Kettle Corn Recipe

Learn how to make the perfect batch of kettle corn that tastes just like fair-style popcorn with this easy kettle corn recipe!

Have you ever been to the fair or a carnival, and been enticed by the amazing aroma of freshly popped kettle corn?  

That smell is almost impossible to resist, right?  

And the sweet and salty taste of kettle corn is even harder to resist!

Homemade Kettle Corn

Did you know that it is VERY easy to make your own fair-style kettle corn at home?

It tastes just like the delicious, more expensive versions that you can buy, but at a fraction of the price.  

In fact, you probably have all of the ingredients at home right now. 

So what are you waiting for?

Sweet & Salty Kettle Corn Recipe

I make my popcorn in a stovetop crank-operated popcorn popper from Crate and Barrel.

It’s so easy to make popcorn  with this!

The popcorn doesn’t burn this way because the kernels keep moving over the hot stove.

I highly recommend buying one!

That being said, you can also make kettle corn in a big pan with a lid on the stove.

Just be prepared to carefully shake, shake, and shake the pot once the kernels start popping!

If you go this route, make sure to protect your hand with oven mitts.

Otherwise, the directions will be the same.

Kettle Corn Ingredients

1 cup popcorn kernels
2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin coconut oil (you can also use vegetable oil but coconut oil tastes better and is much better for you!)
1/2 cup sugar
1-2 tsp. salt

Add the Oil and Popcorn

Place the coconut oil in the bottom of a crank-operated popcorn popper.  

I never measure the oil, but just make sure that there is a light layer of oil covering the base of the popper.  

Add the 1 cup of popcorn, and cover the lid.  

Measure the 1/2 cup sugar and set aside.  

Turn the stove onto medium-high heat, and slowly turn the crank to distribute the popcorn and keep it moving.

Cooking the Popcorn

When you hear the first kernel pop, lift up the lid of the popcorn popper.

Quickly add the 1/2 cup sugar, then close the lid.  

Crank the popcorn maker hard (or shake your pot hard if you are using one), then continue to crank as the popcorn pops.  

As the popper gets full and harder to crank, carefully dump the popped popcorn into a large bowl.

Place back on the heat to pop the rest of the popcorn.

Once all of the popcorn is popped and in the bowl, sprinkle on the salt to taste.

Kettle corn tastes amazing warm, but tastes great cold as well!  

In fact, last year I made a few big batches of kettle corn for a birthday party the day before, and it still tasted delicious and crunchy the next day!

I hope you enjoy this kettle corn recipe as much as my family does!  

My mom, a self-proclaimed popcorn addict, is the one who introduced us to this recipe years ago, and we’ve been making it diligently ever since.

If you make this sweet and salty popcorn, the neighbors might pound down your front door to try and get a taste of the amazing smell traveling through the neighborhood.

 You’ve been warned…

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Amazing Kettle Corn Recipe

Make delicious kettle corn at home with this easy kettle corn recipe! This popcorn tastes just like the sweet and salty popcorn at the fair, and is delicious even the next day!

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: easy, quick, summer

Servings: 6 people

Cost: $2

Equipment

• 1 Stovetop crank-operated popcorn cooker (mine came from Crate and Barrel but they are also on Amazon too)

Ingredients

• 1 cup popcorn kernels
• 2-3 Tbsp. extra virgin coconut oil vegetable oil works too but coconut oil tastes better!
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1-2 tsp. salt

Instructions

• Place the coconut oil in the bottom of a crank-operated popcorn popper, making sure that there is a light layer of oil covering the base of the popper.
• Add the 1 cup of popcorn, and cover the lid. Measure the 1/2 cup sugar and set aside.
• Turn the stove onto medium-high heat, and slowly turn the crank to distribute the popcorn and keep it moving.
• When you hear the first kernel pop, lift up the lid of the popcorn popper.

  Quickly add the 1/2 cup sugar, then close the lid.  
• Crank the popcorn maker hard, and continue to crank as the popcorn pops.  

  As the popper gets full and harder to crank, carefully dump the popped popcorn into a large bowl.
• Place back on the heat to pop the rest of the popcorn. Once all of the popcorn is popped and in the bowl, sprinkle on the salt to taste.

This article was updated in July 2024 and was originally posted in June 2013.