{"id":27861,"date":"2018-03-27T09:17:13","date_gmt":"2018-03-27T14:17:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cookieandkate.com\/?p=27861"},"modified":"2024-08-08T14:22:54","modified_gmt":"2024-08-08T19:22:54","slug":"perfect-stovetop-popcorn-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookieandkate.com\/perfect-stovetop-popcorn-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Perfect Stovetop Popcorn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Little-known fact: I am a stovetop popcorn connoisseur.<\/strong> I’ve been making popcorn on the stove since my parents taught me in elementary school. Stovetop popcorn is infinitely better<\/em> than microwave popcorn or air-popped popcorn. If you haven’t made it yet, you’ve been missing out!<\/p>\n

I’m on a mission to make sure everyone knows how to make popcorn from scratch. Today, I’m sharing all of my popcorn-making tips so you can make perfect stovetop popcorn at home, too. All you need are popcorn kernels, a good pot with a lid, oil and salt.<\/strong> You can do it!<\/p>\n

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Of all the salty, crunchy, savory snacks out there, stovetop popcorn is one of the tastiest and cheapest snacks.<\/strong> I love that I can make it in under 10 minutes if I’m craving a snack, and easily adjust the amounts to yield a single serving or popcorn for a party.<\/p>\n

The 10-minute buffer period is actually great, since it means I can’t reach into the pantry and mindlessly snack on popcorn. That’s why I don’t keep tortilla chips on hand—I eat them too fast.<\/p>\n

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How to Make Stovetop Popcorn<\/h2>\n
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Use a good, heavy-bottomed pot.<\/strong> Cheap pots don’t distribute heat evenly, and you can end up with hot spots that burn the popcorn.<\/li>\n
Don’t crank the heat up too high.<\/strong> It’s too easy to burn oil at temperature higher than medium heat, and if you catch even a whiff of smoke coming from the pot, your popcorn is going to taste burnt.<\/li>\n
Start with two popcorn kernels to gauge the temperature.<\/strong> Once those pop, your oil is hot enough. Add the remaining kernels and remove the pot from the heat for 1 minute. This primes the popcorn to pop without burning the oil.<\/li>\n
Tip the lid ever-so-slightly while the popcorn is popping.<\/strong> That way, the popcorn doesn’t steam itself in the pot and lose crispness. (See photo above.)<\/li>\n
If the popcorn starts overflowing the pot:<\/strong> Simply remove the lid and tip the excess popcorn into a bowl. Return the lid and return the popcorn to the heat until popping slows.<\/li>\n
Season with salt carefully.<\/strong> You can always add more, but you can’t take away too much.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Scroll down for my recipe!<\/em><\/p>\n
Watch How to Make Popcorn<\/h3>\n\n
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Cooking Oil Options<\/h3>\n
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Extra-virgin olive oil:<\/strong> You can absolutely make popcorn with olive oil, as long as you cook it over medium heat. Olive oil is my favorite oil to use and it’s the healthiest option.<\/li>\n
Coconut oil:<\/strong> Movie theaters cook popcorn in coconut oil and it is delicious. Opt for unrefined (virgin) coconut oil, which is more redeeming than the highly refined version used at theaters.<\/li>\n
Canola oil and other vegetable oils:<\/strong> I avoid canola oil since it’s usually highly processed. Avocado oil, grapeseed oil and safflower oil are good neutral options.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Recommended Popcorn Seasonings<\/h3>\n
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Black pepper and good olive oil:<\/strong> This variation is so good that it made it into my cookbook<\/a>.<\/li>\n
Cinnamon honey butter:<\/strong> This popcorn is a little sticky, but irresistible. Whisk 2 tablespoons melted butter with 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup and 1\/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon.<\/li>\n
Spice it up:<\/strong> Sprinkle with cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes or white pepper.<\/li>\n
Lemon popcorn:<\/strong> Finely grate some lemon zest (one small lemon’s worth or less) over your batch of popcorn. This goes well with finely grated black pepper and Parmesan, too!<\/li>\n
Nutritional yeast:<\/strong> This is a healthy vegan alternative that offers butter flavor. Here’s how my friend Ali makes “nooch” popcorn<\/a>.<\/li>\n
Melted butter: <\/strong>It’s hard to beat melted butter. Even just one to two tablespoons offer a lot of flavor.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
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Is popcorn healthy?<\/h3>\n
In the crunchy, salty snacks category, popcorn is definitely one of the healthier options.<\/strong> That is, if you make popcorn on the stove with a reasonable amount of high-quality oil and don’t douse it in butter or caramel afterward.<\/p>\n
I make popcorn with extra-virgin olive oil and organic popcorn kernels, so I’d say my popcorn is as healthy as popcorn gets. Popcorn is a whole grain, and it offers some redeeming fiber. You can enjoy a big serving (2.5 cups) of popcorn for the same amount of calories as a handful of tortilla chips.<\/p>\n
Movie theater popcorn and flavored microwave popcorn are another story.<\/strong> They’re typically made with highly refined oils and coated in artificial “butter flavor” chemicals and preservatives.<\/p>\n
Even if you’re buying unflavored microwave popcorn, the bags themselves pose health concerns. They’re typically coated with perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)<\/a>, which is the same toxic substance that coats Teflon pans. PFOA’s stick around in the human body for long periods of time, and the EPA states<\/a> that PFOA’s at sufficient levels can cause a host of health problems, including cancer.<\/p>\n
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Why make stovetop popcorn?<\/h3>\n
It’s super delicious and chemical-free. Granted, you could also make air-popped popcorn and it would be free of all the bad stuff, too, but it’s flavorless and dull. Snacks should taste good! Stovetop popcorn tastes way<\/em> better with as little as one tablespoon of oil for eight servings.<\/p>\n
If you want to drizzle butter to your stovetop popcorn (so tasty), go right ahead. Even one tablespoon of butter on those eight servings of popcorn adds a lot of real butter flavor. Do you know how much saturated fat is in a medium movie theater popcorn? An entire stick of butter’s worth.<\/a><\/p>\n
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