Your favorite Microwave Popcorn - or how to dress it up for movie night

[jpinard]

"share thine secrets, I beseech thee"

I'm out of ideas and am looking for yours. Outside of making the real stuff or buying the "pour over fake-butter stuff" we'd (wife and I) would enjoy some options for making our popcorn not suck. Brands, flavors, condiments, tricks...

My attempts:

* Melting my own low-fat butter and pouring on... just makes the kernels shrivel up.
* Fake butter-salt. I love salt, but not that much.
* Air popcorn? Rice cakes have more flavor.
* Eat after taking Ambien - still tastes boring with my brain turned off.

The only ones we tolerate are Orville Redenbacher "Corn on the Cob", and the Blockbuster "Nasty tub-o-popcorn". There's gotta be better stuff out there than this!

[seventimessix]

Orville's caramel corn is surprisingly good.

[jason_wilson]

If you really don't mind a little cleanup, pop your own on the stove, using olive oil instead of vegetable oil, canola oil, or "special popcorn oil" to pop it. If you like using olive oil instead of butter for bread at restaurants, you may want to try it.

[jpinard]

If you really don't mind a little cleanup, pop your own on the stove, using olive oil instead of vegetable oil, canola oil, or "special popcorn oil" to pop it. If you like using olive oil instead of butter for bread at restaurants, you may want to try it.

Two questions:
1. Don't you need a special pan for that?
2. Isn't it still kinda dry and you have to dress it with butter? Or can Olive Oil (which we both love) do the job... maybe use more than the amount required so the popcorn isn't so dry?

[Brad Grenz]

You just need a good sized pot with a lid. Or even just some foil to cover it. As long as you aren't too stingy with the olive oil to cook it in it never needs any other kind of fat to top it. Also, I'd buy some popcorn salt. It's super fine to help the salt stick to the popcorn and has a few different spices that enhance the flavor.

[Athryn]

Two questions:
1. Don't you need a special pan for that?
2. Isn't it still kinda dry and you have to dress it with butter? Or can Olive Oil (which we both love) do the job... maybe use more than the amount required so the popcorn isn't so dry?

I remember my mom popping popcorn in a regular 2-quart pan on the stove, so nah, you don't need a special pan, microwaves just made popping corn faster and less ... messy (but often less tasty)

You can get those butter flavored sprays and use it to spray the popcorn and then toss in chili powder, garlic powder, etc as a way to spice it up.

[Euri]

Pouring melted butter over popcorn doesn't work. What you want to do is make some ghee. Just use like a pound of butter, put it in a thick pan. Heat it on low until it boils a bit, just let it keep going like this until you get a bunch of bubbles on the top and the actual butter gets transparent. Just keep blowing on the bubbles to check. Once it's all clear, pour a bit of salt into the butter to let all the particulate matter settle. Pour the finished ghee into a bottle. Cool it a bit and you can use that to pour on the popcorn, don't let it get too hot.

[Marged]

Oh my god, making your own popcorn is divine.

I think I use a 2 quart pan with a lid. I pour in a few tablespoons of olive oil, then add one or two kernels. Heat over medium high until the kernels pop, then I add like, a tablespoon or two of kernels. Don't let them sit on the burner, keep picking up the pan and shake it. It'll pop really fast.

Microwave popcorn is a total rip off. This is so much better.

I love tossing it with some parmesan.

[Skipper]

Oh my god, making your own popcorn is divine.

I think I use a 2 quart pan with a lid. I pour in a few tablespoons of olive oil, then add one or two kernels. Heat over medium high until the kernels pop, then I add like, a tablespoon or two of kernels. Don't let them sit on the burner, keep picking up the pan and shake it. It'll pop really fast.

Microwave popcorn is a total rip off. This is so much better.

I love tossing it with some parmesan.

Marged read my mind. With the Parmesan too. Sometimes I cheat though and use Orville popcorn oil which is infused with a little butter flavor.

