Spicy butter caramel popcorn

Name: Spicy butter caramel popcorn
Yield: Serves 4-8
Ingredients: ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda); 1 scant teaspoon fine sea salt; ½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper; 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds; 1 teaspoon cumin seeds; 1 tablespoon clear honey or golden syrup; 1 tablespoon sunflower oil; 110 g (3¾ oz) popping corn; 200 g (7 oz) unsalted butter, diced; ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon; ¼ teaspoon ground chilli; 200 g (1 cup) soft light brown sugar; ¼ teaspoon ground mace

Preparation info

Serves
4-8

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

A Whisper of Cardamom

By Eleanor Ford

Published 2024

About

Get ready for the most addictive snack with a cloak of butter caramel and intense cacophony of warming spices. I particularly like the mustard seeds here; they are rarely used in sweet preparations, but they have a nutty aroma that works well with popcorn and release a snap of sharp heat if you happen to bite one.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon sunflower oil
110 g (3¾ oz) popping corn

Snack
Vegetarian
Gluten-free
Spicy

Method

Mix all the spices together in a small bowl. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment or a silicone liner.

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium-high heat, add the popping corn and cover. Cook, shaking the pan occasionally for about 4 minutes, until the popping stops. Tumble into a large bowl, picking out and discarding any unpopped kernels.

Wipe out the pan with kitchen pa