Homemade Microwave Popcorn

Updated below!

I apologize for my long silence. I had a serious case of writing burnout, as online classes are very writing intensive. I am taking a break from classes for a while.

Meanwhile, I'm discovering many other ways to live better on less.

The latest discovery: Homemade microwave popcorn!

This is something I never even considered doing myself. Partly because I despise most commercial microwave popcorn. But some I can make myself...well, that may prove to be irresistible.

Evidently, all you need are fairly fresh popcorn kernels, a paper bag, and a microwave. You need fresh popcorn because it has the moisture needed to pop the corn.

(What you don't need is the loads of unknown fat and chemicals that go with most packaged microwave popcorn. Fat, in and of itself, is not a bad thing, but some fats a far better than others. The key here is that you control what goes into your popcorn.)

One blogger recommends using 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels &1/2 teaspoon of olive oil in a paper bag with the top folded down and crimped. Pop as you would normally pop a smaller bag of commercial popcorn. There is a related page about how to make kettle corn on the site as well.

At The Yummy Life there are tips on how to make popcorn in a microwave safe bowl and a related post on different flavors you can create.

For my own part, I'll be picking up some organic* popping corn, and trying my own microwave popcorn with some butter and salt. I'll report back on my own results soon.

UPDATE: I have tried two versions so far. One involved butter in a glass bowl. The popcorn was delicious, but the butter at the bottom of the bowl burned.  I also put some unadorned popcorn in a paper bag and microwaved it. It popped up beautifully but was somewhat tasteless. In both cases, it took longer than packaged popcorn does to pop, so put some extra time on when you cook it. As with the commercial popcorn, stand by and listen carefully.

Neither version caused the usual bloaty feeling that commercial microwave popcorn causes me. Big plus!

Here are the website addresses I have linked in this post:

• http://tipbusters.com/2011/microwave-popcorn-in-a-brown-paper-bag/
  
  http://tipbusters.com/2012/microwave-kettle-corn-in-a-brown-paper-bag/
  
  http://www.theyummylife.com/blog/2012/04/303/Healthy+Microwave+Popcorn+--+10+sweet+%26+savory+flavor+recipes+using+coconut+oil%3B+100+calories+%28or+less!%29
  
  http://www.theyummylife.com/blog/2011/02/146/Homemade+Microwave+Popcorn+-+Healthier,+Cheaper,+%26+Greener

*Note: I recommend organic popping corn because genetically modified (pesticide resistant) corn has been approved for human foods now, and it won't be labeled. The only way you can be sure you aren't getting GMO corn is to buy organic. Since the corn in pet food makes my pets sick, I don't care to try it myself. But that's another story for another day.