Popcorn on the stove beats microwave popcorn by a mile though.

[ElGuapo]

For microwave, try that "kettle corn" stuff. It's better than the regular. Also, try adding a little Old Bay or other spice to popcorn. It can be really tasty. Old Bay is kind of a Chesapeake bay flavor, so if you live around there or are from there it's great, but it'd probably taste a bit weird at first if you haven't had it on crabs a million times.

[Enidigm]

Popping your own popcorn is stupidly easy. Heat pasta pot with a bit of oil, throw a couple of seeds to start it, when they pop throw the rest in, shake vigorously for about 5 minutes (rotate in circular motions on the horizontal plane), and that's it. There is virtually no reason to ever use microwave popcorn because it takes just about the same time.

Plus, you get to use Lawry's seasoned salt when you do it yourself ^^.

[Tim]

Kettle corn and Pop Secret "Home Style" are pretty good for microwave.

For home cooking, I got one of these a couple of years ago, and I don't think have made popcorn any other way since:

Cuisinart popcorn popper (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TVUGPE/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201)

It's almost perfect: no work, no burning, very easy cleanup. The only drawback is that the bucket cover captures just about all of the moisture during popping, making a little bit of the popcorn on bottom or even edges almost soggy. It can help to dump the bucket into a regular bowl right after popping, but usually I don't even bother with that. Also, I think we've worn ours out - the heating element has become flaky, often not engaging full power so it doesn't get hot enough for proper popping. Sometimes unlatching and reconnecting the base fixes this. If I weren't such a PITA as a gift receiver, I'd have replaced it already, but I'm leaving that job for Santa.

It's far, far, better than an air popper, and I like it a lot better than any microwave type too. All popcorn fans should have one of these.

[Demon G Sides]

Take any kind of popcorn you have. Get some Hot Salt. Get some Tabasco/hot sauce. Apply both liberally. Get some butter, melt it and pour it over it. Toss around inside a giant bowl. Enjoy.

[Hanacker]

When you're done, be sure to add some furikake and arare and shake it up. Delicious.

[fire]

Orville's Tender White. Mmm.
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/315MVK4Z4SL._SL500_AA220_.jpg

[Omniscia]

Well, I've got the air popper out, and was all ready to make a nice batch o' corn and catch up on 30 Rock (via Hulu), but I've spent the last half hour trying to fix Vista on my pseudo-HTPC. Ten more minutes and I think I'm going to throw in the towel and just have the damn popcorn already.

[Tracy Baker]

Kettle corn and Pop Secret "Home Style" are pretty good for microwave.

For home cooking, I got one of these a couple of years ago, and I don't think have made popcorn any other way since:

Cuisinart popcorn popper (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000TVUGPE/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201)

Dang, I was all excited there for a second but the Amazon reviews complaining about problems similar to yours = no sale.

[extarbags]

Yeah, doing it on the stove is super-easy and soooooo much better. You can experiment really easily with different flavors, too; parmesan rules of course, but you can also try garlic powder or even chili powder (or cayenne if you're really crazy-go-nuts).

[malkav11]

In terms of seasonings, my mom turned me on to this stuff: http://www.kernelseasons.com/

There's a movie theater chain around these parts that has certain flavors of Kernel Seasons available to apply to your popcorn there, which was great - we had to go with the couple of flavors that didn't include salt, though, as theater popcorn is already quite salty. Unfortunately I think these days they charge a premium for it.

[The Bitter Cynic]

I usually just buy what ever is on sale. It tastes the same to me, but I like it.

For seasoning, I will take a Ramen seasoning pack (alot of flavors, but I like chili the best)and sprinkle some in the popcorn. Shake it up and Mmmm.

[ChrisPal]

Wow, this thread has successfully instilled the desire to begin making popcorn on the stove and experiment with it. And I rarely think about popcorn. Huh.

