Background
Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE popcorn and that I basically consider it one of the four major food groups. It’s healthy, filling, and easy to eat while I’m working…plus that it’s cheap! I have a favorite brand, Knight’s Gourmet Popcorn, and to me nothing else that’s pre-popped can compare for taste. Nothing, except for homemade popped corn that’s made from scratch. But making popcorn is messy, time consuming, and makes your whole house smell like popcorn. Personally, I love the smell of freshly popped popcorn, but I was surprised to discover that many people don’t!
I’ve been gone from home a lot this year and discovered that I really miss my daily popcorn when we travel. More and more hotel rooms have microwaves in them, or at least have a microwave that’s accessible to guests however, so I decided to come up with an easy method to use when I travel.
I think I’ve finally solved my popcorn deficiency when we travel!
I ran across a microwave recipe for making your own popcorn a while ago involving a brown paper bag. I tried it but it too was messy and didn’t work out well for me. The brown paper bag, ended up getting all oily on the outside. I ran across others which used variations of this theme, but nothing really worked well for me until today.
So this is my tried and true method for popping popcorn in my microwave from scratch.
Ingredients
1/2 cup popcorn (I like black alot)
1 teaspoon coconut oil (I used organic virgin)
Salt to taste
Step 1
Find a microwavable bowl with a lid or use a bowl with a plate on top…just make sure they are both microwave safe.
Step 2
Put 1 t. coconut oil in the bowl with the lid and microwave for about 30 seconds to melt it.
Step 3
Add the raw popcorn and salt and stir it well. Then put back in and microwave for 5:45* minutes.
Be careful handling the bowl when you take it out as it get’s extremely hot!!!
Don’t use microwavable Rubbermaid…the container was fine but the lid melted onto the container!
- Most of the other recipes I found used a lot less time than this…more like 2-3 minutes…but nothing was popped in that amount of time for me. I suspect that it has to do somewhat with the thickness of the dishes you’re using, and I was using a ‘Pyrex’ type of bowl and lid…which has glass that’s pretty thick. So I took it out in the middle and stirred it up quickly without letting the oil cool down too much, then popped it back in for longer.
*Some ‘rule of thumb’ times:
Type of Bowl & Lid I Used
- thick Pyrex bowl with lid 5:45 mins
- lightweight microwavable stain free Rubbermaid bowl with lid 4 mins.
6 Months Later
I decided to get a special bowl for micro-waving popcorn and it really works great so I thought I’d share it here too. It’s available at Amazon only as an addon item (addons are usually products offered at really great prices which need to be shipped along with other items ordered to justify he shipping costs to Amazon.)
I really prefer using plastic but I discovered that using plastic in a microwave is an awful idea unless it’s a microwave safe plastic…which this bowl is.
Here’s what I love about my new bowl:
- I like the plastic material…it’s not plasticky feeling…it has a denser, more substantial feel to it.
- I got the white and I like the color
- I like how easy it is to use…it’s quick, no messy, and fast cleanup.
- I love that both parts, the bowl and the top are dishwasher safe!
- I love the 12oz size…it’s the perfect single serving size for someone like me who love’s popcorn (the cooked amount is probably equivalent to 11/2 x a typical white bag serving size of popcorn.)
Red Nordic Ware Microwave Popcorn Popping Bowl $7.99
White Nordic Ware Microwave Popcorn Popping Bowl $7.99
I’m an Amazon associate and will earn a tiny commission (6% of $7.99) if you order a popcorn maker using the above links.
Comments
Please leave comments about any ideas you may have that improves upon this method.
vsatips 