How to Make Perfect Popcorn
Get your popcorn fix with this easy-to-follow, homemade popcorn recipe. Learn how to make popcorn on the stove, in an instant pot, or in the microwave. I’ll teach you how to make movie theater popcorn at home with two “secret” ingredients and it’ll be ready in less than 10 minutes!
Why This Recipe Works
If you can’t get to the movie theater or you want to bring that movie theater experience home to you, this is a quick and easy way to make popcorn at home.
- Super crisp popcorn. Using ghee guarantees that the popcorn doesn’t get soggy or stale-tasting.
- Movie theater-quality! If you have a huge soft spot for that big tub of popcorn, you are going to be in disbelief that you can make it at home. The combination of a couple of special ingredients helps make this happen (read below!).
- Quick! Grab your ingredients and in less than 10 minutes you’ll be on the couch with your bowl of popcorn.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Coconut Oil: This is the secret ingredient in movie theater popcorn – they pop their kernels in coconut oil! It has a high smoking point, which helps deliver that crisp popcorn and signature flavor. If you need a substitute, reach for vegetable, canola, or peanut oil.
- Popcorn Salt: This specialty ingredient is superfine, which enables it to be infused into each kernel. I use Morton’s Popcorn Salt in this recipe, but you can also make your own. Process kosher salt in your food processor until ultra-fine, then store it and label it as “popcorn salt”!
- Popcorn Kernels: There are so many options here – yellow, white, Amish; use your favorite!
- Ghee: Also known as clarified butter, water and milk solids have been removed, which is the key to keeping the popcorn from getting soggy! You can buy ghee at most stores now, but you can also make your own clarified butter at home! See below for instructions.
How to Make Clarified Butter
The process is super simple and doesn’t take long at all. Here’s how to do it:
- Melt 1 pound of butter in a small saucepan over low heat, allowing it to simmer gently.
- Skim off any foam that rises to the surface and discard it.
- Place a fine-mesh sieve over a medium bowl.
- Line the sieve with cheesecloth, coffee filter, or two layers of paper towels.
- Strain the remaining melted butter through the filter into the bowl.
- Allow to cool to room temperature, then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.
Stovetop Popcorn Directions
- Melt oil: In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, melt the coconut oil over medium-high heat.
- Add popcorn: Once melted, add 3 popcorn kernels. Once those three kernels pop, add the salt and the rest of the popcorn kernels and swirl. Cover and remove from heat for 30 seconds.
- Cook popcorn: Return to medium heat. Leave the lid slightly ajar so steam can escape and shake occasionally while the popcorn pops.
- Remove the popcorn: Once you hear the popping slow to 2 or 3 seconds between pops, remove the pot from the heat and transfer the popcorn to a large serving bowl.
- Heat the ghee: Add the ghee to the hot pot (no need to turn the heat back on), then once it’s melted, drizzle over the popcorn and toss to combine.
- Adjust flavor and enjoy: Taste and add more clarified butter or salt, if desired, then serve.
Alternative Cooking Methods to Make Popcorn
If you want to try some way other than the stove for cooking popcorn, here are a few different methods you can try!
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Instant Pot
- Turn the Instant Pot to Sauté, then click adjust once to make it hot.
- Heat for 2 to 3 minutes to heat the pot.
- Add the coconut oil and melt in the pot.
- Once melted add the salt and popcorn kernels and sauté for 1 minute to coat the kernels in the oil.
- Cover with a glass lid (you can use one from another pot) and cook for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes, cancel the sauté setting to turn off the pot and let sit 5 minutes.
- Remove from the pot and flavor with ghee or additional spices and seasonings.
Microwave
- In a small bowl, mix melted coconut oil and the popcorn kernels.
- Pour the popcorn kernels into a small paper bag and season with salt.
- Fold the top of the bag over twice to seal.
- Cook in the microwave for 2½ minutes or until the popping slows down to about 2 seconds between pops.
- Carefully open the bag and pour the popcorn into a serving bowl.
- Top with melted ghee and additional seasonings.
Seasonings and Toppings
Once you’ve mastered how to make popcorn, the flavor possibilities are endless – sweet and savory alike. Here are a few fun flavors to try out!
- Cinnamon-Sugar: For a sweet flavor.
- Ranch: Sprinkle some ranch on your fresh-popped popcorn.
- Smoky Spices: Try chili powder, cumin, paprika, or cayenne!
- Powdered Cheese: You can have your very own white cheddar popcorn.
- Nutritional Yeast: This can also impart a cheesy flavor!
Fun Recipes to Make with Homemade Popcorn
Once you make a batch of homemade popcorn, you can turn it into other delicious treats:
- Salted Caramel Popcorn, Pretzel, and Peanut Bars
- Peanut Butter and Marshmallow Popcorn Bars
- Poppy Chow (Chocolate and Peanut Butter covered Popcorn)
Keep it Fresh
If you have any leftover popcorn (we rarely do!) and want to save it for a future snack, allow the popcorn to cool completely, then store it in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.
