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You are here: Home / Budget Help / Perfect Basic Popcorn Recipe

Perfect Basic Popcorn Recipe

by Adrienne 19 Comments Updated: December 20, 2018

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Looking for a healthy alternative to processed and boxed snacks? Here is a great homemade popcorn recipe, plus some other helpful options.

Homemade Popcorn Recipe

 

Wishing you had something other than butter and salt to top your popcorn?  Or do you need some prodding to give up those artificially colored “cheeze flavored” topping mixes?

Well, I have some great solutions for you.

As I mentioned in my post on popcorn being a healthy snack for your budget, a homemade popcorn recipe can really help with your family food budget, and it can also be a lot of fun if you vary the toppings (make sure you check out the links at the bottom of this post for some of our family's favorites :-)!)

But it is also important to start with the right foundation — the perfect popcorn.

This post may contain affiliate links from which I will earn a commission.

First, You Need to Start with a Great Popper

Again, I mentioned the stainless steel hand crank popper in yesterday's post on how popcorn is a great boon for your budget. If you are really proficient in the shaking-the-pan-over-the-stove-burner method, then that is great too, but our family has gotten so much use out of this popper and I was never really successful at the shaking the pan method.  And with this popper, even our kids can do it.

Stovetop Popcorn Popper

We do, however, typically have them stand in an ultra-safe kids learning tower (our tower can support 500 pounds safely) while popping. That way there is no fear of them toppling off of a chair and getting injured.

Now, back to the homemade popcorn recipe.

Recipe Notes

  • We always use organic popcorn due to the proliferation of genetically modified corn on the market.  (According to this article in the Washington Post, in 2009, already 80 percent of corn was genetically modified.
  • The salt that we use and love is Real Salt which you can purchase in various locations. It is a wonderful, non-bleached, natural salt with no additives (did you know that regular table salt is bleached and has chemical additives to keep it from clumping — and some brands even have added sugars!).  We get ours (and our organic popcorn) through our family's buying club with Country Life Natural Foods and I confess that I purchase the large 25 pound bag. Great price and salt doesn't spoil! And between all the popcorn and regular cooking and baking that I do, and our daily saline washes and the regular soaking of nuts and seeds, we use up salt very quickly!
  • Coconut oil is a wonderful choice for popping corn.  It has a high smoke point which means that it is fairly-stable cooking oil.  You do not want to use olive oil for your popcorn as its smoke point is too low.  Butter is also not a great choice but it is a fine topping option.  Basically, cook your popcorn at a temperature at which you do not produce a bunch of smoke, because the abundance of smoke indicates that you are damaging the fat.
  • I like to use 2 Tbsp oil for most batches. Plain popcorn has a fairly-high glycemic load so adding the extra fat tempers that a bit. Sometimes I use 3 Tbsp, but the resulting product might seem a bit heavy to you.  Try it and decide what amount you like.

Perfect Basic Popcorn

This homemade popcorn recipe is a super quick treat that you can whip together in a flash. It is also very frugal, and you can top it however you like! Any time you would like an easy snack, skip the microwaved junk from the store and throw some popcorn in the popper instead.
Print Rate
Course: Snack
Cuisine: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free, Vegan

Ingredients

  • 1-3 Tbsp organic coconut oil
  • 1/2 cup organic popcorn
  • salt

Instructions

  • Put oil and popcorn into the popper over medium heat.
  • Turn crank slowly at first and then quickly once the popping starts.
  • Stop cranking when no more popping is heard.

That's it!

So, now that you have this easy homemade popcorn recipe that you are armed with one step towards more healthy snack eating, you can really serve up some fun, healthy snacks in the kitchen by trying our family's favorite popcorn recipes:

  • Caramel Nut Buttery Popcorn
  • Herbes de Provence Popcorn
  • Seasoned Popcorn

Do you have any favorite budget-friendly snacks in your home?

Any favorite popcorn flavors to share?

(Photo Credit)

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Filed Under: Budget Help, Gluten Free, Recipes, Snacks

About Adrienne

Adrienne Urban is the Founder and Owner of Whole New Mom. She has a background in research, journalism, insurance, employee benefits, financial markets, frugal living, and nutrition. Seeking a better life for herself and her family, she uses research and consults with many physicians and other practitioners to find solutions to the variety of issues they have dealt with including life-threatening food allergies and thyroid and adrenal concerns. WholeNewMom.com is the result of her experiences and knowledge gained throughout the process. Posts are reviewed and verified by the Whole New Mom team.

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Comments

  1. Carol says

    November 20, 2016 at 4:28 pm

    I have heard recently from Dr. Steven Masley, a functional doctor that coconut oil should not be used on high heat that it destroys the good part of the oil and makes it not so healthy. Have you heard about this? I have been using avacado oil but my husband really liked the coconut oil.

    Reply
    • Adrienne says

      November 21, 2016 at 3:32 pm

      I have heard that the smoke point is lower. I try to cook our popcorn on a lower heat. It does take longer, however.

      Reply
  2. Jane says

    July 11, 2015 at 8:50 am

    hi!
    Can’t one use a microwave to make the organic corn ? I’ve heard a paper bag works well.

    Jane

    Reply
    • Adrienne says

      July 11, 2015 at 10:45 am

      Yes, I have heard that too. I personally don’t like to use the microwave, as I am concerned about the health effects on the food, but you can do it in a pinch or if you aren’t concerned. Take care.

      Reply
  3. John says

    December 29, 2013 at 6:14 pm

    Why do you say popcorn has a high glycemic load? It’s actually low-to-moderate on the glycemic index (55) and definitely has a low glycemic load (<10)

    Reply
    • Adrienne says

      December 30, 2013 at 9:40 am

      You know, I am not sure. I just saw that as well…..I guess I’ve been told it so many times. I just saw that it’s 55 for air popped. I couldn’t find info for what it is popped in oil. Any idea?

      Reply
  4. Linda Traylor says

    December 28, 2013 at 7:06 pm

    Yes, Dr Mercola, who probably teaches more about the dangers of GMO than anyone, said in his blog that popcorn cannot be genetically modified … and so I do not worry about that ONE problem when making popcorn. BTW, if you Google whirlypop, you can find everything you need to know about how to pop corn as well as find the popper.

    Reply
    • Adrienne says

      December 28, 2013 at 8:08 pm

      Glad to hear it. But some of it sure tastes like it’s been modified into styrofoam :(.

      Reply
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