Soft & Chewy Caramel Popcorn (No Bake!)

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Soft and chewy homemade caramel popcorn piled in a serving bowl

This caramel popcorn recipe is soft, chewy and completely covered in buttery homemade caramel made with brown sugar, butter and sweetened condensed milk. It comes together on the stovetop in just 25 minutes with no baking and no candy thermometer, giving you gooey caramel popcorn that stays soft instead of turning hard and crunchy by being baked in the oven.

And that is VERY important around here.

When I was a little girl, there was a man at our church who made caramel popcorn balls every Halloween. I remember being SO excited to get one…until I bit into it. It was the hardest, driest popcorn ball I had ever tried to eat, and I can still remember the scraping and crunching against my teeth. 😂

There is absolutely a time and place for crunchy caramel corn, but caramel popcorn balls are not it for me.

So when I started making caramel popcorn for my own family, I wanted the exact opposite: soft, sticky, chewy caramel popcorn that makes your fingers a complete mess. This is it, and it has become one of our kids’ favorite Sunday night treats.

I’ve learned a few secrets along the way too, including the one type of popcorn kernel I will always buy for caramel popcorn and exactly how long to cook the caramel so it stays soft without being runny.

Why You’ll Love This Caramel Popcorn Recipe

  • Soft and chewy: This isn’t crunchy, baked caramel corn. The caramel stays gooey and soft.
  • No oven required: Everything comes together on the stovetop and gets poured right over the popcorn.
  • No candy thermometer: The 10-minute cooking time takes the guesswork out of the caramel.
  • Big, buttery caramel flavor: Brown sugar, butter, vanilla and a little salt keep the caramel rich without tasting one-note sweet.
  • Perfect for sharing: Make a big batch for movie night, game day, Halloween or holiday parties.

Ingredients You’ll Need

You only need a handful of ingredients for homemade caramel popcorn. The measurements for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card below.

  • Mushroom popcorn kernels: My FAVORITE for caramel popcorn. Mushroom popcorn pops into big, round pieces that hold up much better under the hot caramel. I buy Amish mushroom popcorn kernels.
  • Unsalted butter: Creates the rich, buttery base of the caramel sauce.
  • Brown sugar: Gives the caramel its deep molasses flavor. Light or dark brown sugar both work, and I often use half of each.
  • Light corn syrup:

Homemade Caramel Popcorn Seasoning

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a small glass shaker jar full of caramel popcorn seasoning sitting next to a large glass bowl full of popped popcorn.

A 4-ingredient homemade popcorn seasoning recipe that will take the flavor of late-night snacking to the next level!

My family loves popcorn! A few years ago our friends told us that on days they don’t want to cook dinner they make protein shakes and popcorn, and we hopped right on that train! We usually stick to buttered popcorn or rosemary popcorn when it’s for dinner, but when it’s movie night our other favorites include marshmallow popcorn (Cade’s favorite), kettle corn (Carrian’s favorite) and caramel corn (the kids’ favorite!)

Caramel Popcorn Seasoning is a sweet popcorn seasoning that is easy to make and adds a delicious flavor to your homemade popcorn.  

Learning how to make flavored popcorn seasoning is super simple and it makes the perfect gift for neighbors around the holidays! Make popcorn at home today and try out my mom’s perfect caramel popcorn seasoning!

Ingredients for Homemade Caramel Popcorn Seasoning

Salt: Balances all the sugars, enhances flavor, and keeps the seasoning from being one-note sweet. It also makes the popcorn taste more snackable.

Powdered Sugar: Provides a very fine, quick-dissolving sweetness that clings easily to the popcorn. Its texture helps coat evenly without making the popcorn soggy.

Turbinado Sugar: Adds a light molasses flavor with larger crystals that give a bit of crunch. It brings a more complex sweetness than regular white sugar.

Light Brown Sugar: Contributes a deeper, caramel-like sweetness thanks to its higher molasses content. It gives warmth and a richer flavor that pairs really well with buttery popcorn.

Gift Idea

One of my favorite gifts for when my kids have a birthday party is a DIY popcorn present! These are my two favorite microwave popcorn poppers:

Glass Popcorn Popper

Silicone Popcorn Popper

Then just add a bag of kernels, your homemade seasoning and a candy and you’ve got the most fun gift ever! Great for the holidays and neighbors too!

How to Make Homemade Popcorn Seasoning

  1. Blend: Add the 4 ingredients to a blender or spice grinder and blend until mixed well.

Ultimate Manly Football Snack Mix for Super Bowl

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Ultimate Manly Football Snack Mix for Super Bowl

a photo taken over the top of a snack mix loaded with popcorn, pretzels, cheezits, peanuts and beef jerky

Are you ready for the big game? This football snack mix is hearty, crunchy, salty and loaded with flavor. It’s everything you want in a Super Bowl snack!

