Soy Sauce Popcorn Will Make You Forget Movie Theatre Butter Altogether

When you think of movies or movie theaters in general, only one snack food comes to mind: Popcorn. Okay, okay, genuine movie theater popcorn is expensive — anyone can tell you that — but there's also no denying that sitting in front of the big screen with a big bucket of fresh hot popcorn, fingers dripping with that salty, buttery liquid really makes the whole thing feel a lot more special than just sitting at home streaming the movie. If you aren't still tasting the butter on your lips after the movie's over, it wasn't real movie-style popcorn.

Though, if you have popcorn at home compared to the stuff you get at your local cinema's concession stand, you'll notice that your average popcorn doesn't taste the same as the movie theater popcorn. The reason for this is the aforementioned "buttery liquid," appropriately called "movie theatre butter." In truth, this "butter" isn't actually real butter at all, but instead a combination of different flavorings and salts that give it a "buttery" or salty taste. That's why, when you get a box of Orville Redenbacher or ACT II microwave popcorn (one of the top ten microwave popcorn brands) that says it's "movie theatre butter," it won't taste exactly like the kind you'd get from a genuine movie theater.

While recipes for making movie theatre butter at home do exist, there's one condiment that you probably use with your seafood or beef that may make a better fit for your bowl of popcorn. We're talking about that classic brown condiment known as soy sauce — and yes, it really is good enough to forget about movie theatre popcorn altogether.

If you're a "popcorn purist," (should such a thing even exist) you'll probably argue that the only things to go on popcorn are salt and butter. While it's true that butter and salt are a tried-and-true classic topping for popcorn, you may find that adding a few drops of soy sauce will make for a pleasant surprise.

A good way to try soy sauce on your popcorn is to mix it with melted butter and then drizzle it over your popcorn. Soy sauce naturally has a salty and savory flavor profile to it, along with a subtly sweet and almost bitter aftertaste. When paired with the creaminess of butter, first-time triers of soy sauce on popcorn can get accustomed to the flavor without being overwhelmed. From there, you could continue topping your popcorn with the soy sauce-popcorn blend, or you can try straight soy sauce on your popcorn if you particularly enjoy that not-quite-salty-or-savory umami flavor.

You're also welcome to mix your butter and soy sauce with any kind of spices or seasonings. If you want your popcorn to have a bit more heat, you can toss in sriracha, or pepper flakes and black pepper. If you think your popcorn should be more savory, you can add garlic or onion powder to the butter. Don't be afraid to experiment — it's your popcorn after all.

Soy sauce and popcorn may sound like an unconventional combination when compared to traditional Western toppings, but the combination of soy sauce and popcorn actually has a home in one of the world's most popular theme parks: Disneyland — or more accurately, Tokyo Disneyland.

Tokyo Disneyland is said to have an incredible love affair with popcorn – to the point that not only is soy sauce popcorn a very popular treat there, but guests can purchase everything from souvenir popcorn buckets to popcorn zipper pouches. Other flavors of popcorn available throughout the theme park include familiar flavors like caramel, salted, and chocolate, but also more unique flavors such as milk tea, curry, orange marmalade, and strawberry.  Those who have gone to Tokyo Disneyland and tried the popcorn have different reviews about the wide variety of popcorn flavors, including the soy sauce flavor.

"I've tried nearly all of them besides soda and sea salt," wrote one Reddit user. "Definitely recommend milk tea, honey, apple cinnamon, and soy sauce & butter popcorn."

"I've tried several of them, but not all," said another user in the same thread. "I found soy sauce and sea salt to be underwhelming, but strawberry and milk tea were both outstanding. They are well worth standing in line for."

While you don't necessarily have to travel to Tokyo to try soy sauce popcorn, it may not hurt to take a trip if you're a popcorn fanatic.