It’s Too Easy to Make Your Own Corn
Movie snacks are a rare source of conflict in my family. My boyfriend is motivated by an insatiable sweet tooth, while I’m a bottomless pit for what I call “salty crunchy cereal” and in the movie-watching context, that always means popcorn . Corn is the perfect compromise: it’s sweet, salty, and popcorn – check, check, check again.
As I recently learned, boiling corn is also very easy. I don’t know why, but it didn’t even occur to me that it was possible, not to mention that it’s okay. Maybe I assumed that the “kettle” part of the name referred to a special popcorn kettle that was powerful enough to withstand hot butter, melted sugar, and exploding corn kernels. It turns out that cooking corn in a kettle is exactly the same as cooking popcorn on the stovetop, with only half an extra step. All you have to do is add the sugar to the butter and pay a little more attention to the heat level.
How to cook corn on the stove
To make your own bowl of corn, you will need:
- A 4-6 liter saucepan with high sides and a tight lid.
- popcorn kernels
- Coconut, canola or vegetable oil (I use refined coconut oil)
- granulated sugar
- Salt
Don’t be put off by the lack of quantity – we’ll deal with that first. The base ratio is 2 parts kernels to 1 part each oil and sugar, but to avoid a potential overflow scenario, you should adjust the measurements to suit your particular pan. To do this, add a tablespoon of popcorn grains to the pan until they cover the bottom in a loose single layer. Keep track of how many tablespoons you have added and then divide that number in half to get the amount of butter and sugar. For example, if you used 6 tablespoons of kernels, then you need 3 tablespoons of oil and 3 tablespoons of sugar.
Measure the butter and sugar in a saucepan, mix everything together with a heat-resistant spatula, cover and heat over medium heat. When the grains start to pop, reduce the heat to medium and shake the pan every few seconds until the popping stops. Immediately transfer the boiled corn to a heatproof bowl, season with salt and enjoy. (To make the pot easier to clean, fill it with cold water and let it sit until everything dissolves.)
The first batch or two will probably need some tweaking to match your stovetop, which is to be expected when you’re melting sugar. Electric hobs are more difficult than gas and induction hobs because they hold so much heat that they increase the risk of burns. It doesn’t take long, however, to figure out which settings work best for your setup, and once you do, you’re never more than 5 minutes away from the perfect sweet-and-salty snack.