Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Stove Top Popcorn, with a Spicy, Cheesy Topping

I made a decision some years ago to do away with my microwave.  I changed apartments and moved on without it-and to be honest I haven't looked back since.  I scoff when recipes instruct me to melt things in the microwave, and I relish the slower nature of my cooking without it.  However there is one thing that does make me miss a microwave- popcorn.  Every so often at my office a coworker will heat up a bag of microwave popcorn and the aroma is intoxicating.  The nutty scent, mixed with the perfect amount of butter and salt, wafts through the floor and I begin to hear my stomach rumble.  At home the smell is still with me, and I crave a big bowl of popcorn, liberally dashed with Franks Hot Sauce, a tradition I've long held, instilled in my by my Alma mater. 

This past weekend the craving became too much and I decided that popcorn needed to be my football watching snack.  However I wasn't about to breakdown and purchase a microwave- no I was going to make it the old fashioned way- on the stove top. 

I purchased my kernels, and some fixings for a fun topping, and began.  To be perfectly clear- making popcorn on a stove top is simple.  Honestly-it's beyond simple.  I followed the instructions on the bag of kernels I purchased from trusty Trader Joe's and the process took about 10 minute- start to finish. 

I began with my creative addition- a cheesy topping.
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp ground dried herbs (I used an Herbs de Provence mix)
1 tsp mustard powder
Salt and pepper

Combine in a small bowl, set aside.




Add three tablespoons of oil to a large skillet.  Add 2-3 kernels of corn to the pan.  Cover and set over medium high heat.  When the kernels pop, add a half cup of kernels, recover, and shake the pan vigorously until the rest of the kernels pop, or the popping slows considerably.  Remove the popcorn from the pan, toss with the cheesy topping and Viola!  Popcorn is made.

Seriously- this was the simplest snack I've made in ages, but the flavor was so much better than microwave popcorn.  The kernels were fresh, they were clean tasting, and then I got to make all of my own toppings to really make it a tasty food.  Skip the microwaves folks- making popcorn on the stove top is easy- and actually really fun!

3 comments:

Erica from BostonRookie.com said...

I wondered how to pop popcorn on the stove. It does sound easy!

Kristen said...

looks like some seriously good popcorn!

Elizabeth said...

Stovetop popcorn reminds me of my childhood :)

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