POPCORN!

POPCORN
I was in World Market 2-3 days ago and found this small bag of rainbow popcorn. It was only $1.99! Totally impulse shopping.

It's been so long since I either had or made popcorn I thought what a FUN thing to make one of these evenings. So here it is! It's called Amish Country Popcorn. There's a website: http://www.amishcountrypopcorn.com
They have all kinds of colored popcorn, popcorn oil, HULL-LESS popcorn (?), and it's all GMO free.

I put enough oil in the bottom of a pan to cover the bottom, let it get hot, added just enough popcorn to cover the bottom and left the lid ajar to let the steam out.

Then it started popping! VERY fun and smelled just like my dad used to make! Funny how a smell can bring back memories.

The popped corn was a bit pastel-like in color. Melted a bit of butter (not too much), poured it over then added sea salt and pepper.
Digit liked it too.

Digit eating popcorn

(he's a weird cat, he likes bread too).

It was great and sure didn't last long.


Popcorn has an interesting history. It was used by Native Americans for thousands of years. There is evidence of popcorn from 3600 BC in New Mexico and 4700 BC in Peru. Popcorn was the variety that saved the pilgrims. It's easy to store and is very nutritious.

This is from Wikipedia:

Popping mechanism

The process of a kernel popping

Each kernel of popcorn contains a certain amount of moisture and oil. Unlike most other grains, the outer hull of the popcorn kernel is both strong and impervious to moisture, and the starch inside consists almost entirely of a hard, dense type.^[7]
As the oil and the water are heated past the boiling point, they turn the moisture in the kernel, which has a moisture-proof hull, into a superheated pressurized steam. Under these conditions, the starch inside the kernel gelatinizes, softens and becomes pliable. The pressure continues to increase until the breaking point of the hull is reached: a pressure of about 135 psi (930 kPa) and a temperature of 180 °C (356 °F). The hull ruptures rapidly, causing a sudden drop in pressure inside the kernel and a corresponding rapid expansion of the steam, which expands the starch and proteins of the endosperm into airy foam. As the foam rapidly cools, the starch and protein polymers set into the familiar crispy puff.
Special varieties are grown to give improved popping yield. Some wild types will pop, but the cultivated strain is Zea mays averta, which is a special kind of flint corn.

Very Cool! Chemistry, Physics AND good food all rolled into one.