Buc-ee's Copycat Beaver Nuggets are a sweet, crunchy snack made with puffed corn coated in homemade caramel. This easy recipe recreates the famous Texas gas station treat with simple pantry ingredients-crispy, buttery, and budget-friendly, ready in about 90 minutes.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- No Road Trip Required: Skip the drive to Buc-ee's and enjoy the legendary Beaver Nuggets from the comfort of your kitchen.
- Simple Pantry Ingredients: Puffed corn, butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup make magic in the oven.
- Crispy & Customizable: Keep it classic or add maple extract, cinnamon, or even drizzle with melted chocolate or peanut butter.
- Perfect for Sharing: Package in cellophane bags or jars for holiday gifts, game day snacks, or party favors.
What Are Beaver Nuggets?
If you've ever visited Buc-ee's, the iconic Texas-based travel center, you've probably seen people loading up on Beaver Nuggets. They look like caramel corn but are made with puffed corn instead of popcorn, giving them a light, airy crunch.
The original nuggets have a pancake-and-syrup vibe, but my copycat version is even better: crunchier, less sweet, and customizable. Add maple extract if you want the classic flavor-or leave it out for a perfectly balanced caramel crunch.
Ingredients - Here's What You'll Need
Buc-ee's Beaver Nuggets are very similar to standard caramel corn, but with a substitute for the popcorn.
- Puffed Corn: The primary ingredient in the Beaver Nuggets is Puffed Corn, which is sometimes referred to as puffcorn or corn puffs. Unlike popcorn, which is made from kernels of corn, puffed corn is made from cornmeal that is processed through extrusion cooking and then baked. This processing gives the puffed corn its light and airy texture.
- Caramel: For the caramel, I used unsalted butter, light brown sugar, light corn syrup, salt, baking soda, and vanilla extract.
Step-by-Step: How to Make Beaver Nuggets
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 250°F. Place the puffed corn in a large heatproof bowl.
- The Caramel Ingredients: In a saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt.
- Cook the Caramel: Stir until the butter melts and the mixture boils. Cook undisturbed for 5 minutes.
- Finish the Caramel: Remove the pan from the heat, and stir in vanilla and baking soda. Be careful here because the baking soda will cause the hot caramel to bubble up quite a bit.
- Coat the Puffed Corn: Pour the caramel over the puffed corn and stir to coat.
- Bake and Stir: Spread the coated puffed corn into a large disposable roasting pan. Bake for 75 minutes at 250°F, stirring every 15 minutes to ensure the puffed corn is evenly coated.
- Cool and Store: Spread the Beaver Nuggets on parchment paper to cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.
One taste, and all I could say was WOW!
Both Susan and I thought that they were even better than the original. They lacked the pancake and syrup taste since I didn't include the maple flavoring, and they were more crispy and crunchy than the originals.
The combination of caramelized brown sugar and buttery goodness, with a hint of vanilla created a sweet and salty snack that's hard to resist.
In addition, making your own Beaver Nuggets is cheaper than buying them pre-made and is a fun and satisfying way to recreate the experience of actually visiting a Buc-ee's. Yum!
Frequently Asked Questions
I purchased the butter-flavored puffed corn used in this recipe at Aldi. It was inexpensive and worked well. It's also generally available in local grocery stores.
No. Light Karo Corn Syrup explicitly notes that it contains zero high fructose sugar.
Corn syrup acts as a stabilizer by preventing sugar from crystallizing, ensuring a smooth and velvety texture in the caramel. This is essential in caramel corn to avoid graininess and lumps.
Baking soda is a base and it reacts with the acidic ingredients in the caramel, such as brown sugar and corn syrup. This reaction creates tiny carbon dioxide air bubbles that aerate the caramel, making it lighter and smoother
Chula's Test Kitchen Tips
- I use the large disposable aluminum pan to make these Beaver Nuggets because there is no cleanup of the baked-on caramel. Just throw the pan away!
- If your batch turns sticky, bake an extra 15 minutes. It's likely the caramel needed more drying time.
- It's important to store the Beaver Nuggets in an airtight container. The reason is that the sugars are hygroscopic meaning that they attract moisture.
- I like to store the copycat beaver nuggets in a gallon-size Ziploc bag for airtight convenience. This will keep the beaver nuggets crispy and crunchy for up to a week.
- Want to gift them? Clear bags tied with ribbon make festive holiday or party favors.
