Did you know you can easily make popcorn on your stove top, without any kind of special equipment whatsoever? You totally can!
[Quick interjection: I’ve been meaning and desiring to write some more contemplative posts — on such subjects as Christian anarchism, fertility awareness and gentle parenting — but my congested 18-month old has been sucking up most of my brain-power lately. And also my milk. But don’t even get me started on the latter. So for now, I offer another, funner post. Reflective stuff is brewing.]
This video is more of an experiment, as I figure out how to use the technology and how to create an interesting, informative video. It was fun to put together, and I thought it would be fun to share it with you!
So without further ado, here’s my video tutorial on how to make popcorn on your stove top. I also talk about why you’d want to do it this way, and how we like it best! Additional recipes below!
To Review:
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil
- 1/2 cup popping corn (preferable organic, to avoid GMO’s)
- optional: 4-6 Tbsp (half to 3/4 of a stick) butter (See below for our other favourite toppings)
Heat coconut oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Throw in a couple of kernels to alert you of when the oil is hot. Meanwhile, start melting butter (or preparing other topping) over low heat in a separate saucepan.
When the kernels start to pop, throw in the rest of the corn. Cover, keeping the lid slightly ajar to let out steam. Continue to heat corn over medium heat, occasionally shaking the saucepan to prevent burning. When the popping slows down, remove from heat and carefully pour into a large bowl, removing any unpopped kernels.
Drizzle on butter (or other topping), stirring with a rubber spatula to coat.
Serves 2.
Notes:
- Yes, all of our technology is outdated and of poor quality. No, I don’t know how to edit videos. You mean you didn’t want to watch me talk about popcorn for 7 minutes straight?
- Yes, I’m aware that I blink my eyes like an idiot. I’m very self-conscious about it. One of my earliest memories is of my mom making fun of the way I blink. I was probably two. My two best friends in elementary school also mocked me on a regular basis. I try to tell myself that it’s an endearing idiosyncrasy and NOT AT ALL the reason boys wouldn’t date me in high school.
Our Favourite Popcorn Topping Recipes
Buffalo Parmesan Popcorn
Adapted from Bake Your Day
- 1 batch popped popcorn, as above (about 4-6 cups), in a big bowl
- 2 Tbs. butter
- 2 Tbs. your favourite hot sauce (we like Frank’s Red Hot)
- 1/4 tsp. Cajun seasoning
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 cup freshly-grated Parmesan cheese
Melt butter over low heat. Add hot sauce, seasoning, and salt. Combine and remove from heat. We prefer to sprinkle the Parmesan directly onto the hot popcorn first to let it melt, and then add the sauce, stirring to combine. Eat immediately, because it gets soggy quickly. Tastes incredible with a nice, cold beer.
Dark Chocolate Popcorn
- 1 batch popped popcorn, as above (about 4-6 cups), in a big bowl
- 3 oz extra-dark chocolate (I prefer 85% cacao)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Melt chocolate in a double-boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely-simmering water, stirring until smooth.
Drizzle chocolate over popcorn, stirring with a rubber spatula to combine. Sprinkle with salt. Cool until hardened, breaking any large clumps if needed. (Sometimes I pop mine in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes to hurry the process). Can be stored for up to a week in a sealed container, if for some bizarre reason you don’t eat it before that.
Honey-Caramel Popcorn
- 1 batch popcorn, as above
- 5 Tbsp butter
- 3 Tbsp honey
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- optional: a few shakes of cinnamon
While popcorn is popping, preheat oven to 350.
Melt butter and honey over low heat in a small saucepan. Stir in optional cinnamon. Drizzle over popcorn, stirring to coat. Sprinkle with salt.
Spread coated popcorn over a baking sheet and bake for about 5 min until slightly crispy. Will continue to crisp up as it cools.
What’s your favourite way to eat popcorn?
Shared at Your Green Resource.
