Pop Corn at Home

If I cook them in a pan I use some olive oil. But that's what I use for everything. Butter would work well too! It keeps them from charring and allows them to pop. I put the oil, some salt and the kernels all in the pan and set the heat on. Then you have to shake the pan back and forth to keep them from burning! I usually make it in the microwave though. I put about 1/3 to 1/4 of a cup of the dry kernels in a lunch bag. (a small one) and staple it closed. As long as the staple doesn't touch the side of the microwave you'll be okay. I stand there while it pops so they won't burn. This is actually the way I prefer it. I add a little salt and it's a very low fat, crunchy snack!!

I'm not certain on this, but I've heard before that you can't just use any corn. It's a certain type of corn that is used for popcorn. And when you cook them you should use oil. Cover the bottom of the pan with oil. Not so that the kernels are submerged. Just make sure it covers the bottom of the pan, and put it on high heat. Listen carefully to the popping. It might take a little while to get going, but once it starts it will be pretty rapid. Once you hear it start slowing down, turn the heat down a little. Once it is popping just a few pops here and there, then turn the heat off,and take the popcorn off the stove. Also while your popping it, shake the pot a little, so that the un-popped kernels can reach the heat source. You'll have more popcorn this way. Don't cook the butter with the popcorn, because butter burns easily. Instead heat some butter up separately, and then drizzle it on your popcorn afterward, or sprinkle it with salt. Or whatever you want to put on it.

The easiest way is to buy a hot air corn popper. They run on electricity, and usually have a little well at the top that melts the butter while the corn is popping. After it's done, you pour the butter over the popcorn. There are also poppers you use on the stove, that have a crank you turn to keep the kernels moving. If you don't want to buy one of these, then you use a covered pot. You put kernels in the bottom, and keep shaking the pot so that the kernels keep moving. If you just let them lie there, they'll burn. You also have to experiment with the heat setting so that it's hot enough to pop the kernels, but not so hot that they start burning before they can get hot enough to pop. If you don't use a commercial popper, it's a learning process, and you'll just have to accept that you're probably going to burn a lot of popcorn before you get good at it.