Popcorn at home (B-)
In going through my pantry I found a jar of dried corn I had bought months or years ago to make popcorn. Since then my microwave has died, so I decided to try a stovetop method recommended by my friend Alekz:
Pop it in a traditional popper with 2 teaspoons olive oil, and add chunks of garlic to the hot oil with the unpopped corn… which results in lovely carmelized garlic. Add a dash of salt and copious amounts of nutritional yeast.
I didn’t know what a traditional popper was so I just tried it in a saucepan. I heated the oil then added the garlic and popcorn together and shook pretty continuously. Unfortunately, all the garlic burned to a crisp, and only about half the popcorn popped. I ate it but decided that the idea was a bust.
I still had popcorn left, so I tried making it in the microwave at work. I put 1/4 cup in a paper bag, folded it over twice, and popped for 2 minutes. Most but not all of it popped and none of it was burnt. I sprayed it with cooking spray, then seasoned it with Penzey’s Turkish seasoning (which is salty) and nutritional yeast. The combination was pretty tasty, but I’ve decided popcorn isn’t a great snack for me. It’s not as low calorie as some would have you believe, nor is it particularly filling. I could probably eat 6-8 cups no problem. Plus, I like it salty, and I don’t need more salt in my diet. Finally, popcorn is nutritionally mediocre–a little fiber, a little iron, but not enough for the calories, nor tasty enough for the calories. So I’m hereby giving away the rest of my popcorn. First come first serve.
Rating: B-
The captious vegetarian 