Popcorn

Popcorn

Light and fluffy it’s the movie accompaniment of choice for millions of people. Growing up popcorn always meant throwing a bag of kernels processed with some sort of flavorings into the microwave for about four minutes, until thoroughly nuked and piping hot. There’s even a warning on the bag so you can’t sue if you get steam burns opening it. I love popcorn. But what really is in that bag that’s so conveniently packaged? 

A report from the FDA reveals that a chemical used to coat microwave popcorn bags breaks down when heated into a likely carcinogenic substance called perfluorooctanoic (PFOA). These PFOA’s are also now thought to interfere with children’s vaccines. Another “danger in microwave popcorn is diacetyl, an FDA-approved chemical found in the fake butter flavoring,” according to care2.com. Diacetyl is dangerous when inhaled—so keep your face out of the bag when you first open it—but safe to ingest. The major manufacturers stopped using diacetyl a couple years ago. Today, Americans consume about 17 billion quarts of popped corn each year.

My wife’s family grew up popping natural kernels in an air popper. Sure, she had the microwaved stuff in college, but she assured me that there was nothing better than fresh homemade popcorn. So I tried it. To be honest, the first time I had homemade popcorn, it tasted weird to me. I wasn’t quite convinced this was the way to go. A few movies later, freshly popped "rainbow" kernels (yellow and white and red mixture) became my standard. Convenience and technology is good, but when it comes down to it, I think fresh and natural (fewer ingredients) is always better. The flavor really is better, and you can control what goes into your body. Who needs the danger of perfluorooctanoic and diacetyl when you can have plain oil, kernels, and salt?

Popcorn is easy to make and is quite versatile. You can have it as many ways as you can imagine. The standard way is with butter and salt, but you can have BBQ popcorn, ranch-flavored popcorn, hot mustard popcorn, or spicy popcorn. For sweet popcorn there’s caramel corn, chocolate popcorn, or cinnamon-sugar popcorn, or you can mix it with nuts and chocolate chips for a sweet-and-salty trail mix. You can even string it together to decorate a Christmas tree. According to thenibble.com, Native Americans made popcorn corsages and headdresses for dance rituals, which were also sold to his sailors. The Iroquois even made popcorn soup and popcorn beer. I don’t know much about that, but here is how you can make it at home:

Plain Popcorn

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/3 cup popcorn kernels

1 tablespoon salt, or more to taste

Pour the oil in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat. Add 3 or 4 kernels of popcorn and cover the pan. When the kernels have popped, add the remaining kernels, cover the pan, and reduce the heat to medium high. When the kernels start popping, shake the pan intermittently to prevent burning. When the popping begins to subside, turn off the heat and shake the pan for a few more seconds to allow for more popping. Pour the popcorn into a bowl and add the salt. Shake the bowl to distribute the salt.

Variations:

Cheddar Popcorn: To the plain popcorn add 1 cup finely grated cheddar cheese and 1/3 cup melted butter.

Ranch-Style Popcorn: Melt 1 cup of butter in a saucepan and add 1 envelope of Ranch dressing mix. Stir to mix and toss with the plain popcorn.

Hot Mustard Popcorn: Combine 1 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/2 teaspoon thyme, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, a dash of cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix together and toss with the plain popcorn.