More Favorite Salty Snacks
Learning how to make popcorn has never been easier! With directions for stovetop, instant pot, and the microwave you can quickly whip up a bowl of popcorn for your at-home movie nights!
If you make this recipe and love it, remember to stop back and give it a 5-star rating - it helps others find the recipe! ❤️️
How to Make Popcorn
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- ¼ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) popcorn salt, see note
- ½ cup (113 g) popcorn kernels
- 4 tablespoons (3 tablespoons) ghee (or clarified butter), melted
Instructions
- In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, melt the coconut oil over medium-high heat. Once melted, add 3 popcorn kernels. Once those kernels pop, add the salt and the rest of the popcorn kernels and swirl. Cover and remove from the heat for 30 seconds.
- Return to medium heat and, leaving the lid slightly ajar, shake occasionally while the popcorn pops. Once you hear the popping to slow to 2 or 3 seconds between pops, remove the pot from the heat and transfer the popcorn into a large serving bowl.
- Add the ghee to the hot pot (no need to turn the heat back on), then once it's melted, drizzle over the popcorn and toss to combine. Taste and add more salt, if desired, then serve.
Notes
- Coconut Oil: This will impart the best taste and texture, but you can substitute vegetable oil, canola oil, or peanut oil.
- Ghee: The key to keeping the popcorn crisp and not soggy! You can buy ghee at most stores now, but you can also make your own clarified butter (see post above for instructions).
- Alternative Cooking Methods: See the post above for instructions on making popcorn in an InstantPot and the microwave.
- Storage: Allow the popcorn to cool completely, then store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
I too love theater popcorn, but I think Target has the best all around popped corn. Sometimes I go to Target just for the popcorn, stroll around until I smell a fresh batch popping.
me and my friends really like how to make popcorn that has been given. Thank you very much, I hope this will be useful for all who want to make amazing popcorn
Hi Michelle! I too LOVE homemade popcorn! I typically use my air popper and then do butter, salt and nutritional yeast. The problem that I seem to encounter every time is that it doesn’t take long before my popcorn is chewy! I hate that but I don’t know how to fix it! I’ve tried using less butter but that doesn’t seem to fix the problem! HELP!! :-l
I’ve been popping corn on the stove for many years. However, a couple of years ago, however, I discovered the Catamount glass microwave popper. Wow, what crisp and delicious popcorn it makes. I use peanut oil and white popcorn. Real butter and salt, too, of course! I’ve found that store-brand white popcorn kernels make better-tasting popcorn than the Orvilles and Amishes and blacks and reds and such.
Hello, May I ask which ( store-brand ) white popcorn kernels You used? Thank you!
I’m just guessing how I will be able to prepare popcorn on my own and for my own consumption and enjoyment.
Hmmm, this was listed under Healthy Recipes…but it’s got oil and butter in it. I wouldn’t think a dietitian would categorize that as “healthy”! Having said that, I love popcorn with butter and salt but make it with a hot air popper (no oil required). How much butter is applied would define how “healthy” it is I guess.
wendy, there is nothing wrong, healthwise, with fat! If a dietician doesn’t find a food that has fat in it to be healthy, then they are operating on old (mis)information.
This was a great recipe. I haven’t done this in 30 years but it was fun watching my daughter’s eyes light up as each kernel came alive.
Thanks
this is a nice method, but I prefer the micro wave method.
Hey i tried this popcorn and it turned out great, so easy too!
No matter what I do, popcorn popper or stove top, the popcorn is stale like, not like the crunchy (Smartfood) popcorn. What am I doing wrong?
I use a heavy pot then some unrefined coconut oil, I top it off with spraying olive oil as a topping with a little salt garlic powder or Parmesan cheese
I buy the Amish kernels and they make for some good stuff. My brother in law used to work for a popcorn farmer and they always made the BEST batches as well. We don’t use butter in the end at all. All you need is salt. It’s wonderful.
i found rikenbacker corn to pop tough i prefer jolly time.i store it in the refrigerator to preserve the kernals pluse it makes for larger popcorn due to the heating of the moisture.i do use his poping oil and salt i agree corn popped on stove is better,2nd is jiffypop.the kids lik this because of the foil puffing up.
I wanted to leave a note and let you know that I have made this recipe at least 5 times now. It’s my go-to recipe and a great after school snack. What I love is that I don’t have to use a popcorn maker, just what I already have in the kitchen. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m intrigued that you add the salt and oil at the same time. I have always added the salt at the end but will have to try it this new way.
I use a Hot Air Popcorn Popper. It pops without oil. Just add your favorite toppings after popping. I go my popper at Walmart a few years ago. The cost was between $10 – $15.
thanks – I hadn’t made popcorn in a long time and needed a refresher — other sites had overly complicated recipes and formulas — yours is simple and works great – thanks again!
