Winter is popcorn season.

[Kingcreek]

Mostly because we are stuck inside so much and it get dark so early.
A few years ago I was gifted 5 pounds of Amish white which prompted me to buy an Amish stovetop popper from Lehman’s. The popcorn is gone but the popper is great (and no longer available)
Recently retired, I’m burning more wood in the fireplace and having popcorn and a glass of wine (wine only after 5pm). Real butter and course sea salt, not much of either. Occasionally I like the black truffle Parmesan from Costco on it. Sometimes this is instead of supper if we have a late lunch.
I currently have about 4 different corn varieties. One that the local FFA grew as a fundraiser, some other mixed. I really liked the Amish and last time I split it up and vac sealed it in smaller batches.
Thinking about doing the same again.
Any preferences for corn or technique or seasoning?

[K Frame]

No real preference for type of corn.

Technique is mainly I have a microwave bowl my Mom gave me many years ago. Don't need to use oil, and it does a fantastic job.

Real butter, lightly browned.

Seasonings are whatever strikes my mood.

Pickling salt if I just want butter & salt.

But, I'll also use powdered chicken bullion, garlic powder, black pepper, or cheddar cheese powder.

I'm betting ranch seasoning powder would also be good. 

[Bogie]

I used to have a Whirly Pop. Great little popcorn popper... I used coconut oil (hottest flame temp), Redenbacher's, and real butter and really fine salt.

[BobR]

I used to have a Whirly Pop. Great little popcorn popper... I used coconut oil (hottest flame temp), Redenbacher's, and real butter and really fine salt.

The fine salt is a must for me. I will take regular table sat and throw it into my mortar and pestle to grind down really fine.

bob

[K Frame]

"The fine salt is a must for me. I will take regular table sat and throw it into my mortar and pestle to grind down really fine."

I do that with kosher salt.

I've also found that pickling salt (REALLY FINE grains) is almost perfect for popcorn

[HeroHog]

Ever try "Moose Crunch" from Ollie's? It's like Cracker Jacks but with Almonds and Cashews! It comes in Caramel, Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate and is GREAT! Low in hulls too. About to dig into the dark chocolate bag right now!

[cordex]

The fine salt is a must for me. I will take regular table sat and throw it into my mortar and pestle to grind down really fine.

Yep.

[JTHunter]

While I don't make it too often, over the last 15-20 years, I have learned to like "dry" popcorn.  I have an old hot air popper and fill a 6 qt. stock pot with the popped corn.  I don't put anything on it as I frequently use it as a snack while I'm on the computer and I don't need the butter or salt on (or "in") the KB.
That's not to say that I don't like butter on popcorn but I have gotten away from adding salt to anything due to BP problems.

[Bogie]

Okay - picked up a Whirley Pop popcorn popper over the weekend. I used to have one, but that was abandoned when I bugged out of Jen's... I figure one of her family members probably recy... er... scrapped it...
 
And pulled up Amazon, and got myself some Redenbacher, some "movie theater" oil, and a quart of flavacol popcorn salt. Pretty darn tasty. The flavacol stuff is what a lot of "industrial" poppers use.
 
Tasty, in between cleaning house (been spending too much time at work past couple of years), and finding homes for various stuffs...

[K Frame]

Never used a Whirly Pop before.

What's the reason for the "whirly" gizmo? Promoting better popping? Keeping it from burning?

Interesting... just spent some time "whirlying" around the WP web page, and nowhere did I find a listing of why the WP is supposedly the best pop corn popper. Lots of "BUY THIS VERSION! AND BE SURE TO BUY 3 OR 4 OTHER VERSIONS, AS WELL! ESPECIALLY THE COPPER PLATED VERSION! WHICH ADDS $25 TO THE PRICE FOR A FLASH COATING OF COPPER! IT'S A BETTER VALUE THAN A PENNY!"


OK, finally found a list of reasons why the WP is supposedly better... Including a couple that really have nothing at all to do with the popping mechanism and all to do with the corn...



   
Premium Materials
    Pan and lid are made out of high-quality aluminum with choice of original nylon or die cast metal gears and hardwood handle and knobs. Due to aluminum construction, this version is not induction compatible. Please visit the Stainless Steel Whirley-Pop or Sweet & Easy Snack Machine pages for induction compatible options. Consult stovetop manual for guidance on use of lightweight aluminum cookware on flat top stoves.
   
Plenty of Popcorn
    6-quart capacity makes about 24 cups of popped popcorn. Partial batch instructions also included.
   
Pops Quickly
    Makes twice as much as a standard bag of microwave popcorn, in the same amount of time (3 minutes). Aluminum is an excellent heat conductor, allowing for a quick cook time.
   
Melt-In-Your-Mouth Flavor
    Features 4 strategically placed steam vents that allow steam to escape while popping. Popcorn is always tender and crisp.
   
Every Kernel Pops
    Patented stirring mechanism is designed like a commercial popper, preventing sticking and burning by moving every kernel until it pops - up to 42 times its original size!
   
Safe to Use
    Wooden handle and crank stay cool to keep hands away from heat and steam.
   
Easy Clean Up
    Lid features quick-release clips for easy removal. Simply wipe parts down with paper towel and store for next use. If necessary, hand-wash with warm, soapy water using a grease-cutting liquid dish soap. Popper is not dishwasher safe.
   
The Perfect Snack
    With countless options, it's easy to customize your popcorn snack! Enjoy fast and convenient? Try our All-Inclusive Popping Kits. Or, if you have special dietary needs or are trying to be a little healthier you can add the ingredients separately. Makes as much (or as little) popcorn was you want, it's up to you!
   
Warranty
    25-year warranty on all mechanical/moving parts. 90-day warranty on pan and wood parts (for service after, please contact customer service). Registration information included with every popper, or contact customer service with any problems or questions! We are happy to get you popping again!