[Eduardo X]

I used to use my soup pot for popcorn, but then I got an air popper. The popcorn from that is a tiny bit more dry, but I just pour on some olive oil and season it (with curry powder, cayenne pepper, cracked black pepper, or tapatio, and then ALWAYS top it off with some nutritional yeast. That stuff is delicious!). It never does me wrong.

[Jason McCullough]

Why not just buy the real stuff? It's way cheaper, and it takes exactly the same amount of time to pop in the microwave. You then have to melt the butter separately, but that's not a huge imposition.

Plus, this (http://www.google.com/search?q=popcorn+lung&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a).

[Phil_Stein]

You can experiment with making it in a standard large-ish pot. Put some vegetable oil in (plain old corn or canola will do). Add some popcorn (cheap to buy in bags). Shake the pot some especially as it starts to pop to avoid burning.

If you like it, invest in a popcorn maker (oil, not hot air, unless you like dry popcorn). You can experiment with various seasonings as folks mention here. I like it fairly basic - with some Orville Redenbacher butter flavored popcorn oil and basic salt. I use standard vegetable oil for the main cooking/popping, then add a bit of the special stuff on top and salt to taste.

Basically, it should be pretty easy to experiment with real popcorn, and if you find a method you like, popcorn makers are fairly cheap and make the process easier. You could also stick with the standard stovetop method long-term, if you like it.

[Kaigen]

I make this (http://allrecipes.com/recipe/kettle-corn/Detail.aspx) sometimes. If you follow the recipe as described, it turns out great. Make sure you shake the pan a lot, or the sugar will burn/stick.

My roomie has a great big pot with a vented lid that "clips" onto the pot. It's perfect for making popcorn, and since the lid can attach to the pot you can shake it without anything flying off. I have no idea where she got it though.

[corsair]

Redenbacher's Ultimate Butter. Those who say it takes just as long as making your own have got it wrong - it's less trouble! No prep, no clean-up, just toss it in the microwave, hit the "popcorn" button (mine works great), and hit the pause button on the Blu-Ray when the 'wave "dings". Eat it out of the bag. No, don't share it with others! Let them make their own damn bag!

Now, if you want to make your own - go for it! Spend the money for peanut oil instead of olive oil. Try your own seasonings. Butter makes it shrivel (something reverse-sexual in that)? Let it cool a bit, but heck, I've put butter on microwave popcorn - anything but that flipping indigestible axle-grease called "buttery flavoring". Blarg!

[Karen]

Alton Brown's popcorn recipe.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/perfect-popcorn-recipe/index.html

I use this about 50% of the time. The other 50% I use the air popper and melt some butter. (I also use the air popper to make popcorn for caramel corn)

At work I use the microwave.

I am a popcorn fiend. For one Christmas, Ben bought me 10 lbs of gourmet corn. It was awesome.

[Omniscia]

Well, now that the Secret Santa gifts have been opened, and my identity revealed, I can post this in here without worrying about giving anything away...

http://www.thenibble.com/marketplace/draft-1/images/cheddar-shake-230_000.jpg

This stuff is amazing on popcorn (and so much more).

[jpinard]

Alton Brown's popcorn recipe.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/perfect-popcorn-recipe/index.html

I use this about 50% of the time. The other 50% I use the air popper and melt some butter. (I also use the air popper to make popcorn for caramel corn)

At work I use the microwave.

I am a popcorn fiend. For one Christmas, Ben bought me 10 lbs of gourmet corn. It was awesome.

I didn't know you could put that kind of thing on the stove. I always use my metal mixing bowl for, well - mixing things like salad.

[drteeth]

I've always used Alton's technique but I use a wok instead of a mixing bowl. Popping on the stove top might take twice as long as popping microwave popcorn but we are still only talking about three minutes and the taste is way better.

