Chicken and Waffles Popcorn

It all started one day when we spotted a bag of chicken and waffles flavored popcorn. Of course we bought it and tore right into it. More than anything we were so curious how they were going to be able to replicate such a complex flavor. And, sadly, the answer was that they couldn't. It tasted slightly sweet and vaguely of maple. OK, so that would be the waffles part. Where was the chicken part?

But now we were intrigued so we did some internet sleuthing and found a popcorn seasoning claiming to be a chicken and waffles blend. But, based on the ingredients, we would get the waffles flavor again but not the chicken. OK, challenge accepted. We'll have to make it ourselves.

We didn't really think mixing actual chicken into the popcorn would get us to the flavor we wanted but chicken base would. You can find it in any supermarket, either in a paste or little cubes. Basically a concentrated flavoring made with chicken, veggies and seasonings to add a boost to soups, stews, etc. But we were going to use it to give popcorn that chicken essence.

Chicken base normally gets added to water but we obviously didn't want the popcorn to get soggy so we used butter. Because of that, we opted to microwave the popcorn instead of our usual oil on the stovetop method. We love using our own microwave popper. Once we popped the corn, we melted butter and whisked in the chicken base. It smelled amazing and we poured it over the popcorn and gave it a thorough mix. Then we baked it on or a few minutes to seal in the flavor. Success!

The waffles part was easier. We could have just opted for a maple flavored seasoning but we decided to actually make waffles. You can use pre-made ones as well but we love our waffle recipe and we added maple syrup to the batter to make them extra mapley. Then we cut them up and crisped them a bit in the oven with the popcorn. The result was a recipe that a friend called "very snacky" and we have to agree. We'd love to know what you think when you make this.

Chicken and Waffles Popcorn

Servings

4

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

15 minutes

Our recipe for chicken and waffles popcorn combines the sweet and savory aspects of the well loved dish into a crunchy, flavorful popcorn snack.

Ingredients

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• ⅓ Cup Dell Cove Mushroom popcorn kernels

• 4 Tablespoons butter, melted

• 3 Tablespoons chicken base

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• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

•  1 Tablespoon maple syrup

•  2 Teaspoons baking powder

• ½ Teaspoon salt

•  2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

•  ¾ Cup whole milk

•  1 Teaspoon vanilla

Directions

1. Make the waffle batter by whisking together the maple syrup, melted butter, vanilla and milk in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet batter but don't overmix. It's OK if there are a few lumps left.

2. Pre-heat your waffle maker and add about 1/4 cup of batter for each 4" waffle. Cook according to package directions for your particular machine.

3. Pop ⅓ cup of mushroom popcorn kernels in a microwave popper.

4. Pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees F.

5. Drizzle the chicken base and butter mixture over the popped corn, stir to combine and pour onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

6. Cut the cooked waffles into pieces and place on the baking sheet next to the popcorn. Bake for 10 minutes and mix both in a serving bowl.