Peanut Butter Popcorn

I could eat popcorn every day, and peanut butter popcorn is a nice change of pace from traditional butter and salt. It’s everything you want from popcorn: sweet, crunchy, and a little bit salty. It’s sticky too, but that’s just a bonus.

If you love this peanut butter popcorn, try my s’mores popcorn, or blueberries and cream popcorn next! If you’re more of a caramel corn fan, be sure to try my recipe for homemade caramel corn. If you’re looking for simple ways to season plain popcorn, try my 6 popcorn seasonings.

Crunchy Peanut Butter Popcorn

A gourmet-style treat at home. Bags of store-bought gourmet popcorn are pricy! Plus, they’re usually disappointing: all the added chocolate, nuts, and candy is delicious but the popcorn itself is often stale. Womp womp. This peanut butter popcorn lets you make a tasty popcorn treat at home with minimal effort.

Easy to make. While we’re on the topic of minimal effort, this peanut butter popcorn requires only 10 minutes of hands-on time and 20 minutes of baking time, so it’s easy to whip up whenever you’re craving a sweet and salty snack.

Great for a party. Peanut butter popcorn is excellent for birthday parties, holidays, and game-day get-togethers. Everyone loves it!

Ingredient Notes

• Popcorn Kernels: Pop the kernels first. I prefer to use a hot air popcorn popper. You can use plain microwave popcorn, too, or buy a bag of plain popcorn. Whichever method works for you will work for this peanut butter popcorn recipe.
• Dry Roasted Peanuts: Roasted peanuts add an element of crunch and extra peanut flavor to this popcorn.
• Honey: That irresistible honey flavor is always delicious with peanuts and peanut butter.
• Granulated Sugar: Adding sugar instead of only using honey helps make the peanut butter mixture form a glaze, rather than just being a sticky mess. 
• Pure Vanilla Extract: Because the only thing better than peanut butter with honey is vanilla peanut butter with honey!
• Creamy Peanut Butter: Use the kind that’s shelf-stable and doesn’t need to be stirred before using or refrigerated after opening. It’s more predictable for cooking and baking. (If you’re a peanut butter fan, you’ll want to try my peanut butter pancakes, too!)
• Fine Sea Salt: For just the right amount of salty finish.

How to make Peanut Butter Popcorn

Preheat the oven to 250℉. Stir together the popped popcorn and peanuts in a large bowl. Prepare a large rimmed sheet pan with parchment paper or a silpat baking mat.

In a small saucepan set over medium heat, combine the honey and sugar. Bring to a simmer and then continue to simmer for about 2 minutes, or until the sugar dissolves. 

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the vanilla and peanut butter until the mixture is smooth.

Pour the hot peanut butter mixture over the popcorn mixture and quickly stir until the popcorn is well coated. Try to do this as quickly as possible.

Spread the peanut butter popcorn onto the prepared sheet pan. Bake it for 10 minutes, give it a stir, and bake for 10 more minutes.

Cool the popcorn for 10 minutes or so before serving it. This treat is best served the day it’s prepared.

Recipe Variations

• Make it nut-free. Nut-free peanut butter popcorn? Yes! It’s totally possible. Use sunflower seed butter instead of peanut butter. For the peanuts, swap in roasted sunflower seeds or pepitas. If you can find roasted edamame, I’ve found that they have a similar crunch to roasted peanuts.
• Take it over-the-top. Once the peanut butter popcorn cools, add a drizzle of melted dark chocolate, or toss in Reese’s Pieces or miniature peanut butter cups.
• Double it. Want to make this recipe for a crowd? You can easily double it. Just note that the peanut butter mixture will take a few extra minutes on the stove and you’ll need to bake the popcorn on two baking sheets instead of one. Use the largest bowl or pan you have to stir everything together.

Make Ahead Ideas

You can get a head start on this recipe by popping the popcorn a day ahead of time. Cool it completely before storing it in an airtight container until you’re ready to make your peanut butter popcorn.

Storage Tips

Peanut butter popcorn is best enjoyed the day it’s made.