With a little boy growing up, I seriously am living a whole different life than ever before. Boys are not the same as girls! And I love it! He’s tender and empathetic, athletic and adventurous, he’s all in! It’s been so fun to see him experience things and especially sporting events. I’ve started finding a fun event to watch and busting out crazy combinations of snack mixes. This savory snack mix is the epitome of all boy!!!

Ingredients for Football Snack Mix

Now this game day snack mix combination might sound wild, and that’s because it is! It’s a little out there, but I swear, you won’t be able to keep your hands out of it! I’m obsessed with the little chewiness the chunks of savory beef jerky adds! Here is what you will need:

  • Microwave Popcorn
  • Pretzels
  • Cheez-It Crackers
  • Roasted Salted Peanuts
  • Corn Nuts
  • Beef Jerky

The amount of each ingredient is really up to you! You can scale up for a bigger crowd. Our recommendations for measurements can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

Variations

As with all snack mix recipes, this one is very customizable. You can easily swap out any component of this mix, or add more to it. If you’re a sweet and salty snack lover, you can even add some sweetness too. Here are some ideas:

  • Bugles
  • Almonds
  • Cashews
  • Sesame Sticks
  • Bagel Chips
  • Oyster Crackers
  • Chex Cereal (Rice Chex, Wheat Chex or Corn Chex)
  • Goldfish
  • Cheerios
  • Kettle Corn or Caramel Popcorn
  • M&M’s
  • Raisinets
  • Reese’s Pieces
  • Mini Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

Why a Snack Mix is Perfect for the Super Bowl

I love a good snack mix for a big gathering because it’s so crowd friendly. You can put the bowl in the middle of the crowd and let everyone dig in. I also love to set a stack up cups next to it so people can munch on the mixture from their own serving.

With a snack mix, there’s bound to be something in the mix that everyone will love. The blend of textures and flavors is just so satisfying.

Storage Tips

This snack mix is best stored at room temperature in an airtight container. It will keep for up to a week. It will not freeze well.

Score big with this ultimate manly football snack mix, perfect for fueling up during the Super Bowl. Packed with protein (13g per serving) and flavor, it’s sure to be a game day favorite.

More Football Snack Food:

Caramel Popcorn

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Caramel Popcorn

Caramel popcorn is the most classic sweet and salty snack there is! This recipe is so easy and addicting. Family movie night just got even better!

When I was a kid we had an old air popper that had a tray on top that melted the butter and allowed it to drip onto the popcorn while you were making it. It was so much fun to sit on the counter and watch those little seeds explode.  

When I got married I discovered that my husband still had an air popper.  His didn’t have the fancy butter tray, but that’s ok. On extra special occasions we got to eat caramel popcorn! It didn’t occur to me that kids now days probably haven’t seen air poppers until we pulled ours out to make some caramel popcorn last night. Our little one was so excited!

A bowl heaped full of caramel popcorn.

What Ingredients Do You Need for Caramel Popcorn?

You basically just need popcorn and then ingredients for making homemade caramel. Here is your ingredients list:

  • Popcorn
  • Butter
  • Brown Sugar
  • Light Corn Syrup
  • Vanilla
  • Salt
  • Baking Soda

The measurements for each can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

How to Make Homemade Caramel Popcorn

This recipe is so simple! It has become a favorite of my children to make on Friday nights. Here are the basic steps:

  1. Preheat your oven.
  2. Make the popcorn
  3. Make the caramel on the stove top.
  4. Pour the caramel over the popcorn and stir to combine.
  5. Bake.
  6. Let cool and devour!
All the details can be found in the recipe card, so check there for any clarifications!

A white bowl heaped full of caramel popcorn.

Why Do You Bake Caramel Corn?

Baking caramel popcorn makes the caramel crisp up and get th

Jello Popcorn

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Jello Popcorn

Jello in popcorn? You only need 4 simple ingredients for this fun snack! Jello popcorn is our family’s latest obsession and you can use any flavor Jello you like best!

I was totally and completely obsessed with Jello growing up and this would have been one more amazing way for me to enjoy it but the truth is, I just learned about it a few months ago. Our neighbors, Rod and Tawya, totally hooked us up with a batch one weekend and I’ve been utterly obsessed ever since. 

a photo of a red jello popcorn ball being pulled apart by someone's hands

I honestly can’t even explain this treat to you. It’s better than caramel popcorn IMHO, and it’s also easier than caramel popcorn so it’s a huge win at our house. The kids love how bright and gooey it is and it has started all sorts of kid conversations about what else we should take from classic to new and wild.

So far Claire has requested Muddy Buddies Rice Krispies Treats. 

Thoughts? Should we try it out?

Ingredients for Jello Popcorn

I mentioned that you only need 4 ingredients for this recipe. So simple! Here they are:

  • Jello (3oz)
  • Butter (unsalted)
  • Mini Marshmallows
  • Popcorn

Do you have them in the pantry already?? I’ve started to just buy mini mallows every time I grocery shop. The measurements for each can be found in the recipe card at the end of the post.

a photo of a serving bowl full of bright red jello popcorn balls.

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