Buttered popcorn is the ultimate movie theater snack. It is so satisfying to drizzle copious amounts of fake butter onto your popcorn, shake and disperse the flavor, and bite into delicious little nuggets of gold during film trailers. There’s something about buttered popcorn that is nostalgic and warming, a feeling that few other snacks create.
If you’re watching a movie at home, chances are you’ll be craving movie theater popcorn to snack on. Buttery, salty, bright yellow, and a bit artificial — movie theater popcorn is uniquely craveable. A good microwavable popcorn is similar to movie theater popcorn, yet balanced in flavors. The yellow butter flavoring should be evenly distributed, but there shouldn’t be too much of it so as to overpower the flavor of the corn kernels. The popcorn should be rich and slightly salty, but not have a taste linger too long in your mouth. Based on these criteria of what makes a good microwave popcorn, you can recreate the authentic movie theater experience with the following best buttered popcorn brands.
Pop Secret Movie Theater Butter
Pop Secret has managed to make home-popped popcorn that tastes the most similar to that movie theater flavor everyone knows and loves. When popped correctly without any smoky kernels, the popcorn tastes wonderfully rich and salty, without any greasy residue. The movie theater flavor is well-dispersed, too, with most kernels having a bit of flavor.
Jolly Time Blast O Butter
Deemed “perfectly balanced” by Bon Appétit, Jolly Time’s take on buttered popcorn is very well distributed, as that iconic yellow color can be found on each and every kernel. Buttery, salty, and crunchy — it perfectly emulates what movie theater popcorn is all about.
Orville Redenbacher’s Movie Theater Butter
Similar to Pop Secret, Orville Redenbacher’s movie theater buttered popcorn tastes very similar to the real deal. This brand tastes a bit sweeter, but the flavoring is not as evenly distributed. Nevertheless, it’s delicious for snacking during a film.
Orville Redenbacher’s Pour Over Movie Theater Butter
Orville Redenbacher also offers a pour over version of their movie theater butter flavor, which allows consumers to mimic the movie theater experience even more by pouring a packet of butter flavoring over microwaved popcorn. This feels even more authentic to the experience you’d get at the movies.
Angie’s Boomchickapop Real Buttered Popcorn
Made with real butter, the Boomchickapop flavor brings a more subtle and natural flavor to the buttered popcorn game — it also comes microwavable or in a pre-popped bag. The kernel texture is a bit different, being more flakey when it comes to the yellow part of the popcorn.
Newman’s Own Butter
Newman’s Own tastes delicious with a well-balanced buttery and salty flavor. While the texture leans a bit dry, it is still a yummy option that pairs well alongside a soda or slurpee.
Cousin Willie’s Buttery Explosion
An explosion indeed. Cousin Willie’s tastes less like movie theater popcorn and more like natural butter, but that’s a good thing. It’s rich, fatty, and feels as though a stick of salted butter were poured on top of it.
Kirkland Signature Microwave Popcorn
Costco does almost everything well, and popcorn is included. Its Kirkland Signature brand popcorn is comparable to brands that specialize in the snack: salty, buttery, with a good amount of crunch.
ACT II Movie Theater Butter
With packaging that even mimics the movie theater, ACT II’s version of movie theater popcorn is good in its own right. Although it is not as flavorful as its competitors, ACT II has a certain saltiness that may please savory lovers.