Best Ever Caramel Corn
This simple and fantastic tasting Caramel Corn, with only 4 ingredients, always leaves them begging for more
This simple and fantastic tasting Caramel Corn, with only 4 ingredients, always leaves them begging for more
- Carbohydrate 172.04786 g
- Cholesterol 291.54 mg
- Fat 118.12084 g
- Fiber 25.984 g
- Protein 24.38068 g
- Saturated Fat 70.676448 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (348g)
- Sodium 804.632 mg
- Sugar 146.06386 g
- Trans Fat 9.43760800000001 g
- Calories 1791 calories
Step-by-step
- Spread popcorn in a large baking pan.
- Preheat oven to 300F.
- For caramel mixture, in a medium saucepan combine the brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and add 1/4 tsp salt if you wish (I never do because the butter I use is salted).
- Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture boils.
- Continue to cook 5 minutes.
- Remove from heat and pour over popcorn.
- Toss quickly to coat.
- bake for 15 minutes and then stir.
- Return to oven and bake an additional 5 to 10 minutes until well coated.
- Turn popcorn out onto foil to cool.
- Break into pieces and serve.
- Stores well in zip-lock bags.
The ingredient measurements on the page reveal nothing about how moisture control dictates the final texture of baked caramel confections. Sugar syrups retain ambient humidity easily, which leads to chewiness rather than a brittle shell. Boiling the brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup mixture for exactly five minutes drives off excess water content before it meets the popped kernels. Spreading the coated corn across a large baking pan prevents dense clumps from forming during the initial fifteen minutes at 300 degrees Fahrenheit. A subsequent five to ten minutes in the oven solidifies the sugar matrix without burning the butterfat. Standard baking sheets work well here, though rimmed pans prevent loose kernels from sliding onto the oven floor during the mid-bake stir. Turning the finished batch onto aluminum foil halts the cooking process immediately by increasing air circulation underneath the hot sugar. Storing the cooled pieces inside airtight plastic bags maintains dryness for several days.
