Popcorn


 
I've been using a Whirley Pop for awhile. Turning the handle gets a little old, but it does a great job. I usually use 10-12 grams of canola oil. But, I like coconut oil better, but my wife doesn't. So, I do it her way when she's eating it. I also use a little Flavacol. If I want extra butter flavor, I'll throw some Country Crock spread in with the oil. I've found the trick to tender popcorn is not getting heat too high.
 
Be aware Canola oil (at least according to my Dr.) is some of the worst stuff you can put in your body perhaps not quite as bad as the chemical S^&t storm that comes in that crock but bad none the less. Dr told me for high heat i.e. frying/popcorn use either coconut or grape seed. Since I can't take the taste of coconut oils I use grape seed oil. Does not turn toxic under high heat, no smoke unless you go nuts on heat and totally flavorless. Here is one article I found after doc told me to quit using it https://blog.bulletproof.com/what-is-canola-oil/ She also told me skip the so called "good for you" artificial spreads i,e, Country Crock, margarines of all types as well. She told me use only grass fed butter because it's high in Omega 3 fats like much sea food is.
So our corn gets popped old fashioned way in a pan with grape seed oil and then slathered in Kerrygold butter
 
I can't keep the dang oils straight. I thought canola was supposed to be better for you than coconut oil. I like coconut oil. So, that works for me. However, I've never tried grape seed oil. I like the idea of regular butter. How do you add the butter? Do you just melt it separately and then pour it over the popped corn?
 
Yep, just melt it in a very tiny sauce pan and pour it over while tossing the popped corn. Toss in some fine sea salt and best popcorn ever. We do use the boy scout popcorn BTW as I have a good friend who's little guy is a cub scout and his troop sells the popcorn. My grandson's troop sells chocolates. Just what this type 2 diabetic needs LOL. When I was little my mother used to pop it in olive oil. It's what happens when you grow up in an immigrant family LOL
 
We went out to a movie Sunday night & I got the movie theater popcorn & when they asked if I wanted extra butter I had them add just a little.

I wasn't impressed - it was OK but my basic is way better, & theirs seemed to be about 10% hulls. I've never had so many popcorn hulls in a tub of popcorn.

(my basic: 1/3 cup popcorn, 1 tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp flavacol, my microwave at 3 minutes)

.....

I played around with maple syrup a few more times before then. 1/4 cup syrup @ 3:30 burned. 2 tbsp @ 3:30 = burned. 1 tbsp @ 3 min (with the my basic above): pretty good but not a ton of extra flavor.
 
I cannot believe the butter doesn't scorch in the microwave. My microwave is a 1200W Panasonic and if I try to put butter in it it will go up in smoke in seconds. The thing is horrendously powerful. So much so it knocks out my internet, my Bluetooth connections on tablet and phone as well. So I could not imagine throwing butter and popcorn in it together and having anything palatable since just the smell of brown butter nearly makes me puke.
 
Found Flavacol at my local Smart and Final. Can't beat the price. Not all Smart and Final carries them so you'll have to check the store.


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LMichaels said:
I cannot believe the butter doesn't scorch in the microwave. My microwave is a 1200W Panasonic and if I try to put butter in it it will go up in smoke in seconds. The thing is horrendously powerful. So much so it knocks out my internet, my Bluetooth connections on tablet and phone as well. So I could not imagine throwing butter and popcorn in it together and having anything palatable since just the smell of brown butter nearly makes me puke.
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I pulled a stick o butter from the freezer last night & right into the bowl. Normally I set the timer @ 3 minutes (just what I found that works with mine) and it's ready. I just pulled up my MW - it's 1000 watts, & it was made in 2004. I remember installing this thing - doesn't seem so long ago.

So 2 tbsp frozen butter takes longer and it did brown.

I just tried 2 TBSP butter instead of 1, cold from the fridge, & ran it 3:10 instead of 3:00. The PC isn't quite as light & fluffy (2nd thought, maybe it is.....just went back for seconds), and the color darkened just a bit. Good, but I plan on sticking with 1 since I'm not actively trying to add extra butter to my diet.
 
