Stovetop Popcorn

One of my favorite snacks is homemade popcorn. It's fast, it's easy, and it transports well (as long as you don't mind showing up with nutritional yeast all over your face).

The equipment you'll need:

*a large metal mixing bowl, preferably one with a small bottom
*aluminum foil
*a towel for gripping the mixing bowl

The ingredients:

*three tablespoons corn oil (you can use other oils, but I find this has the best flavor)
*a half-cup popcorn kernels
*a half-teaspoon salt, preferably extra fine or popcorn salt
*nutritional yeast to taste (I use about a third of a cup)

The recipe:

Wrap a square of aluminum foil over the top of the mixing bowl. The proper size of mixing bowl should be such that it is about an inch less wide than standard-width aluminum foil. Leave the edge that is farthest from you just barely open so steam can escape, but not so open that popcorn kernels will explode out of it. Leave the side nearest to you open enough that you can dump the popcorn in when the time comes.

Heat the foil-covered bowl on your stove top on high heat. When it starts to feel hot, add the oil and three kernels. Let it sit until all three of the kernels have popped. At this point, add the rest of the kernels and the salt (I like to dump the salt into the kernels beforehand). Close the foil over the opening you just used and give the bowl a quick back-and-forth shake to distribute the salt and oil.

From this point on, you will want to give the bowl a short but vigorous back-and-forth shake, hopefully keeping it in contact with the heating element, every 10 to 20 seconds. When the bowl becomes too hot to handle, start gripping it with a kitchen towel. Continue this process until the popping slows and nearly stops. You want to pop as many kernels as possible without burning the corn.

Once you are done popping, remove the bowl from heat and remove the foil -- but be careful! The escaping steam can scald you. Scatter the nutritional yeast over the popcorn and give the bowl a gentle shake to distribute the yeast.

Alterations:

*add spices at the end such as garlic and onion powder, cayenne, black pepper, or whatever else suits you
*some people like olive oil, flax oil, or other oils drizzled over the popcorn
*this popcorn stores and carries really well in brown paper lunch bags... especially to the movie theatre