Making Popcorn

Popping tips from the same website:

Not only is popcorn tasty and economical (for as little as four cents, you can enjoy a quart at home), it's also easy to prepare. Whether you choose to pop popcorn in an electric popper, on the stove or over an open fire, follow these tips for perfectly popped popcorn:

First, warm the popper, heavy pan or skillet. If oil popping your corn, add 1/4 cup of cooking oil to the pan. Allow the oil to heat. The best popping temperature is between 400 and 460 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil burns at 500 degrees. If your oil starts to smoke, it's too hot. Any cooking oil will work provided it can retain the proper temperature. The less saturated the fat in the oil (like corn or sunflower), the less calories you add to your snack.
Don't pop popcorn in butter. Butter will burn.

Test the heat of the oil by dropping in one or two kernels. When the kernel pops or spins in the oil, you're ready to add the remaining popcorn. Pour just enough kernels to cover the bottom of the pan. Shake the pan to be certain oil coats each kernel.

Kernels that do not pop are known as "old maids." They do not have sufficient water contained within the starch to create the build up of pressure needed to pop the kernels.

If your popcorn does not pop into fluffy, crunchy kernels, it may have lost some of its moisture. Rejuvenate popcorn by filling a 1-quart jar 3/4 full with popcorn. Add one tablespoon of water. Cover and shake every five to 10 minutes until all the water is absorbed. In two to four days it should be perfect for popping.

cool! Thanks Butrflynet!

hmmmmmm

i bought a hot air popper to use when Setanta's here. It's pretty nice.
i used to have a wonderful, cheap pot that made great popcorn, but it vanished in a move some years ago. my 'good' pots don't make good popcorn.
i love making popcorn over the fire when camping or cottaging.

but ... for a real treat - it's Jiffy Pop every couple of years. It still makes me giggle.

How do you like the air popper, ehBeth? I'm in the market to buy a popper and am deciding whether to get an air popper or a microwave popper or just stick to the kettle on the stove method.

Does the air popped corn have any flavor or do you have to add melted butter and salt to it to make it taste good?

Those Jiffy Pop ones are fun to watch unfold as the corn pops. I still can't figure out how they get a machine to fold that foil so perfectly each time. Would love to see their factory.

I used to use those microwave bags of popcorn but after cutting one open one day to look at the contents before popping, I don't touch the stuff anymore.

Butrflynet - the popcorn tastes as good as the basic corn allows it to. If I buy a better quality popping corn - the popcorn tastes very good. If I get the bulk barn cheap stuff - well, you'd better have some kind of topping - even if it's just salt and pepper.

I have kept my eye out for a hot air popper for a couple of years now and haven't run across one. I was beginning to wonder if they had been taken off the market for some reason. My interest is in popping my own corn without any manufacturer's transfats, etc., and then adding a not-too-generous amount of real melted butter, or some good olive oil plus.. oh, parmigiano or whatever crosses my path as I hunt through my cupboard...

They've got a bunch at amazon.com - the long long link

order it through the a2k link! (not the one above)


I'm there, amazon by way of a2k, looking for a memory stick.

the orville reddenwhatever one seems to get the best reviews there

Thanks a lot, ehBeth, I'll act on this!

Anything for a friend, A2K, and the greater good of popcorn!

We have an air popper, but Mrs. cav likes the President's choice extra buttery microwave bags. I don't eat much popcorn, but we keep both loose and bags around for spontaneous movie nights.

All right! My air popper (this reminds me of some druggy names) is on its way.

Too bad corn is high on the Atkin's no list. Still. Life is short, art is longer, and one needs comfort food from time to time.

I could be wrong but wasn't the Mircrowave invented for pop corn.

Osso said,

[quote]Too bad corn is high on the Atkin's no list. Still. Life is short, art is longer, and one needs comfort food from time to time.[/quote]
Amen!

My most favorite dinner is red licorice and pop corn. Really greaat comfort food.

P.S. No one tell littlek or the food police

My problem with microwave is that I don't want to eat butter flavored crappo. I am not selfassured enough to invent my own popcorn bag...

One small word of warning about the hot air popper - it makes more popcorn than you're used to.

I was used to using a half-cup of kernels for an evening of popcorn for two. Wellllllll, first I had to quickly find a larger 'catching' bowl, and then then another bowl. My evening of popcorn for two nearly filled a small grocery bag! I guess the hot air popper adds air!

Too late the phalarope.

Perhaps I will put it in bowls in the art gallery.

Hmmm, do birds like popcorn with olive oil?