes, then cool to room temperature before breaking into bite-size pieces.
Store the popcorn at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week.
BALLER-STYLE
Sadly, long gone are the days when we can hand out bushels of homemade treats to the neighborhood kiddos on Halloween, but we can still make the most killer popcorn balls for other parties.
Just add 1 cup mini marshmallows to the cooked caramel after removing it from the heat; stir to melt thoroughly before mixing with the popcorn. Oil your hands with vegetable oil or butter before shaping the coated popcorn into balls and placing them on a lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes at 200°F, then cool completely and wrap the balls in waxed paper or plastic wrap.