Secret Popcorn

Hello and sorry for my absence! I’m in Portugal on assignment at the Kite Surf Pro World Championship Tour event in gorgeous Cascais. Not-so-reliable internet connections and long days of work have made it challenging to post. But I’ve been dying to dig in to this one, so let’s get to it!

I’m about to teach you a secret to making popcorn in the microwave WITHOUT having to buy those disgusting chemical-laden microwavable popcorns. It’s so simple that you’re going to say “no way – seriously?!” and will save you time and money, and may even make you live longer (I mean seriously – those polymers that they call ‘flavoring’ in the microwave bags cannot be good for you).  The evil makers of microwavable popcorn are going to hate me for this, but this is well-deserved payback for their assault on my pallet and their utter mistreatment of my favorite snack: the almighty popcorn.

It’s no secret that popcorn is one of the greatest snacks on the planet. Ever since childhood when my mum would make it in a huge pot on the stove, I have been an addict. It’s my go-to food when I – or my potato-chip loving husband –  have the munchies. It’s light, crunchy, good for you and not fattening, and the perfect alternative to greasy chips. The only imperfect thing about it is that it’s a pain to make. Oh how I rejoiced when microwavable popcorn came out.. And then oh how I frantically scraped my tongue when those chemically coated cardboard popcorn pieces passed my lips. That was emotionally scarring! So those evil makers of microwave popcorn deserve what’s coming to them now…

Here’s the secret: you can pop loose popcorn in any paper bag in the microwave. Seriously.

I like using small paper lunch bags, or better yet, get the free little paper freezer bags from the grocery store, which are slightly thicker than lunch bags – you know, the ones that they use for small tubs of ice cream. Just ask the checkout person and they’ll give a handful of bags for free. This will save you a lot of money – one bag of loose popcorn (with about 15 cents worth of kernels) makes about as much as $30-40 worth of those microwavable popcorn bags. And it’ll also save your taste buds from being assaulted by chemicals.

Here’s how you do it: Load up the bag with 1/4-1/2 cup of loose popcorn kernels (try white popcorn – it’s the lightest and has the best flavor in my opinion), fold the top of the bag  tightly with three folds, put in the microwave (flat side down) and pop it on your microwave’s popcorn setting. Listen for the pops to settle – you may need to add 30-60 seconds to your microwave’s popcorn setting to get all the kernels popped.

One more secret to awesome popcorn: sprinkle it with truffle salt. Yep, truffle salt. It is TO DIE FOR on popcorn! Once I tried it, it was over – it’s the only way I can eat popcorn now. You can purchase truffle salt online at lots of place. I like the one I found at San Francisco’s Ferry Plaza building at the mushroom guy’s shop, and also the black truffle salt at SpiceHound.com – both of theirs have a big truffle flavor and lots of black truffle bits. At $20-25 per jar, it’s expensive but it’ll last you a couple of years – it’s totally worth it. Happy snacking!

Hi from Portugal!