[Griddle]

This is our favorite, the corn is just awesome, barely any hull left over, and it holds flavorings really well, especially caramel or kettle corn stuff.

http://shop.justpoppin.com/gourmet-popcorn-kernels-mushroom-popcorn.html
http://shop.justpoppin.com/assets/images/popcorn-kernels/mushroom-popcorn-kernels-cu.jpg

[tiohn]

Because of this thread, I've been popping popcorn in my pressure cooker lately. I use peanut oil and finish with a bit of salt for some fantastic popcorn. The real reason for this post, however, is to state that we've got some friends in Italy that bring us fantastic foodstuffs whenever they come visit, and this year they gave me truffle salt. I look forward to the best popcorn EVER.

[rei]

This stuff is awesome: http://www.popcornindiana.com/movie-theater-popcorn.asp

[malkav11]

I just ordered some of this (http://www.amazon.com/Black-Jewell-Microwave-Popcorn-10-5-Ounce/dp/B00061ENEC/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=grocery&qid=1262745104&sr=8-2) to hopefully go with my Kernel Seasons flavorings that will arrive tomorrow. I recall my mom using...well, if not this specific brand, then at least a similar kind of popcorn years ago and it was awesome (but air popped, so we'll see if it makes the microwave transition).

Will report back when I've had a chance to try 'em.

[Euri]

I've made popcorn three times since this thread, which is far more often than usual. Delicious peanut oil popped popcorn with ghee and a sprinkling of powdered cheddar.

[ceolstan]

My dad made great popcorn in a regular pot on top of the stove. If you have a 2-quart saucepan, great. If not, use what you have. You do need a lid to the pan, though. The secret is in judging how much oil to use (generally just enough to coat the bottom of the pan once the oil is heated) and how much popcorn (about 1 layer of kernels). Keep the pan moving once the popcorn starts to pop, lest your kernels start to burn. Those of you with glass-topped stoves will likely want to hold the pan above the heat rather than resting the pan on the surface, since moving the pan may scratch your glass stove surface.

I agree that making your own popcorn is delicious and so much more inexpensive!

[mkozlows]

So sign me up with all the stovetop popcorn people. It's the only sensible way to go. (I use Bittman's "recipe" -- oil to coat the pan, medium heat, three test kernels, 1/2 cup of popcorn added after the test ones pop.)

But all the crazy topping stuff is missing the point. Popcorn is like steak: You put elaborate coatings and toppings on the cheap stuff to hide the cheapness, but what you really want is the good stuff, whose flavours are worth tasting by themselves (well, with butter and salt in the popcorn case).

Get a sample pack of different popcorns from Crown Jewel (http://www.crownjewelgourmet.com/), serve them simply, and enjoy their subtleties in the same way that you would a single-estate chocolate.

[Tracy Baker]

I see your point, mkozlows, but refuse to abide by it now that I've discovered that Penzey's Fox Point seasoning (http://www.penzeys.com/cgi-bin/penzeys/p-penzeysfoxpoint.html) (which is incredible on eggs) is totally rad on popcorn.

[DrCrypt]

My girlfriend just introduced me to this, and it's wonderful: take a bag of unbuttered microwave popcorn, then apply soy sauce and lemonpepper generously. I was skeptical, but it's excellent.

[OrfBC]

I've done soy sauce, but never generously, and not with lemon pepper. The lemon pepper sounds good, but too much soy sauce just gets the popcorn soggy in my experience.

[malkav11]

The Black Jewell popcorn's pretty good and worked much better with the Kernel Seasons than the stopgap Act II crap I picked up at Target on Tuesday (although part of that was I couldn't get the seasoning to come out in any great quantities yesterday). It's not the stuff my mom used, though. I don't know what that might have been.

[DrCrypt]

I've done soy sauce, but never generously, and not with lemon pepper. The lemon pepper sounds good, but too much soy sauce just gets the popcorn soggy in my experience.

Well, I guess it really depends on what you mean by "generous." We probably used four tablespoons, which we think is generous, but then again, we don't live in the States. We also shook the bag heartily between each tablespoon.

[tiohn]

Ghee and truffle salt made for fan-freaking-tastic popcorn last night.