When my wife first moved in she made me watch all of Little House on the Prairie. Ever since then popcorn has become a regular thing here. It’s a perfect low calorie snack.
My standard is peanut oil and popcorn and a little bit of koshi salt on top once it’s done. I just use a standard pot for making mine because I’m not about to deal with a popcorn maker.
Sometimes we’ll shave some red dark pepper chocolate just sprinkle on top. Sometimes my wife wants Raisinets in hers.
Rarely I’ll use Bacon fat instead of peanut oil. On extra rare occasion I might use duck fat.
We never put butter on it because we don’t tend to stock salted butter, although that is changing now that I’m making more sourdough. So maybe I will add some water to it in the near future.
What are you doing with your popcorn?
Cost per person: 38¢
Popcorn is by far my favorite snack.
List of Ingredients:
Popcorn of course. I usually use locally grown red hulled popcorn, although lately I have two kids with braces so I’ve been using a “hulless” popcorn that is relatively safe to eat with braces.
Flavacol: The secret ingredient.
Finally the popcorn popper that I use is THIS ONE: It takes more attention than most other poppers, but it does a really great job
Aside from the specific popping corn, this is basically the same recipe I use. I use the Whirley Pop, but same difference. ~2tbsp of oil, ⅓ cup kernels, and a pinch of Flavacol (seriously be careful with that stuff - it’s crazy powerful). Melt the oil w/ the Flavacol in the popper with a couple kernels. Shake it around a bit to mix it up good. When they pop dump in the rest, shake it around again to coat the new kernels, and stir slowly. I like to top the popped corn with a bit of Greek Seasoning.
Oo. Citations. I like that.
Air Popper machines are legit though. Zero burn, no mess, and healthier without all the oil.
If you’re having trouble getting seasoning to stick, I use a compressed air can of a light oil like avocado to give it a tiny spritz, then toss with whatever.
Never thought I would read “healthier without all the oil” in 2025.
all the oil
🤫 don’t say it out loud, the yanks🇺🇲 might be listening
If you have a coffee or spice grinder, grind up your salt to a fine powder, it spreads so much easier over popcorn.
We have a glass microwave container here that works well enough for making it though. Not the best, but it does the job.
Be warned that depending on the grinder, this can be incredibly bad for it.
Not worse than oyster shells.
I don’t get it. Who is grinding oyster shells for cooking and why?
People with chickens sometimes supplement their chicken’s feed with ground oyster shells to increase calcium. Instead of buying pre-ground oyster shells they will try to make their own. And in the process they destroy their blender or coffee grinder blades.
The biggest thing is heat oil with a couple kernels. Once they pop, pour in the rest. Then remove pot from heat and stir around for about 30 sec. Then return to heat. Pops perfect every time.
If adding butter, cook it separately med-high until it no longer bubbles and then immediately apply and then it won’t shrivel the popcorns.
I put two test kernels in before adding the rest and I don’t adjust the heat.
No thanks, I’d rather pop talkcorn.
I didn’t see it so I’m add our homes go to. A little ghee and fine salt to pop in, then topped with a little garlic salt and grated parmesan. We’ve been using a glass bowl in the microwave, does decent.
I’ve an old dutch oven, must be my oldest piece. I make popcorn in there, I’ve been using avocado oil. I top it with salt, black pepper, and nooch.
Coconut oil, salt and tajin. Whirly pop for the win. I’ve been using the same whirly pop for about 15 years.
This guy gets it.
Though I use Flavacol instead of salt and tajin - it’s exactly what movie theaters use.
a friend got some of this but… is it sprinkled on already popped corn? it didn’t taste right.
I put it in the popper when I add the kernels.
ah. he has an air popper, seems kinda hard to keep the powder in there heh
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I don’t want the sodium or dyes in flavacol. But if you are okay with it enjoy it!
Old bacon grease makes the best. Lots of butter and lots of salt, too.
Another way that’s popular in our house is popped in oil, slathered with butter, salted well, then add nutritional yeast after stirring in the butter.
Bonus pts for pursuing atherosclerosis all the more rapidly! :D
That fake butter will clog your arteries. Me, I have no detectable plaque in my heart. They looked for it over and over. My family has a history, too. I stopped eating trans fat in the mid 90’s, that’s probably why. I also ate no meat for 21 of the last 25 years. Just started eating bacon again this year. Once a month treat.
