Take your snacking game to the next level with these Homemade Popcorn Seasonings. With two sweet and two savory options, there’s a seasoning for everyone!
Popcorn for Family Movie Night!
Whether you’re settling in for a movie night, TV show binge session, or watching the Olympics, having the right snacks on-hand is critical. For us, a perfect snack is a blend of sweet and salty flavors, and snackable textures (think chocolate covered pretzels).
You could always mix up a bowl of our healthy trail mix, but let’s be honest; you’ll most likely just end up picking out the chocolate and your favorite nut.
Bagged popcorn is the undisputed champion of TV time snacking, and while you can easily take it to the next level by adding salt, butter, and sweets (like in this white chocolate popcorn recipe), today we’re gonna keep things simple and show you how to boost your popcorn game with these homemade popcorn seasonings that will satisfy the flavors you’re craving.
Homemade Popcorn: Better than the Bag
We don’t watch a ton of TV as a family, so when we do, I like to make it a special event. My husband got me a Whirley Pop for Christmas and I’ve been cranking out homemade popcorn to enjoy with our TV time ever since. We all have fun gathering around the stove, turning the lever, and waiting for the POP POP POP to start!
The following is a collection of four seasoning recipes (two sweet and two savory) that we really enjoy. Most of them are made with ingredients you probably already have lying around, and all of them can be stored for several weeks so they’ll be ready whenever the popcorn craving hits.
Homemade Popcorn Seasoning Flavors
Here’s a quick breakdown of the flavors:
- Parmesan Garlic and Herb- Pretty self explanatory, this blend is packed with Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and Italian herbs. I like to add crushed red pepper for heat (and a flavor reminiscent of pizza), but feel free to omit it if you prefer. This blend also happens to be amazing on pastas and pizza, so it’s a nice versatile spice combo to have around!
- Smoky BBQ- A little spicy, a little sweet, and a little smoky, this is a really fun combo made with spices you probably have in your pantry right now.
- Cinnamon and Sugar- Exactly what it sounds like, this seasoning is super simple to make and of course, delicious. I actually like the flavor of this one best with brown sugar, but white sugar lasts longer without clumping. If you’re using it right away, go with brown. If you’re planning to store it, go with white sugar. Will loves to sprinkle this on toast too.
- Peanut Butter- This was a total surprise, but ended up being my favorite! Powdered peanut butter, powdered sugar, and salt make an irresistible coating for popcorn. Even better if you toss your popcorn with some M&Ms too. So good!
Making homemade popcorn seasoning is as easy as grabbing a bowl, dumping in the ingredients and whisking or shaking them together!
How to Use Popcorn Seasoning
All of these seasonings can be used on either plain popped popcorn or microwave popcorn.
I’ve included salt in each of the seasoning recipes, but if you’re planning to use them on popcorn that’s already buttered and salted, I would omit that.
If you’re popping popcorn from scratch, you’ll need to spray or drizzle it with butter, olive oil, or coconut oil after popping so the seasonings have something to stick to.
I picked up these spice jars at World Market for about $5, but you can also pick up similar ones on Amazon (<affiliate).
The Olympics may be over, but you can bet this homemade popcorn will be my watching buddy through the Oscar’s and March Madness too. I hope your family enjoys munching on this as much as we do!
Parmesan Garlic Popcorn Seasoning
Sweet and savory popcorn seasonings make your typical bag of popcorn feel extra special.
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian herbs
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Instructions
Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.
When ready to serve, shake the seasoning on either bagged microwave popcorn or homemade popcorn. Just make sure the popcorn has some kind of butter or oil on it so the seasonings have something to stick to. If you're using a bagged popcorn that's already salted, I would omit the salt from the seasonings. My favorite recipe for stove top popcorn can be found here.
Notes
These seasoning recipes make enough for a few batches of popcorn, but feel free to halve and/or double them if you need more or less.
BBQ Popcorn Seasoning
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
- When ready to serve, shake the seasoning on either bagged microwave popcorn or homemade popcorn. Just make sure the popcorn has some kind of butter or oil on it so the seasonings have something to stick to. If you're using a bagged popcorn that's already salted, I would omit the salt from the seasonings. My favorite recipe for stove top popcorn can be found here.
Peanut Butter Popcorn Seasonings
Ingredients
- 4 Tablespoons peanut butter powder
- 2 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container in the pantry.
- When ready to serve, shake the seasoning on either bagged microwave popcorn or homemade popcorn. Just make sure the popcorn has some kind of butter or oil on it so the seasonings have something to stick to. If you're using a bagged popcorn that's already salted, I would omit the salt from the seasonings. My favorite recipe for stove top popcorn can be found here.
Cinnamon Sugar Popcorn Seasoning
Ingredients
- 8 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Store in an airtight container in the pantry.
- When ready to serve, shake the seasoning on either bagged microwave popcorn or homemade popcorn. Just make sure the popcorn has some kind of butter or oil on it so the seasonings have something to stick to. If you're using a bagged popcorn that's already salted, I would omit the salt from the seasonings. My favorite recipe for stove top popcorn can be found here.
Thanks for the recipe for the Parmesan garlic! It was delicious! I did add garlic butter from papa johns also! No healthy but delicious!
What kind of parm are you using? Like the kind in Kraft jar
Yes! I would use a very fine grated Parm like that.
What a wonderful blog!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful knowledge with us.
This was excellent! The garlic and parmesan was perfect. I made it for my dad’s birthday movie night. The red pepper powder adds the perfect amount of kick-10/10
Thanks so much for letting me know! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I like to use a coffee grinder for an extra smooth blend and I find it helps distribute more evenly. Great flavors!
Great idea! Thanks for sharing!
These look great! Especially the peanut butter one! Can’t wait to try these! Have you tried putting cocoa powder in with the peanut butter one…I might see how that tastes, too.
The peanut butter one is my favorite. 🙂 I haven’t tried it, but that combo sounds yummy! You might need to adjust the powdered sugar to counteract the bitterness of the cocoa. You could also try adding hot chocolate powder!
Where do you get the peanut butter powder?
Hi Terri! You can find it in most grocery stores, or on Amazon – (https://amzn.to/31o5FnH affiliate link).
Where are the other recipes? I have searched all over and it keeps bringing me back to this page with ONE recipe on it. Missing the other three.
I am so sorry about that! I’ve fixed it and all of the recipes are now in the post. Hope you enjoy!
I think I missed the recipe for smoky bbq topping – where can i find it please?
Hi Linda! I am so sorry for that and for the delayed response. I’ve been on maternity leave the last month. 🙂 All the recipes, including the smoky BBQ are now included in the post!