Make Popcorn Taste Like A Chicken Dinner With This Simple Spice Blend

Popcorn is probably the most perfect blank canvas for seasoning, but it's often overlooked when it comes to savory options. Because did you know you can season popcorn to taste like a chicken dinner? Yeah, it's just as savory, just as rich, even a little herby. This is levelling up way beyond just salt and butter, so go grab your spices because we're about to go on a flavor journey.

A good starting point to turn popcorn into a chicken-flavored treat is nutritional yeast, the vegan staple you need in your kitchen which will bring a savory and umami depth. Then add some mushroom powder, which is earthy and meaty. Together, just these two ingredients alone will make your popcorn taste really buttery and rich with no actual meat or butter involved, then a little lemon zest will cut through the richness to brighten it all up. Top it off with sea salt, a sprinkle of granulated garlic, and some dried thyme or rosemary and boom — an unmistakable lemon-roast-chicken vibe. You can of course adjust the spices and salt level to your preferences.

This combination is a seasoning blend that will transform your popcorn. Once you try it out, you'll be shocked at how often you've resorted to plain lazy popcorn when popcorn can actually taste like dinner in a bowl.

If you've not got any dried mushrooms or nutritional yeast in your cabinets, don't sweat it, there are other ways you can lean into a chicken-y popcorn blend without them. A combo of Old Bay seasoning, chicken bouillon and adobo seasoning, for example, will skip out on the fresher and brighter notes of the lemon zest and thyme, but it's still going to bring some real roast dinner intensity.

Chicken bouillon is a really salty and meaty addition you can sprinkle onto popcorn. And it's worth knowing the difference between chicken powder and bouillon powder, the latter is more concentrated so tends to have a richer and fattier flavor, so use sparingly as a little goes a long way. And Old Bay works so well because it contains a really complex mix of spices such as celery salt and paprika while adobo seasoning usually contains garlic, oregano, turmeric, and black pepper. Together, they add everything that would typically go into a roast chicken marinade.

To make it all come together, drizzle freshly popped popcorn with a little butter or a neutral oil before tossing through your spice blend, which you can definitely tweak to your own taste preference. The texture isn't chicken, but the flavor certainly will be: Savory, comforting, and very more-ish (so don't expect to stop after just one handful). This fantastic chicken-y taste is made without ever turning on the oven, so it's a particularly clever snack for the hotter months.