Best Maple Brown Butter Candy Kettle Corn Recipes

KETTLE GULYAS

Steps:

• Peel onions and chop into coarse pieces. Melt lard in a heavy 6 to 8-quart Dutch oven. Add the beef cubes to the oil and brown. Work in batches if necessary, removing cubes as they are browned. Don't overcrowd the pan. Add onions to the pot. Heat should be low in order not to brown the onions. When onions become glossy, add back the seared beef. Stir.
• Meanwhile, chop and crush the garlic with the caraway seeds and a little salt; use the flat side of a heavy knife.
• Take kettle from heat. Stir in paprika and the garlic mixture. Stir rapidly with a wooden spoon. Immediately after paprika is absorbed, add 2 1/2 quarts warm water. (Cool water toughens meat if you add it with the meat is frying.)
• Replace covered kettle over low heat and cook for about 1 hour.
• While the braising is going on, peel the tomato, then cut into 1-inch pieces. Core green peppers and slice into rings. Peel potatoes and cut into 3/4-inch dice.
• After the meat has been braised for about 1 hour (the time depends on the cut of the meat), add the tomato and green peppers and enough water to give a soup consistency. Add a little salt. Simmer slowly for another 30 minutes.
• Add potatoes and cook the gulyas till done. Adjust salt. Add hot cherry pepper pods if you want to make the stew spicy hot.
• Cook the dumplings in the stew.
• Serve the gulyas steaming hot in large, extra-deep bowls. The meat should be tender, but not falling apart.
• Mix the egg with flour and salt.
• Spoon the mixture into boiling soup, using 1/4 teaspoon at a time. Cook in the soup for 2 or 3 minutes just before serving.

MAPLE CANDY

Steps:

• Line the bottom and sides of a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper; brush the parchment with vegetable oil. Bring the maple syrup to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat, then reduce the heat to medium low. Dip the back of a spoon in vegetable oil and run it over the top of the foam to help it subside. Increase the heat to medium and continue cooking until a candy thermometer registers 246 degrees F, 25 to 30 minutes. Pour the syrup into a heatproof bowl and let cool, 5 minutes.
• Beat the syrup with a mixer on medium-low speed until it starts to lighten in color and turn opaque, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Pour into the prepared pan and spread with an offset spatula; let cool completely, about 1 hour. Lift out of the pan and cut into pieces.

SPICED KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Have a hot pad or kitchen towel and a paper grocery bag or large baking sheet handy. Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or pan over medium heat. Place a couple of kernels of popcorn in the pan. When the kernels pop, proceed to the next step.
• Once the oil is hot enough, add the butter and stir quickly into the oil to prevent burning. Immediately add the popcorn and stir (the butter may not be completely melted). Add the sugar right away and stir again. Cover the pan, and start shaking it gently back and forth on the burner, using a hot pad or kitchen towel to protect your hands. Keep shaking as the popcorn pops.
• Once you start hearing 1 or 2 seconds of quiet between the pops, turn the heat off immediately. This means the popcorn is mostly popped. (Be careful not to overcook, as the popcorn can easily burn.) Pour the popcorn into the paper bag or onto the baking sheet and sprinkle with salt, cinnamon, and cayenne. Allow to cool a few minutes before placing in a bowl. (Careful, the hot sugar makes the popcorn extremely hot!)

GRILLED KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Preheat a grill to medium high. (If using a charcoal grill, make sure that the coals are several inches below the grate.)
• Combine the popcorn, vegetable oil, sugar and fine salt in an 8- to 9-inch round disposable aluminum cake pan and stir to coat. Tear off two 18-inch-long sheets of heavy-duty foil. Crimp the end of one sheet around the rim of the pan on one side, then crimp the other end of the foil on the opposite side of the pan, leaving 5 to 6 inches of room above the kernels so they have room to pop. Rotate the pan 90 degrees and repeat to crimp the second sheet of foil onto the pan, perpendicular to the first, making sure that the entire edge is well sealed. The foil should create a dome over the top of the pan.
• Once the grill registers 350˚ F to 375˚ F, put the pan on the grill. Wait until you hear sizzling, about 2 minutes, then, using tongs, start shaking the pan frequently until the popcorn starts to pop, 3 to 5 minutes (it's important to keep the pan moving so the sugar doesn't burn before the kernels start to pop). Continue to cook, shaking almost constantly, until the popping subsides, 3 to 5 more minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and let stand a few minutes. Carefully cut an X into the top of the foil and peel back the layers to expose the popcorn. Sprinkle with smoked sea salt. The popcorn will feel slightly sticky at first but will become crisp as it cools.

KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, stir in the sugar and popcorn. Cover, and shake the pot constantly to keep the sugar from burning. Once the popping has slowed to once every 2 to 3 seconds, remove the pot from the heat and continue to shake for a few minutes until the popping has stopped. Pour into a large bowl, and allow to cool, stirring occasionally to break up large clumps.

STATE FAIR KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Heat the corn oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the corn kernels once hot. When the first couple of kernels pop, stir in the white and brown sugars. Cover the pot with a lid, and agitate the pot in a circular motion on the stove. Allow the corn to pop, agitating constantly, until the rate has slowed down to one pop every two or three seconds. Remove the pot from the stove, and shake the pot until the popping stops. Pour into a large bowl, and allow to cool to room temperature. Break apart the large clumps of popcorn by hand, and season with salt to taste.

MAPLE-SPICED KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add oil and 3 popcorn kernels; cover. Once they pop, add remaining popcorn kernels; cover, and shake pot. Cook until a few more kernels start to pop.
• Add confectioners' sugar, and cook, covered, shaking pot, until kernels stop popping, about 2 minutes. Add maple sugar, and remove from heat. Let stand for 5 seconds, then stir to coat. Transfer to a bowl. Add 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; toss to coat.

SWEET AND SPICY CAST IRON KETTLE CORN

Steps:

• Preheat grill if using. Place a large cast iron skillet on grill with vegetable oil in it. Heat until almost smoking. Pour in remaining ingredients and cover skillet. Shake skillet gently while wearing an oven mitt, constantly while corn pops. Remove from heat and pour into a large bowl. Don't let it go too long in between pops or the sugar and butter will burn. It's better to have some "old maids" than burnt popcorn.