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    Home ยป Recipes ยป Desserts

    Buffalo Popcorn

    Published: Jan 22, 2025 by Lisa Killian ยท This post may contain affiliate links. Please read myย  disclosure policy.

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    Buffalo Popcorn, sweet with a little heat, this buffalo popcorn will be your next favorite treat. Perfectly crunchy and extra delicious, this snack will be great for your next BBQ or tailgate party!

    buffalo popcorn in a bowl
    This sweet and spicy snack will be your new favorite way to eat popcorn!

    I originally came up with this recipe when I wanted to have a unique football game watching treat. We all love eating buffalo wings during a game so I thought Iโ€™d combine that delicious flavor with my favorite snack and make Buffalo Wing Popcorn!

    YUM! This homemade buffalo wing popcorn is the perfect balance between sweet and spicy!

    holding a piece of buffalo popcorn
    I love how delicious this treat is!

    For more popcorn recipe donโ€™t miss:

    caramel popcorn in multiple bowls
    Caramel Popcorn
    popcorn ball close up
    Halloween Popcorn Balls
    Christmas Popcorn close up
    Christmas Popcorn
    This chocolate drizzled popcorn is easy to make and super addicting! Three ingredients is all it takes to make this yummy treat! #popcorn #chocolate #whitechocolate #atablefullofjoy #party #forkids #easytomake
    Chocolate Striped Popcorn

    Popcorn has been one of my favorite treats since I was a kid. I love it anyway you make it- sweet or savory.

    We even had caramel corn at my wedding.

    So, I knew making a spicy caramel corn would be an instant favorite- and it was!

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    We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!

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    What ingredients do you need?

    • Popcorn- I just use microwaved butter popcorn, but you can pop your own with kernels!
    • Butter
    • Brown Sugar
    • Corny Syrup- I prefer light corn syrup for this recipe
    • Buffalo Wing Sauce- I love Frankโ€™s Buffalo Wing Sauce
    • Salt
    • Cayenne Pepper
    • Baking Soda
    pouring caramel over popcorn in a bowl
    Making this spicy popcorn is really simple!

    How to make Buffalo Popcorn:

    1. Pop your popcorn and remove the unpopped kernels. Then divide popcorn between two large rimmed and parchment lined baking sheets.
    2. Combine the butter, sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a sauce pan and melt. Stirring to combine.
    3. Once combined, stop stirring and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then add the hot sauce and boil another 2 minutes.
    4. Then remove from heat and stir in the cayenne pepper and baking soda.
    5. Pour over the popcorn, stir to coat, then bake 1 hour. Stir the popcorn every 15 minutes (so 4 times).
    6. Then remove from oven, allow to cool, and enjoy!
    butter and sugar and salt in sauce pan before melting
    butter and sugar melted in sauce pan
    caramel in sauce pan boiling
    adding hot sauce to caramel
    boiling caramel
    stirring in baking soda to caramel
    adding cayenne to caramel
    stirring in baking soda to caramel
    pouring caramel over popcorn on baking sheet
    stirring popcorn on baking sheet
    buffalo popcorn on baking sheet after baking
    buffalo popcorn on baking sheet

    High Altitude Adjustments


    If youโ€™ve made my regular caramel corn recipe, you know I recommend adjusting the original recipe for high altitude.

    However, with the addition of extra liquid via the hot sauce you donโ€™t need to make any adjustments for this recipe.

    Frequently Asked Caramel Corn Questions:

    Why do you bake caramel corn?

    You bake caramel corn so that the popcorn will last longer. I think it has to do with breaking down the structure of the sugar crystals and how they reharden afterwards but I am not 100% sure about it.

    What does baking soda do for caramel corn?

    Baking soda is a base and reacts with the acid in the brown sugar and corn syrup to form carbon dioxide. The chemical reaction forms air bubbles that when the caramel cools will create a softer texture instead a hard candy texture.

    buffalo wing popcorn in a bowl
    I hope you love this recipe as much as I do!

    Don't miss my latest posts:

    • Churro Cheesecake
    • Bacon Roses
    • Easy Lemon Cupcakes
    • Easy Birthday Cupcakes
    • Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb Recipe
    buffalo popcorn in bowl with cayenne pepper in background pinterest image
    Don't forget to pin this recipe!

    Video

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    buffalo popcorn in bowl with cayenne pepper in background featured image

    Buffalo Popcorn

    Buffalo Popcorn, sweet with a little heat, this buffalo popcorn will be your next favorite treat. Perfectly crunchy and extra delicious, this snack will be great for your next BBQ or tailgate party!
    4.82 from 11 votes
    Print Pin
    Author: Lisa Killian
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 1 hour hour
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes
    Course: Snack
    Cuisine: American
    Servings: 14 Cups Popcorn

    Ingredients

    • 3 bags of popped popcorn
    • 1 cup butter
    • 1 cup brown sugar
    • ยฝ cup corn syrup
    • ยฝ cup buffalo wing sauce I recommend Franks Buffalo Sauce
    • ยฝ teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda

    Instructions

    • Line 2 baking sheets with foil and preheat oven to 250ยฐF.
    • Pop bags of popcorn in the microwave. (3 bags of buttered popcorn)
      popcorn on baking sheet
    • Remove unpopped kernels by placing a cooling rack over a baking sheet and pouring the popcorn onto it. The kernels will fall through but not the popped popcorn. Divide popcorn between prepared baking sheets.
      popcorn on cooling rack
    • Melt butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt in sauce pan, bring to a boil stirring constantly. (1 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar, ยฝ cup corn syrup, ยฝ teaspoon salt)
      butter and sugar melted in sauce pan
    • Once at a boil let boil 5 minutes* without stirring*.
      caramel in sauce pan boiling
    • Stir in hot sauce and return to a boil. Boil for 2 more minutes. ( ยฝ cup buffalo sauce)
      adding hot sauce to caramel
    • Remove from heat and stir in cayenne pepper and baking soda. The caramel will foam up a bit- this is normal. (1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper)
      stirring in baking soda to caramel
    • Pour over popcorn (half goes on each tray) and stir to coat the popcorn.
      pouring caramel over popcorn on baking sheet
    • Bake for an hour stirring every 15 minutes.
      popcorn on baking sheet after stirring
    • Once done baking, allow to cool and then enjoy! *
      buffalo popcorn on baking sheet after baking

    Notes

    Tips and Tricks
    • *Stop stirring once the mixture starts to boil. This prevents the sugar from crystalizing and the caramel from becoming grainy.
    • * Store any leftover buffalo wing caramel corn in an air tight zip lock baggie.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 253kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 541mg | Potassium: 64mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 486IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 0.5mg

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    Comments

      4.82 from 11 votes (10 ratings without comment)

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Alison says

      February 26, 2023 at 9:30 pm

      5 stars
      The recipe says it will make 45 cups and that is just not possible with a single batch. I only got 13 cups

      Reply
      • Lisa says

        February 27, 2023 at 1:25 pm

        Oh good catch! That was definitely a typo on my end! Thank you for letting me know, I fixed it, and hope you enjoyed it!

        Reply
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