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Eating Crispy Cumulous Clouds
That’s what they look like to me—those little implosions of corn kernels.
There is a child-like magic when watching the hard little yellow kernels pop and change form and color. It makes me think of all the great things that come in small packages that hide beautiful things within like buds that overnight become leaves or flowers, eggs that in moments crack open to reveal little baby birds. And in the Cuisinart popcorn popper you can witness the miracle through a clear plastic container. At first the simple wire device on the stirring plate moves the kernels slowly around and at about 3 minutes the first kernels start popping. They all pop in less than 7 minutes. If you don’t finish all the popcorn in one sitting, it can be recrisped in a 350ºF/17ºC. oven for about 10 minutes and it’s just like fresh-popped.
There are many ways to season popcorn and a little booklet that comes with the machine has several recipes. But my favorite is simply butter and salt. For 1/3 cup of kernels I use about ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt and about 3 tablespoons of clarified butter but as an extra treat I also add a small splash of white truffle oil. (This was inspired by my friend the brilliant chef Patrick O’Connell of The Inn at Little Washington, but he uses little pieces of the actual truffle!).
I became tired of white truffle oil when so many inferior brands starting appearing on the market as they tasted weird not wonderful but then I discovered the best one I’ve ever tasted and can recommend it without reservation—Earthy Delights. It may seem expensive at $32 plus shipping for an 8 ounce bottle but not when you consider that only a few drops go a very long way. Keep in mind that it is best to add it after cooking as most of the flavor dissipates on heating. Store it in a cool dark place but not the refrigerator. It’s available right from the source: http://www.earthydelights.com
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Comments
....i.e., exchanging it for the same model as I love Cuisinart products. This particular one must have an issue.
Reply to this Posted by: Zach | December 2, 2008 9:27 AM #
Thanks, Rose. No doubt it's the popper. I'm going to try a supermarket brand, giving it one more chance before exchanging it.
Zach
Reply to this Posted by: Zach | December 2, 2008 9:26 AM #
kitt, the link is not the bold formatted name--it's the one below it and it does work! but thanks for the note. and yes--would be ideal for a dorm.
Reply to this Posted by: Rose Levy Beranbaum | December 1, 2008 10:39 PM #
it's a very popular supermarket brand that comes in a plastic round container--can't remember the name til i get to hope. but it HAS to be something wrong with the popper if not a single kernel popped in 15 minutes. i'm sure you had a defective one--especially since they popped in the pan.
Reply to this Posted by: Rose Levy Beranbaum | December 1, 2008 10:37 PM #
Rose,
Just bought this popcorn popper last night as well as three types of popcorn. I tried two batches of corn, each batch a different type and the corn never would pop, not even after 15 minutes! I eventually had to pop both batches individually in a saucepan and lid to see if the kernals were even still good. In the saucepan, both batches popped fully.
I'm wondering if the plate just simply didn't get hot enough to pop the type of popcorn I bought. What type of popcorn do you use?
Knowing that the popper obviously works, and that you indicate yours pops after three minutes, I can only conclude it must be the popcorn I'm using. I know that sometimes older kernals take longer to pop, but I would have expected at least one popped kernal after 15 minutes, especially after they successfully popped in the saucepan.
I was just curious what type of popcorn you (and others here) use when making popcorn.
Thanks!
Zach
Reply to this Posted by: Zach Townsend | November 30, 2008 9:48 AM #
Thanks for the tip about the truffle oil, can't wait to try it!
Reply to this Posted by: Julie | August 25, 2008 5:49 AM #
Yummy. Glad I found your blog.
Susan
http://www.raisin-toast.com
Reply to this Posted by: Susan | August 21, 2008 10:01 AM #
We love to pop our popcorn in a bit of coconut oil and a sprinkling of superfine salt (mixed right in with the oil). Just like the old time movie theaters!
Reply to this Posted by: Patrincia | August 21, 2008 1:37 AM #
I definitely have to try the white truffle oil! My aunt used to drink a glass of buttermilk with her popcorn. Hmmm. Don't ask me why.
Reply to this Posted by: Zach Townsend | August 20, 2008 8:51 PM #
Thanks for the clarification!
Oh, and just fyi, you've got some bold-formatting code within the link for for earthy.com so it doesn't work when you click on it.
Reply to this Posted by: Kitt | August 20, 2008 10:46 AM #
I love my popcorn two ways: 1) with butter and nutritional yeast and 2) with creole seasoning (preferably Tony Chachere's) and hot sauce. Option 2 is not for the faint of heart.
Reply to this Posted by: Matthew C. | August 20, 2008 10:44 AM #
by the way, the little red 'lid' is meant to place the clear plastic container on top of for when you add salt or other seasonings to catch any that fall through the steam vents in the clear plastic container!
Reply to this Posted by: Rose Levy Beranbaum | August 20, 2008 10:29 AM #
As a rule I'm opposed to uni-taskers, but that's kind of a nice gadget, especially for a dorm room. I like that the "lid" becomes the serving container.
Reply to this Posted by: Kitt | August 19, 2008 9:04 PM #