For many people, the thought of watching a movie in theaters without a large helping of buttery popcorn would be considered blasphemous. It’s been the staple cinema snack for generations.
Recently, TikTok user @colleenlepp shared a video of how she butters her popcorn at the movies. As it turns out, we’ve all been buttering our popcorn wrong this entire time.
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Buttery popcorn is a staple snack in movie theaters all around the world.
But as many movie patrons would no doubt agree, dispersing the butter evenly throughout the popcorn can be challenging.
More often than not, the top stays buttery and the bottom remains bone dry.
Thanks to a new TikTok hack, courtesy of @colleenlepp, all of that is about to change.
Colleen explains how her aunt taught her the perfect method to distribute butter evenly throughout your popcorn.
And all you need in order to do it is a straw from the concession stand.
The first thing you need to do, is say “no thanks” to extra butter at the checkout.
Adding butter to your popcorn can cost upwards of $1.00 – $1.50. It’s an upsell that helps to account for nearly 40% of a theater’s entire profit.
Instead, keep your eyes peeled for the manual margarine dispenser; they’re usually set up right before you enter the theater.
Nearly every single movie theater will have a margarine dispenser that customers can use, free of charge.
For the record, melted butter and melted margarine taste the exact same on popcorn.
Place the straw from the concession stand in the middle of the popcorn, slide it down until it scrapes the bottom of the box.
From here, all you have to do is line up the butter dispenser with the hole in the straw.
Be extra careful not to burn your hands, as the butter topping will be hot.
The trick to evenly dispersing the butter (margarine) is to slowly raise the straw as it begins to rise.
For your first attempt, don’t wear nice clothes. Believe me when I say that cleaning congealed butter from your favorite sweater is only going to make you angry.
Once you’ve filled your bucket with your desired amount of butter, you’re all set to enjoy your movie!
After all, if it isn’t drowning in butter then it just isn’t movie popcorn!
So far, the response to Colleen’s movie theater hack has people excited.
TikTok user @momcantstop couldn’t believe what she just witnessed.
“oh[sic] my God I really want to go to the movies just to try that thank you,” she commented.
@joeyandjune0 echoed the sentiment, saying that they always love learning new TikTok hacks.
Another user decided to take things a step further.
“The one true life hack,” @turbulence79 said. “I put 3 different straws at different sections to get butter in all the levels.”
That sounds a little too intense for me, but if it works for you — go for it!
Colleen’s popcorn video is one of many TikTok food hacks making the rounds on the internet.
Not long ago, we learned that the majority of us have been pouring cooking oil wrong this entire time.
The trick for this one is to hang on to the seal tab that most end up throwing away.
What you should be doing instead is flipping it upside down and reinserting it back into the bottle.
Doing this will create a makeshift spout . It allows for a much slower, more controlled pour. This means no more oily pasta and less waste!
So the next time you’re headed to the movies or serving up Italian for dinner — remember these hacks!
Will you be trying either the popcorn or olive oil TikTok hacks? Do you have any tips and tricks of your own that as of yet, remain largely unknown or undiscovered?
Leave a comment below and let us know!