That fake butter will clog your arteries.
Yup, via hydrogenated oils. Probably not too great for overall health, either. Old bacon grease was mainly what I was referring to, though.
Eh, I don’t mean to nitpick or critique your diet though, and I apologise for my earlier, snarky comment. I posted it when a bit tipsy on strong beer, feeling kinda pettily self-righteous and all.
Anyway, sounds like you’re taking care of yourself, so bravo to that. My family also has a ‘history,’ too, which is why I tend to try to be as alert as possible about diet. Peace out…
Bacon grease, and saturated fat in general, dont present a risk to health. They have been vilified for the damage sugar and industrial oils have done.
Little House on the Prairie?! How old are you? Goodnight John Boy.
And if you catch that reference, you old. SOURCE: Am old.
The full watch through started in 2012 when she moved in. I remember it existing as a kid but couldn’t stand it. Didn’t do much better this time without turning every episode into MST3K.
The official cookbook has come in handy on occasion.
Well, 2012 was like, last year. Right? Right?!
It was before the civil war started.
Ol’ man Tucker was a fine old man…
Thick iron pan, no grease, cover with pot, wait until popping stops. Sprinkle salt and pepper. Sometimes, I use a giant wok and salt fry them.
I loooove fresh popcorn. It used to be 75% of my reason to go to the cinema when they still had it (now they only have packaged popcorn :’( )
Anyways : any cooking oil, salt directly in the oil, standard pan. Sometimes we add caramel but we never got a great end result.
I’ve experimented a good bit with popcorn, starting with the stir/shake-pot method, graduating to an cheap air-popper, and finally discovering that one can pop it between two baking sheets in the oven(!) The advantage with the latter two is that you can more exactly control the oil content. Oh, also-- an air-fryer is super-useful for crisping up stale popcorn and many other snacks. (seriously, it’s a miracle worker)
I’ve also tried all kinds of different spritzes and coatings, experimenting with curry powder, nutritional yeast, chili powder, grated parm, garlic powder, black pepper, red pepper, chipotle powder, pseudo-butter powder, and then stuff like the Kernal Season’s store-bought stuff.
(their sour cream & onion powder is da bomb, altho sadly my local store doesn’t stock it no more)
There’s also an industry standard item which I haven’t tried yet, but intend to. It’s called “Flavacol,” and is apparently theatres’ ‘secret sauce’ to making their popcorn so yummy and buttery, even though it’s just a powder. By reputation, if you’re planning on trying powder flavorings, that one seems far and away the one to get, if you can.
Flavacol is just an artificial butter flavor with salt made into really fine particles. But you are correct, any time you’ve been to any business or place that had a popcorn machine you can pretty well guarantee they are using it.
I used to make the popcorn at Target and it’s what we used.
Oh it’s also cheap as shit and the carton will last you forever so just pick some up if you are curious.
Yup!
But I’ll say this-- there are many, many butter-flavorings out there for popcorn, and yet “Flavacol” is the one repeatedly, commonly used in the popcorn sales industry at large.Personally, I would guess that tells a certain tale, amigo.
Butter + Penzey’s Pie Spice:
https://www.penzeys.com/online-catalog/pie-spice/c-24/p-3079/pd-s
When I’m making it to eat hot, I generally prefer yellow butterfly popcorn. If I’m making popcorn to eat cold - like when I’m making caramel corn balls or something (or stringing them for the Christmas tree), I prefer white mushroom popcorn. In either case, I prefer hull-lesd over hulled popcorn - I have cracking my teeth on them. I tend not to like popcorn mixes (mixed red, blue, yellow and white kernels) - they’re very pretty, but I have enough trouble timing the pops without adding in complexity between the kernels.
I know the different types taste different, but not enough that I really notice much - that’s likely a function of the added toppings, even if it’s just something as simple as butter and salt. Popcorn-on-the-cob is a fun thing for the kids or a friend.
I usually run through the start of a bag of corn, then stop because I get tired of it, and when I start again, the moisture content has dropped enough that I’m no longer getting y the big puffy corn I like, which is usually the sign to pop the current bag into popcorn balls and start a new bag for movie viewing.
If you’re using old kernels, I recommend lowering the heat to 4. It will take longer for the kernels to pop but you will regain some of that fluffiness.
For old kernels, add a teaspoon or two of water to a gallon of seeds. Shake thoroughly and let sit for a couple of days.
