by Tom Fischer
If you are a popcorn lover, you must have heard of popping corn with the use of hot air. But, you may not know, that this results in one of the healthiest, yet most delicious snacks ever! Popcorn popped with revolving hot air in an air popper will contain practically no fat, cholestorol or sodium, and is a good source of dietary fibers. Air popped popcorn can be seasoned at the end, so your popcorn snack can be unique each time you pop a new batch.
So what is Air Popped Popcorn?
To make air popped popcorn, you will be needing a hot air popcorn popper. Its a small, 12 inch tall machine that comes in a number of shapes nowadays. All air popper machines have a kettle, where the popping corn is to be added.
Once the air popcorn maker is turned on, it circullarly revolves hot air in the kettle, which sends the kernels on a wild ride around the side of the kettle. The revolving hot air heats every single piece of popping corn, which eventually ruptures as it would if you were using an oil popper. As more and more corn start to pop, they are basically shot through the spout of the air popper into a serving bowl you need to prepare beforehand.
Once all the kernels have popped, you can decide and eat it as is, or mix it up with some seasoning. There are numerous quick recipes downloadable on the Internet, some of the most tastiest, yet healthiest ones are the following:
- brewers yeast (adds cheese flavor, really!)
- onion powder
- chili powder
- garlic powder
- sugar and cinnamon (2 teaspoons cinnamon per 1/3 cup sugar)
Hot air poppers are great value kitchen appliances. A Presto hot air popper, which is a quality brand name popper, will cost around $20. These have a simple, general design, but if you want extra aesthetic appeal, go for a vintage design popper, you can buy those for as low as $40. No matter which one you choose, you will see that air poppers will leave almost no unpopped kernels in about 3 minutes.
You can buy popcorn kernels at any grocery store, usually in the same aisle as microwave popcorn. It’s very inexpensive compared to microwave popcorn, so your initial “investment” into the air popcorn popper will be offset in a short while, not to mention the fact that air popped popcorn is so much healthier than microwave popcorn.
Nutrition facts on air popped popcorn (1 serving = 1 cup or 8 g)
- 31 calories
- NO saturated fat
- ZERO cholesterol
- 1 mg sodium
Hot air popcorn popper safety advice:
- Hot unpopped kernels can fly out through the spout while they are still being circulated with hot air, so standing directly in front of the air popper during operation is not advisable.
- The hot air used to pop the corn is emitted through the spout, which can burn your skin.
- Don’t use metal bowls to collect the popped popcorn in, as the hot air emitted during popping will heat up metal bowls rapidly.
About the Author:
If you’re in the mood for making healthy air popped popcorn at home for your family, visit Tom Fischer’s website,
HotPopcornPopper.com, to download dozens of tasty
popcorn recipes, and have a look at a handpicked selection of
air poppers.
Tom Fischer on February 12th 2009 in Home