Caramel Popcorn

Who does not love a good, crunchy bowl of home-made caramel popcorn? This recipe is so easy to make and is one of those fail proof recipes. This beats any store-bought caramel popcorn, by far!

With just a few inexpensive ingredients that you will usually have on hand, you can create this popcorn. The ratio between caramel and popcorn is just perfect. Not too sticky and not too hard. It has that perfect crunch.

The caramel is made on the stove, without the need of a candy thermometer. Then simply just drizzle the hot caramel sauce over the popped popcorn and bake in the oven stirring often.

Keep your caramel popcorn fresh by storing it in an airtight container at room temperature. This will last 2-3 weeks.

Ingredients

250ml popcorn kernels, un-popped
120g butter
100g Sugar, brown
60ml Syrup
pinch of salt
1ml Baking Soda
3ml Vanilla Essence

Directions

Start by popping the popcorn. Follow the instructions on the back of the bag and pop 250ml of popcorn kernels. Once popped, set them aside in a large bowl.

Pre-heat your oven to 160˚C and grease a large baking tray with some spray-and-cook. (Or non-stick cooking spray.)

Place the butter, sugar, syrup and salt in a non-stick pot and melt over medium heat. Bring to boil, once boiling reduce the heat and gently simmer for another two minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the baking soda and vanilla essence.
Immediately drizzle the caramel sauce over the popcorn. Using a fork mix well until the popcorn is coated.

Place on the prepared baking tray and bake until the caramel sauce has dried or has harden. Stirring often to allow the sauce to dry evenly.

Once dry, remove from the oven and allow the popcorn to cool off. While the popcorn is cooling off, use a fork and stir every now and again to keep the popcorn loose.

Once cooled, store in an airtight container.

Enjoy!