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surrealestateNot all new skills provide a net benefit to one's life.
I have discovered that I can make really amazingly good kettle corn at home quite easily. So can you. But that doesn't mean you should.
Nor does it mean you should throw in a teaspoon or so of chili powder as a variation, as if merely sweet and salty weren't enough.
Since I know one person will ask, I'll include my recipe.
I warned you.
I read a dozen or so recipes for kettle corn and through trial and error (having now made the stuff a total 4 or 5 times, but that's in the past 4 or 5 days), came up with this method, which looks very much like every other method you'll find out there.
Ingredients, in order of appearance, more or less:
1/4 c (scant, or less) oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder (or other spicing, optional)
1/2 c popcorn
1/4 c sugar
Directions:
1. Put a high-sided pot with a nice thick base and tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat and add oil and salt. Oil should coat the bottom of the pan. Toss in 2 corn kernels.
2. When the kernels pop, the oil is hot enough. Remove them (a fork works well). Add the seasoning, and swish it a bit to distribute.
3. Add the popcorn, quickly sprinkle the sugar over the top, and put on the lid.
4. When the kernels start popping (it won't take long) keep shaking the pot. I found alternately letting its it on the burner briefly and then removing to shake worked well. Keep at it until the popping stops. I needed oven mitts for this because the pot gets *very* hot.
5. That's all. Open the pot away from you to get the steam escape, pour out the popcorn and eat. Then make more and eat that. Etc.
What's amazing is that in the end, there are usually three or fewer inedible unpopped kernels left, which is way fewer than any other popping method I've used, though I admit I'd never stove-top popped before this, since I generally prefer air-popping. I'm not going to try dumping sugar into my air-popper, though.
[Up-to-the-minute Squash Inventory: 7 Butternut, 7 Delicata, 4 Pumpkin]
I have discovered that I can make really amazingly good kettle corn at home quite easily. So can you. But that doesn't mean you should.
Nor does it mean you should throw in a teaspoon or so of chili powder as a variation, as if merely sweet and salty weren't enough.
Since I know one person will ask, I'll include my recipe.
I warned you.
I read a dozen or so recipes for kettle corn and through trial and error (having now made the stuff a total 4 or 5 times, but that's in the past 4 or 5 days), came up with this method, which looks very much like every other method you'll find out there.
Ingredients, in order of appearance, more or less:
1/4 c (scant, or less) oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder (or other spicing, optional)
1/2 c popcorn
1/4 c sugar
Directions:
1. Put a high-sided pot with a nice thick base and tight-fitting lid over medium-high heat and add oil and salt. Oil should coat the bottom of the pan. Toss in 2 corn kernels.
2. When the kernels pop, the oil is hot enough. Remove them (a fork works well). Add the seasoning, and swish it a bit to distribute.
3. Add the popcorn, quickly sprinkle the sugar over the top, and put on the lid.
4. When the kernels start popping (it won't take long) keep shaking the pot. I found alternately letting its it on the burner briefly and then removing to shake worked well. Keep at it until the popping stops. I needed oven mitts for this because the pot gets *very* hot.
5. That's all. Open the pot away from you to get the steam escape, pour out the popcorn and eat. Then make more and eat that. Etc.
What's amazing is that in the end, there are usually three or fewer inedible unpopped kernels left, which is way fewer than any other popping method I've used, though I admit I'd never stove-top popped before this, since I generally prefer air-popping. I'm not going to try dumping sugar into my air-popper, though.
[Up-to-the-minute Squash Inventory: 7 Butternut, 7 Delicata, 4 Pumpkin]
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no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 05:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 06:26 am (UTC)Though I don't know what kind you use -- what is there to clean?
A pot used to make kettle corn definitely needs some cleaning after.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 06:47 am (UTC)The sugar in kettle corn would certainly mean more cleaning, but I don't know how you can get away without cleaning out a sugar and oil combination.
By the way, if you ever get to Salem Willows in the summertime, there's a popcorn stand that makes unbelievable kettle corn and *warm* caramel corn that's to die for!
no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 10:13 am (UTC)Ah...nothing like burning popcorn. I caused a small fire once making popcorn in the microwave. It was one of those small bags. Honestly, there is a fine line between done and fire because they're so small and I was probably too distracted that day to be watching the popcorn.
Fire!
Date: 2006-11-17 06:39 pm (UTC)From: Jim
To the MGH Institute Community
Early Wednesday evening I put a bag of popcorn in the fourth floor microwave, dialed in "4.00 min", punched the "Start" button and walked back to my desk. Between the next two and sixty minutes my inattention resulted in a smoke-filled fourth floor, the forced evacuation of our building, the immediate arrival of three fire and rescue vehicles, Tony F. being called away from his dinner at home, and the remote reprogramming of the ventilation system in order to clear the air of its pungent smell.
I would like to apologize to everyone whose work was disturbed and whose life was disrupted by my actions this evening. There are some lessons here, beyond the obvious ones of "Read Directions" and "Those who like to eat should learn to cook". The most important, perhaps, is "Pay attention to what you are doing". The line between danger and disturbance can be a thin one, and I brought us close to it this evening.
I am truly sorry for all of the above, and I appreciate the on-the-spot counseling I received from many of my peers while we waited through this event to run its course. The good news is that our emergency response systems worked well, and that it wasn't raining.
Re: Fire!
Date: 2006-11-17 06:41 pm (UTC)Re: Fire!
Date: 2010-01-28 09:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 03:32 pm (UTC)I'll take your suggestion under advisement, but I don't know that I need even MORE kettle corn. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-10-26 06:47 am (UTC)