Movie theaters used to use coconut oil for popping their popcorn, because it has the highest burn temp of any oil. But then coconut oil was falsely lumped in with “bad” oils and the theaters backed off of using it. Coconut oil is a healthy oil! We prefer white popcorn & here’s a tip: popcorn pops light and fluffy due to the water content of the kernel. To rejuvenate “old” popcorn kernels seal them in a Tupperware-type container with a tablespoon or two of water for a few days. Nutritional (brewer’s yeast) makes a great topping, use “Real Salt” brand salt from the health food store or high-end grocery stores (you can go to the “Real Salt” website to find a retailer near you, “Real Salt” is mined from ancient salt beds in Utah & tastes far superior to Morton Salt, plus it has micro-nutrients our bodies crave! Use only real butter, not margarine. Health food stores sell Frontier-brand white cheese powder, ask about a special order if it’s not in the bulk spices section. Lastly ENJOY knowing your snack is healthy for you! I purchase 25# bags of popcorn from my healthy food store, it’s organic & far more inexpensive than microwaved popcorn, or even 1# bags of kernels from the grocery store.
Omgz is this a bit of heaven! thank you for posting this! Wow, I just made this for the first time on the stove.. start to finish 10 minutes for that movie theatre popcorn that I just love!
Thank you posting. I love popcorn! Working on my own FROM scratch recipes. Also I heard the MIcrowave popcorn has chemicals in bag that cause cancer.
Popcorn is a favorite at our home. I have been aware of the health benefits of coconut oil, so I use it when ever I can to get it in our family diet. I tried it last time I made popcorn. It is awesome!
Hi,
Just bought 2 popcorn makers from Walmart yesterday, one Rival air popper and one Salton Cinema non-stick electric popper. Both make fine popcorn without any butter or oil, and the Cinema popper had not even one unpopped kernel at the bottom. Now I wonder: how do I best get the salt in, and how much salt is best? It’s actually good without salt, too.
I will put the popcorn into plastic bags, to keep it for at least 1 to 2 weeks.
Thanks for you input,
Karen
Hi Crystal, I just sprinkle salt on to taste after it is done popping, use however much you prefer!
I only enjoy popcorn from the stove, as microwave popcorn is like eating crunchy paper. The kernels are really cheap and it makes any movie moment the real deal. I LOVE POPCORN!!!
Awesome post. Sometimes I use a skillet covered with foil and create some homemade jiffy pop.
Just what I needed, thank-you! Heat was not high enough for my 1st batch, so tried again and the second batch was perfect!
My family always made homemade popcorn as I was growing up. I was the one who always had to make it. I would stand at the stove and shake the pan till they no longer popped. I would have to make 2 or 3 batches because there was so many of us kids. We were a family of 8. I would poor it into a paper grocery bag. After each pan, I added about a 1/2 cup of butter and shook. Someone always came in and stole a big bowl of it, before the next pan was done. And I would repeat the process. I was at that stove forever as I remember. I would stop when they quit coming in and stealing the popcorn. It has been probably 20 years since I have made homemade popcorn. I recently went home to visit my family and found that my parents started growing popcorn. They gave me a bag to take home and try. YUM YUM!!
It is better than I remember. Microwave popcorn is no longer on my list of things to buy. I put in an order with the family and requested my own bushel of popcorn next year. Thanks for reminding me how to make it again. :)
From bacon drippings back to coconut oil. Just did my first attempt at stove top popcorn because my microwave busted this morning. Worked out fine, fluffy and tasty.
Extra virgin coconut oil in a ratio of 1:4 (oil to kernels). Everything popped in 3 minutes on my burner’s medium setting. Testing whether or not some of it will keep til tomorrow for my children’s’ school snack.
Would advise to not douse the popcorn with butter afterwards, though. A pinch of salt or nutritional yeast but not more oil O_o
Use bacon drippings for your oil…just try it. You won’t go back…
Here is my absolute fave way to eat popcorn now (and it’s healthy to boot!!)
1/3 cup popcorn kernels
melted coconut oil
salt
Brown paper lunch bag
Put the popcorn in a brown paper lunch bag. Fold the top over once or twice. Place in the microwave and nuke just until you hear the popping slow (don’t wait for it to stop popping or it will scorch).
Put the coconut oil in a bowl and microwave for 15-20 seconds to liquefy the coconut oil. Pour 1/2 the coconut oil over the popcorn, add salt and shake. Repeat process. Delish!!
We love popcorn in this house (anyway my son and I do).
I used to buy Orville Redenbachers Movie Time Popcorn at Costco but stopped and started buying the Act III Natural Popcorn in single serving bags. My son did not like the change. So I went to Shop Rite and bought a box of 10 packages of Act III Buttered Popcorn. He likes that better. I used up the other stuff by making the oven caramel corn for the holidays and everyone loved it that way.
Thanks for the recipe. Looks good.