As a kid, one of my very favorite snacks was popcorn. In fact, my mom used to buy these giant packs of microwavable popcorn from the grocery store, and I would make one every day for morning snack time.
At the time, I thought they were delicious, but as an adult, I cringe at the thought of all that fake butter, and way it coats your mouth for hours after eating it.
Even at the movie theater, the thought of eating the 'buttery' popcorn that you can buy there makes feel sort of ill.
Food Babe has done a great job investigating the concerning ingredients in microwave popcorn and why microwave popcorn is bad for you.
Read it here: Why Microwave Popcorn Is An Absolute Health Nightmare
Check out this chart from Food Babe about what's actually in bags of microwave popcorn:
All that hydrogenated oil and artificial coloring and soy isn't good for anyone.
And none of the "butter" is actually butter!
Plus microwave popcorn bags are coated in the same chemicals that make nonstick cookware bad for you. No thank you.
It is just so full of junk. And chemicals. And more junk.
Luckily you can make homemade popcorn yourself in your microwave but you don't need any of the sketchy nonstick chemicals or worrisome ingredients.
Just real popcorn. And real butter. In your microwave. Ready in five minutes.
Ready? Let's do this!
How to Make Homemade Popcorn
How to Make Homemade Popcorn
no fancy popcorn maker required
Homemade microwave popcorn ingredients
- 1/4 cup popcorn kernels*
- 1/2 - 1 Tbsp butter, melted*
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
*Creative Green Living recommends purchasing these ingredients as organic where available to avoid GMOs, pervasive pesticides and/or questionable farming practices.
Different colors of popcorn also have different properties (meaning the size and shape of the finished popped corn might be different)
Did you know there are lots of different kinds of popcorn?
You don't need to settle for just white or yellow popcorn kernels. These colored popcorns are 100% natural and a fun alternative to the white or yellow kind you might be used to.Different colors of popcorn also have different properties (meaning the size and shape of the finished popped corn might be different)
- Red popcorn
- Blue popcorn
- Purple popcorn
- Rainbow blend popcorn (mix of different colored varieties)
Homemade microwave popcorn equipment
- 1 brown paper bag - be sure to choose an uncoated one
- a large bowl
- wire cooling rack (optional)
How to Make Homemade Popcorn Directions
Making homemade popcorn at home in the microwave is easy peasy. Just follow these simple steps:
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 1
Measure out 1/4 cup of popcorn kernels.
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 2
Pour the popcorn kernels into an uncoated paper bag.Do you eat a lot of homemade popcorn?
If your family goes through a lot of homemade popcorn, you may want to invest in a glass popcorn pot. You follow the same procedure you do for paper bag popcorn but you wash it out at the end and save some trees!
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 3
Fold the paper bag over a few times.Try to get it to stay closed, but it probably won't.
If it ends up looking about like the picture below, it's good enough.
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 4
Put the bag with your popcorn kernels in the microwave on high for 2 minutes and 30 seconds.After about 45 seconds, the kernels should begin popping.
As you approach 2 minutes, the popping should slow.
Once the kernels are only popping every 2 seconds, pull the bag out.
Keep it closed for a few seconds, to hold in the heat and let any stray kernels pop.
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 5
Pour the popcorn into a bowl, and place the wire cooling rack over the bowl.
Shake the bowl until the unpopped kernels fall out.
HOMEMADE POPCORN STEP 7
Melt some butter in a small dish.Pour butter over the popcorn, and toss with a fork.
For sweet popcorn, sprinkle lightly with coconut sugar.
For cheesey popcorn, toss with organic white cheddar cheese powder.
Enjoy!
Common questions about homemade popcorn
Is popcorn gluten free?
Popcorn is naturally gluten free. Although just like any other packaged item you buy from a store, you item will only be as gluten free as the manufacturing facility the corn was processed and packaged in.
Be sure the read the label of any packaged corn kernels to see if they are labeled as certified gluten free or if the package contains a warning about being processed on shared equipment with wheat.
I don't want to use bags, can you recommend a microwave popcorn popper
Yes. If your family goes through a lot of popcorn, you may want to invest (I use that term lightly - they're less than $10!) in a glass popcorn maker like this one.