Popcorn!!! Total food group! :^) Mmmmm… Butter = Good! I’ve grown my own in my semi-shady back yard (easy peasy). My mom taught me to make it in a wok and I have an old beater one from the thrift store that I use for that sole purpose. Thanks for the recipes; that Buffalo Parm one sounds SO good!
Great video, Kathleen! We have one of those Stir Crazy popcorn poppers and it seems so hard to clean. A friend of mine says she doesn’t clean hers and just leaves the oil residue for the next batch, but for some reason is weirds me out. I was just thinking the other day that I should give the stove top method a try and here you are with a video about it!
I didn’t notice any weird blinking. Maybe you blink normally and everyone you grew up around blinks weirdly :)
This is great! I sort of learned how to do this from Mexican migrant workers on a mission trip as a teenager but had totally forgotten about it until now, and I’ve never tried it myself. Real popcorn sounds so good right now! I’ll have to try to find kernels next time I go to the store.
Kathleen!! That was excellent!! You have to do more videos…. My girlfriend and I were just talking stove-top popcorn yesterday afternoon. She does it all the time, and now I have to try since you made it look so easy :)
I LOVE homemade popcorn! So much better than store-bought microwave stuff. I haven’t tried stove top, but I do homemade microwave popcorn. Put corn kernels into brown paper bag (lunch bag) and fold bag so it is sealed. Microwave for about 90 seconds and add toppings of choice. I don’t add any oil and they seem to pop well.
I’ll have to try stove top!
I used to LOVE the brown bag/microwave method, but one time it caught on fire and I ruined the microwave. So…watch it closely, I guess?
I saw this recipe on Elizabeth’s blog a while back and it looked so good I had to try it that day! And I loved your recipes at the end. Totally making me wish I could make some right now, were I not holed up in this hotel room! And I loved seeing you in your video tutorial! You even have a real Canadian accent! Looking forward to more :)
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And I made some as soon as I got home! Yummy.
alison recently posted..This is a test
Hi Kathleen. As soon as I’m settled again, I will definitely try some popcorn this way. What an awesome blog you have here. I’ve been reading older posts, and almost left without commenting, I was so into them. Now I’m going to sign up for follow-up posts. I’m in the process of moving to another city, but as soon as the move is behind me, I will be more able to keep up with your posts. Blessings. . .
I tried doing stovetop popcorn for about a year, but my husband and I would always both try to get out of washing the coconut oil out of the big pot, and it got to the point we just avoided making it even when popcorn cravings hit, all because we didn’t want to wash the oily pot. So, I found of motor base of an air popper on the curb, and sculpted tin foil into a quasi-hood for it.
Good idea to do the video though–I burned it my first couple attempts until someone wrote out very specific instructions for me. Those included the step of removing the pot from the stove when you put in the kernels in, and swirling them around in the oil for 30 seconds, to make sure they’re evenly coated and heated. It worked well. Also, the flavoring ideas sound good!
You are seriously so cute! I love getting to see you and hear you!
We are big fans of stovetop popcorn this way, and it’s a favourite snack, mostly just with unhealthy amounts of salt on it ;) But since we moved house a year ago and have a new oven, we CANNOT get it right. We’ve gone from gas to electric and however we try, it’s hard to get it just perfect, all the kernels popped, none burnt… Sigh. We keep trying though because it’s so much nicer knowing what’s in your popcorn.
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I too am a fan of popping our popcorn on the stove! Great idea about venting. I’m wondering if anyone has an organic popcorn brand that they’d recommend. The Whole Foods near us only carries one brand and it doesn’t make nice big fluffy popcorn – it almost looks 1/2 popped.
Hey Kathleen – I made this popcorn for date night tonight. My husband loved it and declared that I must make a little extra next time. I used Wilderness Family Naturals coconut oil and the popcorn had a delicious coconut-y smell while it was popping. I think popcorn will now become a staple snack for us. Thanks for the recipe!