No Need to Preheat Popcorn Oil
I always popcorn the same. I add a lot of oil to a saucepan, sprinkle on three (3) dough kernels, and heat them over medium to high heat. Once those test cores pop out, then – and only then – I would drain the leftover popcorn. It turns out that these test cores were completely unnecessary.
Why did I mess around with these three cores from the beginning? The internet told me this, and the internet is a great resource. What made me change my mind? Experimental data. Yesterday morning (normal time for popcorn) I was making cheese popcorn and – in the haze before coffee – I poured all of my unopened kernels into the pot before the oil had time to heat up. At first I was completely “oh no,” but then I started to question the need for these three test cores – what did they actually ever provide? The truth is, the test kernels never differed in texture or taste from the kernels that were added after the oil was heated, although they did provide me with a little snack to enjoy while the “real” popcorn pops. But waiting for them to burst meant that I had to hover around the slab until I heard three, weak, single pops, and I found this to be the most difficult. (Do you know it’s much easier to hear? A whole bunch of claps.)
Anyway. I let the popcorn heat up along with the butter, then as soon as I heard the sound of popping corn, I went back to the kitchen to shake the pot as I usually do, making sure not a single kernel remains unopened (or burnt) … The resulting popcorn was of the same quality as the corn added to the preheated oil and I successfully eliminated a step in my popcorn making process, which is great news because I just love to optimize.