There are other plastic and silicone popcorn makers on the market that I don't recommend. The jury is still out on whether cooking in silicone is a good idea and we know that heat can cause concerning chemicals to leach from plastic.
There are other plastic and silicone popcorn makers on the market that I don't recommend. The jury is still out on whether cooking in silicone is a good idea and we know that heat can cause concerning chemicals to leach from plastic.
Is microwave popcorn bad for you?
The kind of popcorn you buy in pre-portioned bags - the kind you kind of unfold and put in the microwave is not good for you.
The "butter" flavor in almost all of these products doesn't come from real butter, but from a blend of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils.
The inside of the bags is also coated in concerning chemicals like PFOA - the same concerning chemicals using in nonstick cookware.
All that to say - I would avoid prepackaged microwave popcorn but making popcorn the way I laid out here doesn't involve any sketchy ingredients or concerning chemicals.
Is popcorn keto?
While popcorn is gluten free, it's a grain and high in carbs so it isn't allowed on keto.
If you are on keto and craving something crunchy and salty, try making this salt and vinegar kale chip recipe - you can even tear the kale to make the pieces smaller to make them more poppable.
Printable Homemade Popcorn
Homemade Microwave Popcorn
Yield: 1
prep time: 1 Mcook time: 2 Mtotal time: 3 M
Prepackaged microwave popcorn is full of sketchy ingredients and concerning chemicals. You can make easy, healthy, homemade popcorn without oil at home in just 3 minutes!
ingredients:
- 1/4 cup popcorn kernels
- 1 Tbsp butter or coconut oil
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
instructions:
How to cook Homemade Microwave Popcorn
How to Make Homemade Popcorn in the Microwave
- Pour the popcorn kernels into an uncoated paper bag.
- Fold the paper bag over a few times so it will stay closed.
- Put the bag with your popcorn kernels in the microwave on high for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. BUT STAY BY THE MICROWAVE!
- After about 45 seconds, the kernels should begin popping. As you approach 2 minutes, the popping should slow. Once the kernels are only popping every 2 seconds, pull the bag out.
- Keep the bag closed for a few seconds to hold in the steam and let any stray kernels pop.
- Carefully open the bag and pour the popcorn into a glass bowl.
Optional: How to remove the unpopped kernels
- Place a wire cooling rack over the bowl you put the popcorn in.
- Hold the rack to the top of the bowl and flip the bowl and rack over.
- Shake the bowl and rack together until the unpopped kernels fall out through the holes in the cooling rack.
Flavor the popcorn
- Toss your popcorn with 1 Tbsp melted butter or coconut oil.
- Sprinkle with sea salt, sugar, cinnamon, nutritional yeast organic or dehydrated cheese dust.
Calories
191.81
191.81
Fat (grams)
12.19
12.19
Sat. Fat (grams)
7.43
7.43
Carbs (grams)
12.51
12.51
Fiber (grams)
2.50
2.50
Net carbs
10.01
10.01
Sugar (grams)
0.02
0.02
Protein (grams)
2.12
2.12
Sodium (milligrams)
672.68
672.68
Cholesterol (grams)
30.53
30.53
Nutritional information is an estimate only. Exact nutritional content will vary based on the variety of popcorn chosen and what kind of toppings you toss it with. The calculation here is based on yellow popcorn kernels with butter and sea salt.
Copyright 2016, Creative Green Living
About the Author:
Landen runs Measure and Whisk, a cooking blog with a focus on real food. She is a firm believer that quality is superior to quantity, and prefers small amounts of good food over large quantities of cheap food.
Deeply disappointed in cheap bacon, she prefers to buy $6 bacon less frequently. Because of this, she typically cooks vegetarian meals for her family.
Her blog also features photos of her baby, Fox, and suggestions on how to live an eco-friendly and minimalist life, both in and out of the kitchen. Follow her on Pinterest and Instagram for beautiful food photos and pictures of baby Fox.
Deeply disappointed in cheap bacon, she prefers to buy $6 bacon less frequently. Because of this, she typically cooks vegetarian meals for her family.
Her blog also features photos of her baby, Fox, and suggestions on how to live an eco-friendly and minimalist life, both in and out of the kitchen. Follow her on Pinterest and Instagram for beautiful food photos and pictures of baby Fox.
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