How to make Popcorn Balls

In large saucepan combine sugars, butter and corn syrup.  Heat over Medium high heat stirring well until it comes to a boil.  Continue to stir and cook to softball stage or even just before softball stage, 230-240 degrees Fahrenheit as registered on a candy thermometer.  This stage can be determined by dropping a spoonful of hot syrup into a bowl of ice water. In the water, use your fingers to gather the cooled syrup into a ball. If it has reached soft-ball stage, the syrup easily forms a ball while in the cold water, but flattens once removed from the water.   Remove from heat,  add 1 teaspoon of baking soda and stir very well.  Mixture will rise up in the pan.  Stir vigorously to add air.  Add one can sweetened condensed milk and stir. Last, add 1 teaspoon vanilla and stir until mixed in well.  Pour over seasoned popcorn and mix to coat popcorn.  At this point, butter your hands and form balls and place them on wax paper or plastic wrap coated in cooking spray.  After all the balls are formed, wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap.   You can also just put all the caramel popcorn in a bowl and let people just pull off what they want.  Be sure to remove any un-popped kernels before making these.  We do this by “sifting” our popcorn over a cooling rack.

*The best flavor comes from ‘movie style’ popcorn with the contrast of the salty and sweet.  We sometimes use one part air-popped popcorn to one part freshly popped popcorn sold at a local grocery store.  Large bags of buttered popcorn can also be found at Smart and Final.  If you are using air -popped season the popcorn first with butter and salt.  We weigh the popcorn then fill three jelly roll pans each with a mound of popcorn.  Weigh the popcorn after sifting out the un-popped kernels.  The popcorn can also be mixed directly on the counter.

Keep reading for more details.

Start with seasoned popcorn.  We are using a tabletop popcorn popper.  If you don’t have this purchase fresh seasoned popcorn from a local grocery store.  If you buy it from a movie theater or are using really buttery popcorn, mix it with one part unseasoned air-popped popcorn.  This is key, you want flavored popcorn to start, but don’t go overboard.

Sift the popcorn, please!  Simply place it over a cooling rack to remove un-popped kernels.  There is nothing worse then biting into a small burnt kernel.  Ouch, my teeth.  This step takes a while, but this is where you are really adding the love to the recipe.

If you do not sift, this is what you get inside your popcorn balls.  Yuck!  The site of this makes my fillings hurt!

Here is our popcorn making set up.  Find a large bowl to measure the sifted popcorn, you will want 18-20 quarts sifted popcorn.  If you like them really gooey, make less popcorn.  If you want them with touches of caramel, but enough to hold the popcorn together make more popcorn.

This usually fills 3 jelly roll pans, with popcorn over flowing.  I used to add the caramel to popcorn lined up this way.

Now we mix the popcorn and caramel on a clean counter-top.  You loose less caramel this way.  Don’t be grossed out, the counters are clean.  If you have ever toured a candy factor you will see most of the mixing is done on chilled counters.

The ingredients for the caramel are simple, butter, sugar, brown sugar and corn syrup… (sounds like a line from Elf).  Later we’ll need a can of sweetened condensed milk, baking soda and vanilla.

Get this ready before you start making the caramel.  Even though I use a candy thermometer, I still have ice water ready to test the stage of the caramel.

The ingredients come together quickly.  Stir as the caramel boils.  Watch the temperature closely.  After 5 minutes we are already at 210 degrees.  If you don’t have a candy thermometer, get one!  If you can’t get one, take a bit out after 5 minutes of boiling and place in ice water.  If you can form a ball when it has chilled the caramel is ready.  We are trying to get to the softball stage.

Keep stirring.  We are at 220.  You can see the texture changing.

Now we are just over 230 and are going to remove the pot from the heat.  Although softball stage is around 240, stop just before this stage and place a spoonful of caramel into the ice water and see if it forms a ball.

Ice water works great to see where you caramel is at.  It was impossible to photograph, but I was able to form a soft ball of caramel, so it is ready.

Add the baking soda and stir.  As you stir the caramel will it will rise up and become light and airy.

Add the sweetened condensed milk.

Add the vanilla.

Now the fun part!  Pour the caramel over the popcorn.  The pot will be heavy, handle with care.

Try to pour the caramel evenly over the popcorn.

Use a large silicon rubber spatula to stir the popcorn and caramel on the counter!  Work quickly as the caramel cools.

Use a scraper to get all the caramel off the counter and onto the popcorn.  Make a large mound of popcorn.

Butter your hands to form the popcorn balls.  We made 80, 4-5 inch popcorn balls.  Perfect size for kids and great for a big party.  Cover in saran wrap.

Everyone loves these.  They are a great old-fashioned treat for the holidays.  Enjoy!

Here’s the photo summary of the steps outlined above.  Anyone can make these.