It's been another glorious day here in North Lincolnshire, the sun has been shining and the birds have been twittering. A little bimble round the village, and pottering in the garden has kept me occupied, no need to go anywhere, no need to spend any money. Mind you, I will have to go food shopping in the next few days, the fridge is looking bare and in need of filling up. I have no fresh fruit or veg left, so it was tins and freezer food for me today.
I remembered I had this packet of corn in the cupboard, I bought it from Tesco a couple of months ago because it was on offer at 49p. I thought, oooh worth a try, I haven't popped corn before. I had to look up the method on yootoob.
A few splashes of extra virgin olive oil in a large pan. Then cover the bottom with corn, shake it about to make sure the corn is coated with the oil.
Put the lid on and light the gas. I used this glass lid from another pan because I wanted to see what happened.
It sort of got steamy, then the popping started. Wow, it was so loud, sounds like the whole pan is going to explode. I adjusted the gas, it needs to be mediumish, not too hot or it will burn.
Flippin heck, the pan is full. I had to scoop some off the top, and put it back on the gas for a few seconds, so that the corn on the bottom had all popped.
I've got masses of the stuff, now what do I do with it. It's going to take me ages to eat it. I know, another giveaway. Leave your comment to win a box of popcorn, ha ha. No only joking. I'll have it for breakfast, and maybe the birds would like some.
Toodle pop, oops, I mean pip.
Hi Ilona, sounds like you had enormous fun popping corn! This is the only way we knew how to do this when we were children. Now we use a machine as it is cleaner & faster. But making your own is much cheaper (& healthier) than buying the bags to put in the microwave - plus it tastes much nicer.
ReplyDeleteMy husband sifts icing sugar & puts melted butter over his - I can attest that this tastes wonderful (albeit very fattening!).
Regards from DeeJay in Whangarei, New Zealand.
Have just finished laughing out very loud at the amount of popcorn you have made! Brilliant! The trouble is it doesn't keep very well so you will have to eat the whole lot!!!
ReplyDelete(we used to make it often years and years ago for the children - they were always amazed as it's like magic)
lol I looked at that and thought wow she put a lot in!!!
ReplyDeletepowdered sugar shake it on whilst hot
The most common way popcorn is eaten in the US is with some melted butter poured over the top with a sprinkle of salt, then tossed. YUM! There is caramel corn, cheese corn, popcorn balls (sweet), chocolate coated corn. My favorite is Chicago style which is butter corn, caramel corn and cheese corn all mixed in the same bowl.
ReplyDeleteHere is a recipe that might interest you:
http://www.goodlifeeats.com/2010/12/popcorn-trail-mix.html
You can mix-n-match the dried fruits and nuts to your taste-buds and what is in your kitchen. Enjoy!
We sprinkle it with mix of caster sugar and a little cinnamon powder - you only need the tiniest bit of cinnamon and it's delicious. A little butter is nice too.
ReplyDeleteIn the US we sometimes like to mix in Milk Duds (chocolate covered caramels about the size of a small grape) to the hot buttered pop corn when we go to the movies. The chocolate melts on the popped corn and the caramels get soft. Yummy!
ReplyDeleteHaha. No advice on how to make it sweet but wanted to say your post made me chuckle. We used to do this with the kids when they were little with a popcorn maker we had given. It used to come out of a shoot and we would have to catch it. Lots of fun. Debbie x
ReplyDeleteYou could use a cheap bar of cooking chocolate melt it and add the pop corn mix till its all covered in the chocolate and put it in cake cases to set. Me and the boys love it like this. I buy the exact popping corn you have used as it is cheap, lasts ages, and tastes yummy.
ReplyDeleteMuch Love
Claire xx xx xx
The amount you put in the pan you could have your own stall outside the cinema!
ReplyDeleteJane x
Melt some marshmallows with a bit of butter and pour over and mix it up!
ReplyDeleteBrilliant! At least you didn't take the lid off and have it popping out of the pan and all over the cooker. We used to make this for the kids, they loved it and its so much cheaper and more fun than the bought stuff.
ReplyDeleteJust make sure you store the popped corn in air tight containers.
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing worse than stale popcorn.
Our dogs have always loved it, birds and squirrels will also take it!
My daughter's favorite popcorn is peanut butter popcorn. If you like peanut butter I will share the recipe.
ReplyDeleteCinnamon, sugar and butter or some melted chocolate and nuts...two favourites here. Best of luck and I can't wait to see what you come up with.
ReplyDeleteThe trick to not popping too much--just cover the bottom of the pan with kernels. I can't believe you've never tasted popcorn before! It's one of the most popular (and cheap) snacks in the U.S.! When made the way you did, we usually pick up the pan and shake it a few times to make sure nothing burns.
ReplyDeleteMelt a little butter with a good bunch of white chocolate in a double boiler or microwave then put popcorn in a bowl and pour melted mixture over the popcorn stir and let cool. Really good!
ReplyDeleteI love to sprinkle some grated cheese over my popcorn while it is still hot. Popcorn is very popular here in America.
ReplyDeleteNancy from Northern California
I like it with black pepper!
ReplyDeleteI need to ask you a question you might know the answer to. It is about a friend who is in Leeds for a couple of weeks working. He works for Chevron and only has his work clothes. He is latino. For some reason when he goes into a restaurant or bar everyone next to him will get up and leave. As soon as he finishes eating payment is requested, and that is only if he gets waited on!
I assume there must be some prejudices against Chevron or latinos. Or both?
Thanks.
Chevron as in a refinery? Fumes on the clothes maybe?
DeleteMary, your question has me completely baffled. It is not really acceptable to go into a restaurant or bar in your work clothes, surely he has more than just the clothes on his back. You don't say what kind of work he does, if his clothes are dirty, it's hardly surprising that people move away. Leeds is a cosmopolitan city, I don't think there will be any prejudice against him, but if he is scruffy looking then people will be suspicious.
DeleteMy best friend used to cook up enough popcorn to fill a large mixing bowl, then it would get lodged between us on the sofa while we watched a film. The film would end and the bowl would be empty with each of us denying that we ate any more than a handful!
ReplyDeleteSometimes at Christmas people will decorate trees out side with strings of popcorn for the birds to eat.
Linda xx
He is there on a short work assignment. I'm not sure why he only has work clothes. I'm certain he wouldn't go out dirty too. Perhaps there is that stigma of going into a restaurant in work clothes there. It is very common here.
ReplyDeleteHe probably doesn't know that.
His wife is joining him later today and I'm sure he'll have some proper clothes, we'll see if that makes the difference.
Americans are not nearly as class oriented. It might be he went into a place that didn't want to encourage an obvious working class person to stay. Who knows.