German Popcorn is – other than the American version – fat-free and sweet. It might resemble kettle corn but is still different.
Salty popcorn – I would never have expected that!
Imagine: You are at the zoo with your kids and your sweet tooth. You buy some cotton candyย andย stuff it in your mouth. It takes a few seconds until you realize: It tastes SALTY! You are surprised, shocked, and almost want to spit it out because this is NOT what you expected. Got the idea? This is what happened to me when I bought my first popcorn atย the Houston Zoo.ย It had never occurred to me that it could be salty and buttery.
I never even had the idea that it could have any other taste than sugar-sweet. My whole life it was a sweet treat and now this surprise! It was completely unexpected. I’m still not really over it! *lol*
Video: How to Make German Popcorn
Try the fat-free, sweet version as we have it in Germanyย – what do you think about it?
I wonder how this feels the other way: from salty to sweet.
Maybe surprise someone the same way I got surprised and then let me know what happened.
I mean: It’s like biting into a banana and it turns out to taste like a pickle. Kind of unexpected, huh?
Please don’t get the wrong impression: There is nothing wrong with salty popcorn. It’s just a matter of “what we are used to”.
Which version do you prefer in the future, after trying my recipe? Is my homemade sweet popcorn as weird to you as the salty version is to me?
Please let me know, I really want to know!

The Microwave Popper for this recipe can be purchased HERE!
Popcorn – German Style
Equipment
Ingredients
- 50 g corn (try to get NonGMO)
- 2 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Heat the water.
- Dissolve the sugar in the water.2 tbsp water, 2 tbsp sugar
- Put the corn in a microwave safe bowl.50 g corn
- Add the sugar water until the corn is completely covered.
- Stir.
- Put the lid losely onto the bowl.
- Microwave on high until popping sound becomes less frequent.
- Careful: HOT! Let stand for a couple of minutes before opening lid and before touching the popcorn.
- Warning: A regular plastic container will get too hot and melt. Use only a microwave bowl for this.
This popcorn is truly wonderful. Sweet, yet not too sweet. Crunchy goodness. Fantastisch! Vielen dank!
I haven’t tried making your popcorn yet but I sure will give it a try. I love the regular with butter and salt. I went to a fair and had what they call kettle corn and loved it so I should like this. I have been just popping con and quickly sprinkling sugar on it while it is hot. Sort of works, so I think this will be much better. Thank You for another recipe keeper.
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Iโm the opposite. Grew up in the states in a popcorn eating family, salty buttery popcorn. Joined the army and was stationed in Germany. Had a great time, met and married my wife there. We went to a fest one night and I saw the big beautiful popcorn machine and it reminded me of home. Bought the biggest bag they had. Put a giant fistful in my mouth and the spit it all out on the ground! I was stunned. I like Carmel corn a lot but there is something in the sweet German stuff that I donโt like. Almost like a diet soda taste. Tried it many times and still donโt like it. Salty and Buttery for me. BUT, my wife likes your recipe a lot!
Your comment made me smile! Yes, I know the feeling of an unexpected taste all too well! I think it’s ok to like one kind and dislike the other. Food and memories go together so often and some foods more than others and we want them to taste just like we memorize them and then think of old times. With two separate popcorn buckets in different tastes, you at least don’t have to share :-)
Here is my personal popcorn story: I overate popcorn at the movies when I was like 38 weeks pregnant. I then felt so terrible and sick, that I thought I would go into labor (but no, it took another 3 weeks) and for years I couldn’t even stand the smell of popcorn. Luckily that aversion has passed!
growing up in a hungarian household, for most of my childhood i’ve only known salty popcorn despite being in germany. i tasted the sweet sometimes in cinema but found it weird. it wasn’t until my college years that everything changed – since that, i am way into sweet popcorn and wouldnt eat salty again.
I’ve always eaten salty popcorn. I thought it was the only type! Until three days ago, when I bought a pack of sweet one. I wasn’t surprised like you, though. Having bought it in a package, I was able to see the “Sweet” sign on the pack before eating it :).
It didn’t taste very good for me. I always associated popcorn with salt. I treated it as a kind of snack like salty sticks, peanuts, pretzels or crackers. In my opinion, those are great for eating when watching something because too much sweet makes me nauseous, and salt doesn’t.
After some time, this sweet popcorn wasn’t too bad, by the way.
Not better than that excellent salty popcorn :P, but I can understand how one may be a fan of it.
PS I got that popcorn in a German supermarket. Who would’ve thought? :D
Hi 5o1d13R,
isn’t it funny how we seem to unwillingly kind of reject food that is not familiar to us? I am getting more and more used to salty popcorn but would always prefer the sweet version – I have a sweet tooth though. But also when we came to the US we didn’t like any of the sweets here and now, after more than 6 years I love Mike & Ike and some other sweets. I simply forgot the taste of German sweets and got used to how things taste here. The only thing I will probably never compromise is chocolate. My favorite brand is the German “Ritter”.
Ritter is wonderful!