Kettle Corn

I have a healthy obsession with things that are salty and sweet. When I head to a fair, carnival, or some other outdoor event, the smell of freshly popping kettle corn intoxicates me. It forces me to pay $4-$6 for a bag of this delicious popcorn that I will inevitably inhale within the hour.

I was sitting around at home when a case of the munchies hit me hard. I wanted kettle corn and I wanted it now!

Little did I know how easy it would be!!

The proportion is 1-2-1...1 part oil, 2 parts kernels, 1 part sugar...

Here's 1/4 C. of canola oil (You can use vegetable oil, grapeseed oil, but please don't use olive oil because of it's low smoking point!)


Here's 1/2 C. of unpopped kernels


Here's 1/4 C. of plain granulated sugar (You could even use vanilla sugar, or heck, you can use a bit of colored sugar to achieve the crazy colored Pop-Secret "Pop-Qwiz" popcorn of the 80's)


First, use a large pot with a tight-fitting lid. Not a heavy pot because you're gonna have to pick it up and shake it around.

Place the pot over high heat. Once, the oil gets hot, throw the kernels in and sprinkle the sugar all over the top of it.


Cover the pot and wait until the popcorn starts to pop. Once the popping gets frequent, grab the pot by the handles, using pot-holders, and while holding the lid on, shake the pot vigorously for a little while and place it back on the stove. Keep doing this until the popping slows down.

Dump the popcorn into a bowl and sprinkle a tiny bit of salt (maybe 1/4 tsp) on top while the sugar is still nice and sticky. With that being said, DO NOT touch the popcorn with your hands right now. The caramelized sugar is HOT!! Use a long spoon (I used chopsticks! hehe) to toss it around.


One of my favorite parts about real kettle corn, is the random bits of caramelized sugar...like this:


Oooh...or like this!


Try making this at home and you'll never pay for overpriced carnival kettle corn EVER again!!! Yummy!!

Better yet, make loads and loads of this for your 4th of July get-togethers! Your friends will love you for it!

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