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Popcorn History

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A history of popcorn

When it comes to popcorn, more often than not it’s the sound that hits you first with its “pop, pop, popping”. It starts off nice and slowly before heading full steam ahead into a firestorm of kernels as they almost magically transform into clouds of crunchy white goodness. The next thing you’ll no doubt notice is the incredible smell that wafts through the room and eventually the entire house, slowly pulling you in as it teases your nose. You’ll feel weak as the popcorn tantalises your taste buds. By the time your teeth crunch down on the first bite, you’re totally and utterly hooked. Popcorn happens to be one of the most popular snacks and described by some as a completely irresistible treat. As they say, the proof is …show more content…

His recipe included the use of a grill, a half-pint glass of popcorn and a frying pan that had been rubbed with lard or butter. He advised holding the pan over the fire whilst constantly stirring or shaking the corn and within a few minutes, the popcorn should have turned inside out to reveal the delicious white, fluffy centre. He also mentioned the addition of salt or sugar whilst it was still hot for added flavour. The issue with this particular method however seemed to be with the lard or butter. The butter would usually begin to burn before the pan reached a hot enough temperature and the lard would create popcorn that was covered in slime-like grease. It wasn’t until the latter portion of the 19th century that a more efficient way of popping popcorn was discovered. What were deemed to be “poppers” were actually boxes made of tight wire gauze and had long handles attached. They were designed to be held over an open flame. The design of poppers offered a number of benefits including the containment of popped kernels whilst also keeping any hands away from the heat source. Over the years, the popper became hugely popular and as a result a number of improvements were made to make it bigger and better than ever. Due to the improvements, popcorn became even more accessible to the masses of people wanting to get their hands on

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