Chili-Lime Popcorn with Toasted Chile & Dried Lime Dust

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Big-bowl movie popcorn with the sour-salty-spicy snap of a street-cart mango cup. The trick is making your own chile-lime dust: lime zest dried in a low oven until it shatters, ground with toasted ancho and cayenne, salt, a whisper of sugar and citric acid for that lip-puckering tang. Lime butter goes on in three passes so every kernel gets seasoned without a single soggy spot.

Ingredients

• 3 limes, zested with a rasp grater (zest only; save the fruit)
• 1 tbsp ancho chile powder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, or more to taste
• 1 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tsp granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp citric acid (or 1/2 tsp powdered lemonade mix)
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/8 tsp ground cumin

• 3 tbsp refined coconut oil or avocado oil
• 1/2 cup popcorn kernels

• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tsp fresh lime juice (from the zested limes)
• 1 tbsp finely crumbled cotija cheese, optional
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro, optional

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 200°F. Spread the lime zest in a thin, even layer on a parchment-lined sheet pan, breaking up any clumps with your fingers. Dry for 12 to 18 minutes, stirring once, until the zest is brittle and crumbles when pressed — it should smell intensely of lime, not toasted. Cool completely, about 5 minutes. Leave the oven on.
2. Toast the ancho chile powder, smoked paprika and cumin in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat for 30 to 45 seconds, swirling constantly, just until fragrant. Immediately scrape onto a plate so it stops cooking — chile powder scorches in seconds and turns bitter.
3. Combine the dried lime zest, toasted spices, cayenne, sea salt, sugar, citric acid and garlic powder in a spice grinder or mortar. Pulse or pound to a fine, uniform dust, 15 to 20 seconds. Transfer to a small bowl; you'll have about 3 tablespoons.
4. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until it foams, about 2 minutes. Skim off the foam with a spoon and pour the clear golden butter into a bowl, leaving the milky solids behind in the pan. Discard the solids — this clarified butter carries flavor without the water that makes popcorn go limp. Stir the lime juice into the warm butter.
5. Put the oil and 3 test kernels in a 6-quart heavy pot, cover, and set over medium-high heat. When all 3 kernels pop, the oil is at temperature (about 400°F).
6. Add the remaining kernels in an even layer, cover, and pull the pot off the heat for 30 seconds so every kernel comes up to temperature together. Return to medium-high heat and shake the pot back and forth across the burner every 15 seconds, cracking the lid slightly to let steam escape.
7. Pop for 3 to 4 minutes, until the popping slows to about 2 seconds between pops. Dump the popcorn immediately into a very large bowl, leaving any unpopped kernels behind.
8. Season in three passes: drizzle a third of the lime butter over the popcorn, sprinkle a third of the chile-lime dust, then toss with two big spoons or with clean hands for 15 seconds. Repeat twice more. Layering this way coats far more surface area than dumping it all at once.
9. Spread the seasoned popcorn on a sheet pan and crisp in the 200°F oven for 5 minutes to drive off any moisture from the butter and lime juice. Toss once at the halfway mark.
10. Return to the bowl, taste, and add more dust or a pinch of salt if you want it louder. Scatter the cotija and cilantro over the top if using, and serve within an hour while it's at peak crunch.
11. Store leftover chile-lime dust in a small airtight jar for up to 3 months — it's excellent on mango, cucumber spears, roasted peanuts and the rim of a michelada glass.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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