LMichaels said:
I cannot believe the butter doesn't scorch in the microwave. My microwave is a 1200W Panasonic and if I try to put butter in it it will go up in smoke in seconds. The thing is horrendously powerful. So much so it knocks out my internet, my Bluetooth connections on tablet and phone as well. So I could not imagine throwing butter and popcorn in it together and having anything palatable since just the smell of brown butter nearly makes me puke.
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Is this a commercial microwave? If it's throwing off enough RF to kill WiFi & Bluetooth, it may have other issues as well. The 1k watt microwave ovens we have here don't interfere in the least with WiFi, Bluetooth, cellphones, etc.

I'm not being picky, I know just enough about microwaves to be incredibly dangerous. The radio enginerds at a previous job (microwave radio communications, from 2gHz to 38gHz,) didn't like the young guys, especially the ones who wanted kids, doing tower work on the dishes. If somebody didn't follow proper lock-out/tag-out procedures, and an emitter got energized, there was a real possibility of some major health problems.
 
It's a standard (but high power) Panasonic. Panasonic mwaves are the only ones that knock out my wifi and BT. (This is my 3rd). I hate them for that. I think it has something to d with their inverter technology. But I love them because they operate so intuitively and they're so powerful. But if I were to put 2 tbsp butter in there for that length of time it would be in flames! (the butter LOL). So I have a love/hate thing with Panasonic MWaves. IMO they're the best I have ever seen or tried (I have tried other brands but they go back to the store and a Panasonic always comes home with me). They don't last as long as others either. I think all that power fries them. I typically get about 6 years out of them. But when they work OH BOY do they WORK :D
 
What's the trick with Flavocol? We tried some last night - simple air pop, then butter and Flavocol. I found the flavocol to just taste like very salty salt. For now, I prefer just using melted butter and sea salt.
 
JimK said:
What's the trick with Flavocol? We tried some last night - simple air pop, then butter and Flavocol. I found the flavocol to just taste like very salty salt. For now, I prefer just using melted butter and sea salt.
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Well Jim, your first mistake is using an air popper. :p
Flavacol is potent stuff and I think it works best in oil with the popcorn.
My wife measures everything out for our Nordicware micro popper.
1 TBS oil, 1/4 tsp flavacol, and 1/4 cup popcorn. I just guesstimate the amounts.
Maybe try mixing a little in with your melted unsalted butter. It's not made to simply sprinkle on the popped corn.
 
Bob Correll said:
Well Jim, your first mistake is using an air popper. :p
Flavacol is potent stuff and I think it works best in oil with the popcorn.
My wife measures everything out for our Nordicware micro popper.
1 TBS oil, 1/4 tsp flavacol, and 1/4 cup popcorn. I just guesstimate the amounts.
Maybe try mixing a little in with your melted unsalted butter. It's not made to simply sprinkle on the popped corn.
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Bob's amounts & mine are probably pretty close, but I probably use 1.5T or so of butter in our similar microwave poppers. I just throw everything in the bottom of mine & give it a few shakes at the end.

On another topic - I've almost picked up a Stir Crazy popper a couple times after someone mentioned roasting coffee in it (it's part of a crazy contraption)
 
Yeah hot air poppers......................I think they make the package the popcorn comes in taste better than the popcorn. Same with MWave. Only way is in a pan with oil IMO
 
LMichaels said:
Yeah hot air poppers......................I think they make the package the popcorn comes in taste better than the popcorn. Same with MWave. Only way is in a pan with oil IMO
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You just use a stock pot or something? That's what I use when I cook mine in a "pan".
 
We use a large "square sided" stainless steel saute' pan I think it's a Cuisinart brand but may be Calphalon
 
Bob H. said:
OK, why do we need this stuff when Jiffy Pop works just fine on a Weber Kettle?
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I remember Jiffy Pop!


.....stopped into the car dealership with a friend for a quick charge & I was promised sodas & popcorn. We got there and the popcorn machine was bare! "I was promised popcorn" I muttered as I stared blankly at the tv screen in the waiting room.

A couple kids ran over, one reached on top of the machine & saw a package......... They put the package down, we read the label and made some popcorn.

My home version is better, I made a batch when I got home just to make sure. Theirs was better than the last movie theater popcorn I had, but I'm really liking mine.

I think they had the Gold Medal 2404 machine

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and some Vogel all-in-one 8oz popcorn & oil mix:

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We had popcorn for dinner last night using our new Nordic Ware Pro Pop popper, and some fresh flavacol, our old batch was 7 years old. :rolleyes:
The domed lid is nice compared to the flat lid style we've been using for years, it allows for larger batches.

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