[K Frame]

When I was a kid we had one of these. Not exactly this one, I don't think but one very similar to it, the aluminum pan sitting on the heater base that was, realistically, FAR too powerful. Mirro aluminum made it.




Sure, it would make pop corn, but it would also make fire and smoke and charcoal if your attention strayed for more than a few seconds. You had to keep picking up the base and shaking it.

West Bend used to make stovetop corn poppers like the Wirly Pop, only a lot earlier. This looks like 1930s or 1940s.




But you know, nothing beats making popcorn in a long-handled pan over a fire in the fireplace.

[Bogie]

The thing about the Whirley Pop is that you get a good consistent pop, and... It takes about 3 minutes to get to that point, and then you have what is about 15-20 seconds where it goes nuts popping.
 
I put the oil in, add a little of the flavacol stuff (movie theater stuff), and start cranking... And you get consistent goodness.

[Kingcreek]

There was an electric version back in the 70’s.
I don’t remember what they called it but the sweep was a couple wires and the dome lid turned upside down became a big bowl.

[K Frame]

There was an electric version back in the 70’s.
I don’t remember what they called it but the sweep was a couple wires and the dome lid turned upside down became a big bowl.

Holy crap, I'd forgotten about that one... The West Bend Stir Crazy!

West Bend made a pretty wide range of corn poppers in that time frame. I remember the ones with the yellow cylinder top that had the auto butter port in top. When the popping was done you'd slap a plastic cover on the butter port, turn it over and that was your popcorn bowl.

[K Frame]

Even more holy crap, but you can buy new West Bend Stir Crazy poppers on Amazon.

[Kingcreek]

That stir crazy was what I was thinking of when I saw whirly pop.
My popper is an Amish version of the whirly pop. Stainless steel triple clad heavy bottom and glass lid with butter port. I don’t see it in Lehman’s catalog anymore. Ours says “patent applied for”.

[K Frame]

Does anyone still use a hot air popper?

I remember when those things were all the rage in the 1980s. BIG in college. Hardly a day would go by that you didn't hear one or more shrieking away in a dorm room.

I never cared much for the popcorn they produced. It was... tough, I guess is the word for it. The popped kernels weren't light and fluffy.

The most use I ever got out of one of them was when the first night or two I was back sophomore year a massive cold front came though the East (it was the one that cancelled almost all of Reagan's second inaugural activities). The heat in the building wasn't keeping up (the dorms weren't fully open yet) and my room was absolutely freezing...

So I used my roommate's hot air popper as a space heater. Stuck it in the alcove where our desks were, hung a blanket to cut it off from the large part of the room, and let it run. It was louder than hell and it didn't exactly make the space toasty, but it made it warmer and more tolerable.

[Kingcreek]

The hot air poppers made popcorn that was more like styrofoam packing “peanuts”.
It looked like popcorn but had almost no calories or flavor.

My trick is to put oil and 3 or 4 kernels on a fire to heat. When the first kernels pops, I add the rest (always 1 full cup). Coconut oil is crazy expensive but makes the best popcorn. Real butter is not optional as it finishes.

[T.O.M.]

I had one of those hot air poppers when I was in law school.  You absolutely had to melt butter to toss it with, as the salt wouldn't even stick.  And it had no flavor.

So, I ditched it and started making popcorn in a deep pan with a heavy glass lid on the stove top.  There's a spice shop I go to that sells popcorn salt.  Basically, it's powdered salt.  He has flavors, but I just really like salted popcorn...especially if I can find the multi-colored popcorn.  Great nutty flavor.

[RocketMan]

Many years ago during my first marriage we had one of those screen popcorn poppers with a long handle that you held in the fireplace.  Made good popcorn as I remember.

[K Frame]

"The hot air poppers made popcorn that was more like styrofoam packing “peanuts”."

Yes. That's a very good description.

The microwave bowl that I have doesn't use oil for popping, so it's mid ground between oil popped and air popped, but it's still TONS better than air popped.


I got to looking, and the West Bend I was thinking about was the Buttermatic.

there's one on Ebay that is new in box old stock. God, looking at that box design makes me think of shopping at Service Merchandise in the 1970s and 1980s.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/354610769963?var=0&mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&campid=5338590836&toolid=10044&customid=19d6b7143cbf16ab8fe8d0cc39ed73ee&gclid=19d6b7143cbf16ab8fe8d0cc39ed73ee

[K Frame]

Many years ago during my first marriage we had one of those screen popcorn poppers with a long handle that you held in the fireplace.  Made good popcorn as I remember.

Yes. Very good popcorn because it would have a bit of smoke flavor to it. I made a lot of fireplace popcorn over the years. The same pan was also used to roast chestnuts.


One of our favorite tricks was to use bacon or sausage fat as the oil for popping the corn, and then adding butter on top. Added a nice extra layer of flavor.

[JTHunter]

Does anyone still use a hot air popper?

Yep.  Been using the same machine for at least 20 years.  Don't know make or model off the top of my head but it only gets used 3-5 times a year.  I pop multiple batches and fill a big aluminum stock pot (~2 - 2.5 gal.) and just eat it from there.  I store it with the lid on and eat this for "snacks" in the middle of the day, usually when I'm on the computer.  As a result, this is "dry" corn with no butter or salt, which I have to watch anyway.

[Bogie]

Tonight I tried the jar of coconut oil.
 
Not really a fan.  I think I'm gonna go back to using the "movie theater popcorn oil" that I got along with the flavacol... Which is a pretty darn good popcorn salt, even if it is flavored. It's very hard to find unflavored fine salt...

[K Frame]

Have a blender?

Get some kosher salt and blend it to the consistency you want.