Other Delicious Copycat Recipes
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Buc-ee's Copycat Beaver Nuggets
Equipment
- Large disposable aluminum roasting pan
Ingredients
- 10 ounces (2 5-ounce packages, 283 grams, 16 cups) Puffed Corn (plain or butter flavored)
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks, 6 ounces, 170 grams) unsalted butter (See Tip 1)
- 1 cup (7.5 ounces, 213 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (5.4 ounces, 160 ml) light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon salt (See Tip 2)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon maple extract - optional (See Tip 3)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250°F. Place the Puffed Corn into a large heat-proof bowl. Set aside.
- Heat the butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, stirring until the butter is melted. Reduce heat to medium-low; boil, undisturbed and uncovered, for 5 minutes.
- Remove the saucepan from heat and stir in vanilla extract and baking soda. (See Tip 4)
- Pour the caramel over the Corn puffs; stir to coat.
- Spread the mixture onto an ungreased, large, disposable aluminum roasting pan. Bake for one hour and 15 minutes, removing every 15 minutes to stir. (See Tips 5 and 6)
- Spread the mixture onto parchment paper to cool. It may seem sticky at first but will dry as it cools.
- Store in an airtight container.
- Yield: 16 to 17 cups.
Video
Tips/Notes
- If using salted butter, reduce the amount of salt to ¼ teaspoon.
- The Puffed Corn that I used in this recipe was salted. If you use unsalted Puffed Corn, increase the amount of salt to 1 teaspoon.
- The original Buc-ee's Beaver Nuggets taste almost like pancakes and syrup. If you prefer that flavor, add a teaspoon of maple syrup to the caramel. Otherwise, leave it out.
- Be careful when you stir the baking soda into the hot caramel. The caramel will bubble up and could burn you if you're not careful.
- I like using a large disposable aluminum roasting pan in this recipe so I don't have to worry about cleaning up the baked-on caramel. I just throw the pan away!
- Don't worry if the Puffed Corn isn't totally covered with the caramel initially. As it bakes in the oven, the caramel remains liquidy and is easily stirred to help coat the Puffed Corn during the 15-minute increments.
Kim says
Is it possible to premake/buy and use a simple syrup instead of the corn syrup?
Chula King says
Hi Kim,
Unfortunately, simple syrup is not a good substitute for the corn syrup. Corn syrup’s role isn’t just sweetness. It contains glucose, which helps prevent sugar crystallization while the caramel cooks. This keeps the caramel smooth and glossy instead of grainy. It also adds body and a slightly chewy texture.
Simple syrup is just sucrose dissolved in water. It doesn’t have the anti-crystallization properties of corn syrup, so the caramel is more likely to seize or turn gritty. It also has a thinner consistency, which could make the caramel too runny to coat puffed corn evenly.
Chula
Anna says
Love it! But I have a question... I made two batches. The first turned out perfectly. The second batch is sticky. Any ideas for why? Or how to fix it? Thanks
Chula King says
Hi Anna,
If the second batch is sticky it's probably because it needs a bit more time in the oven. Another reason could be that the environment is humid. Sugar is hygroscopic meaning that it attracts moisture. Either way, I would suggest putting it back in the oven for another 15 minutes or so.
Hope this helps!
Chula
Kristen says
I desperately wanted to hate this recipe, because the last thing I need in my life is a way to have Beaver Nuggets whenever I want them. But alas, I cannot find any feelings in my heart, save pure joy and happiness, because these copycat Beaver Nuggets are absolutely to die for. Definitely needs the maple extract for that classic flavor, but I'm sure they'd be quite tasty without it as well. So easy to make, and much cheaper than hopping on a plane to get to my nearest Buc-ee's! Thanks for this great recipe!
Chula King says
So glad you liked the recipe!
Chula
Anonymous says
Hi, I'm in the UK so can't get corn syrup. What's the best alternative? Runny honey, golden syrup or glucose syrup? Thank you.
Chula King says
The best alternative would be golden syrup, substituted 1:1 for the light corn syrup. Golden syrup has a slightly caramelized flavor that would work well in this recipe. You could also use glucose 1:1, if that's what you have on hand.
Chula
Kathryn Lherisson says
Google says Golden Syrup is a good substitute for corn syrup. It also says that maple is a good substitute as well.
Elizabeth (Libbie) Solomonson says
I just made these today and they are DELICIOUS!! Took some over to my sister and she loved them too and she asked for the recipe!! Thanks!
Chula King says
Thanks for the feedback Libbie!
Chula
Nana says
These were a huge success! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. This is so much better than any other version I’ve tried. The Buc-ee’s fans in my family ravenous it n Christmas.
Chula King says
Nana,
I'm so glad the recipe worked for you! I'm a Buc-ee's fan as well.
Chula