Fixing Popcorn

[expatgirl]

IGNORE this if you have high cholesterol------the best popcorn I ever had was my grandmother's--she used bacon grease--she kept the grease in an old teapot with a strainer in it-----OMG it was so good and she always made up some fresh lemonade to go with it.

[TATTRAT]

Originally Posted by expatgirl

IGNORE this if you have high cholesterol------the best popcorn I ever had was my grandmother's--she used bacon grease--she kept the grease in an old teapot with a strainer in it-----OMG it was so good and she always made up some fresh lemonade to go with it.

WOW! Yet another use for bacon! I love this idea, to bad for my poor,poor arteries.

[expatgirl]

I know----but man it was to die for it was so flavorful!!!

[JoAnn L.]

I buy the mini bags with butter you put in the microwave. It's just the right amount.

[DinaFine]

Seems llike enough reasons not to make microwaved popcorn. I dare say that Movie theatre popcorn would be no better since it must invariably be prepared with hydrogenated oil, and then have margarine poured on top of it. I make organic popcorn in a popcorn pumper which is convenient. I discovered a seasoned type of olive oil to pour on it which is very good.

[expatgirl]

What is a popcorn pumper?

[buckytom]

well, you put your mouth around one end, then grab the handle on the other, when no one's looking...

[DinaFine]

[quote=desertland]This is marginally off-topic, but it still applies to popcorn :-) I've found that rather than sprinkling on dehydrated cheese powder, you can add grated cheese ontop of the popcorn and it's actually quite good! ...much better than the "artificial" cheese popcorn =)

[Ive done this a lot, when My children were little they liked it. much better than plain butter. Olive oil and grated cheese. Maybe some grated parmesan also. yum]

[DinaFine]

[quote=expatgirl]What is a popcorn pumper?

[A machine that pops the popcorn with hot air, so you dont need oil and dont have messy pans to clean up. No chance of burned popcorn. They were very popular in the eighties. Come to think of it, I dont see them much around anymore, but I'm sure they can still be found. The popcorn comes out dry and plain tasting, so I like to mix things in after poping, oil, salt, cheese, seasonings etc. ]

[Claire]

expatgirl, that's how my mom made it, and a few times a year I ingore what anyone says and pop mine in bacon fat!!!! By the way, when you cook it in bacon fat, it is so flavorful you do NOT need butter, and less salt. So it is a trade-off. I've never heard of anyone else doing this and it is still my favorite.

When we went to drive in movies (yes, I'm that old!) Mom used to take a huge paper bag. Then she'd pop the aforementioned bacon fat popcorn. Put in the paper bag with potato chips, and if we were feeling "rich" (notice, not rich enough to buy our treats and the movies!), we might get some fritos or cheetos mixed in. This "party mix" is still a favorite of us girls for parties -- popcorn mixed with various bagged chips. Anyway, all would go into a big paper grocery bag and mixed (made the expensive bagged chips go further). Then she'd make up a gallon or so of Kool-Aid. We'd get in the station wagon in our jammies, and she'd hope like heck that we'd fall asleep, fat and happy, after the first (childrens) feature so she and dad could enjoy the more adult-themed second. We'd flop in the back of the station wagon with our favorite pillows and blankets, munch and snooze off.