The Best Homemade Caramel Corn with Cashews and Pecans

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Treat yourself to the best Caramel Corn loaded with cashews and pecans! This homemade snack features rich, buttery caramel made from scratch, turning every bite into a sweet and crunchy delight. It’s a fun seasonal project that’s perfect for sharing — and trust me, this caramel corn is always a huge hit for movie night!

Ingredient Notes

• Popcorn | You’ll need some freshly popped corn ready to go! Measure out 1 cup of un-popped kernels or 24 cups of popped popcorn. See below for the best ways to pop your popcorn.
• Nuts | Adding pecan halves and cashews is totally optional, but they do make this caramel corn extra special! 
• Butter | Use unsalted butter because we will also add a bit of salt to the recipe. 
• Brown sugar | The best caramel starts with brown sugar! You can use light brown sugar or dark depending on how much molasses flavor you want. 
• Corn syrup | Light corn syrup is the ingredient that helps the caramel not become grainy.
• Salt | I like to use unsalted butter and add the salt separately so I have complete control of the overall saltiness of the caramel corn. However, if you use salted butter, you don’t need to add the extra salt. 
• Baking soda | Add a little baking soda to create air bubbles in the caramel, so it’s easier to coat the popcorn and helps keep it from becoming too hard.
• Vanilla extract | As a final touch, add vanilla to give the homemade caramel more flavor and richness.

How to Make The Best Caramel Corn Recipe

Movie night just got even better with this easy and absolutely delicious caramel popcorn from scratch!

STEP 1 | Prehat and prep

First, preheat the oven to 225 degrees. In a large roasting pan, combine the popped popcorn, pecans, and cashews.

STEP 2 | Melt butter to start the caramel

Next, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat and stir in the brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt.

STEP 3 | Boil the mixture

Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring constantly. Then, boil for 5 more minutes without stirring.

STEP 4 | Add baking soda

Remove the caramel mixture from the heat and stir in baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will foam up—this is a normal chemical reaction between the baking soda and caramel mixture ingredients.

STEP 5 | Coat the popcorn with caramel

Pour the caramel over the popped corn and nuts and stir well with a silicone spatula.

STEP 6 | Bake and stir

Now, it’s time to bake the caramel corn for 1 hour in the preheated oven, stirring the popcorn with a rubber spatula every 15 minutes.

STEP 7 | Cool, store, and enjoy!

Finally, remove the caramel corn from the oven and let cool completely. Then, break it into pieces and store it in an airtight container or dig in while it’s fresh!

Love it? Try more homemade popcorn recipes, like Oreo Cookie Popcorn with Peppermint, perfect for the holidays, and classic Cheddar Cheese Popcorn – Yum!

Variations and Substitutions

• Chocolate Caramel Popcorn. For a tasty addition to the recipe, add milk, white, or semi-sweet chocolate chips.
• Maple Caramel Corn. Replace about half of the corn syrup with maple syrup for a hint of maple flavor.
• Go Nuts! Swap out the pecans and cashews for your favorites, like almonds, peanuts, or walnuts. Or combine them all for extra texture and flavor.

What’s the best way to pop popcorn?

Stovetop Popcorn

Growing up, we always made stovetop popcorn in a large heavy pot and that’s exactly what I did for this recipe. To pop corn on the stove top, heat up oil (coconut, canola, peanut, or vegetable oil) in the pan, add the kernels, cover with a lid, and shake until the popcorn is done.

Easy Microwave Method

You can also use microwave popcorn for homemade caramel popcorn. Just be sure to choose the kind without butter or salt.

Use a Popcorn Maker

If you have one, pop the popcorn kernels in an air popper or another specialized popcorn maker.  

Bonus Tip: Storing your popcorn kernels in the freezer ensures the popcorn doesn’t lose any moisture so that every kernel pops! Use it straight from the freezer to the popcorn maker.

Storage and Reheating Tips

• When stored in an airtight container, homemade caramel corn will remain fresh for 2 to 3 weeks.
• Be sure to wait to store it until it comes to room temperature so the texture remains fresh until the next time you’re craving the buttery caramel sweetness!

Frequently Asked Questions

What to Serve With Caramel Corn

This recipe makes the perfect holiday gift for friends and family. It’s also a great way to thank teachers or friendly neighbors around Thanksgiving time.

Add some classic cookies, like Christmas Pinwheel Cookies, to the gift, or complete it with something for the recipient to sip on, like my Chai Tea Drink Mix. 

And if you’re not serving the popcorn as a gift, toss the batch into a large bowl, gather around, and enjoy it with your loved ones for a movie night or as a fun holiday snack.

Beyond the Recipe

Making Homemade Caramel Corn tossed with cashews and pecans has been a holiday tradition at our house since the early 1990s. I promise, no one can resist this crunchy, sweet and salty treat!

Way back when, I clipped the the original recipe for Nutty Caramel Corn from a Southern Living magazine and tucked it away in my card file recipe box.

For you younger readers, that was way before pinning recipes on Pinterest became popular!

I first started making caramel corn to package as holiday treats for my co-workers, teachers, and neighbors. The thing is, once someone was the recipient of a bag of homemade caramel corn, they expected it again the next year!

One recipe of homemade caramel corn with pecans and cashews makes a BIG batch and is great for gift-giving!