Popcorn is a well-known and loved snack for any occasion. Also, consuming healthy fats that are found in olive, peanut, canola, and avocado oils are beneficial for your health. You can combine piping popcorn and these vegetable oils to gain the most for your nutrition. So in this article, we will tell you how to pop popcorn on the stove with vegetable oil.
Making popcorn with vegetable oil
To make perfectly crunchy and delicious popcorn on the stovetop, you need fresh kernels, oil of your choosing, salt or other seasoning and a stovetop popcorn maker. It will take you less than 10 minutes to make one portion. Using medium heat prevents the oil from burning.
The first thing that you need to do is preseason the popcorn maker. You need to swirl a tablespoon of vegetable oil around until all the surface is covered. Heat the popcorn maker for about a minute making sure that walls are coated in oil as well. After that, let the pot cool down and wipe off any excess oil.
Place 1/2 cup of popcorn kernels and 1-3 tablespoons of oil of your choosing. If you want toppings to stick to the flakes, use 2 or 3 tablespoons, otherwise, one tablespoon should be enough. From here, the popcorn will be ready in 5 minutes.
Put the popcorn maker on the burner and turn on the medium heat. Start turning the crank during the entire time that the pot is on the stove. In 2 or 3 minutes, kernels start popping. Continue turning the crank till you don’t hear any more popping or it is hard to turn. Take away the popcorn maker from the stove, carefully open the lid facing the vents away from you and pour popcorn to the bowl.
Other types of oil for popcorn
Although popcorn served in the cinemas has a buttery flavor, it actually isn’t cooked in butter. Butter tends to make popcorn greasy and soggy. So, to preserve the crispiness of popcorn flakes, it’s cooked in oil. A mix of oil with a high smoke point and fat with a low smoke point is used. Depending on your flavor preferences and intolerances, you can choose the best oil for you from those mentioned below.
Coconut oil
Coconut oil has 90% of saturated fat and can be found in two types – virgin and refined.
Virgin coconut oil is extracted without solvents and is cold-pressed. The smoke point of virgin oil is 350°F and is suitable for sautéing and baking. The health benefits of using virgin oil in cooking are that this oil consists of antioxidants and has anti-inflammatory properties.
Refined coconut oil is always processed and often contains additives. The smoke point of refined oil is higher than 400°F, which makes it suitable for frying.
If you decide to make your popcorn using coconut oil, aim for virgin oil and keep in mind that it will add a sweet and almost nutty taste to your popcorn. For seasoning, use something that goes well with coconut flavor, such as cinnamon or salt.
Olive oil
It is one of the most popular vegetable oils that has oleic acid, monounsaturated fats and antioxidants. It has a smoke point of 350-400°F. It has 4 types, such as extra virgin, virgin, pure, and refined.
Extra virgin olive oil is unrefined and is made by crushing olives and separating oil from the pulp. It has excellent flavor, oleic acid of 0.8 gram for 100 grams and vitamins E and K. Generally, it has a golden-green color, with a distinct flavor and a light spicy finish. It has a low smoke point, so it’s better to leave it for adding to salads and dipping bread.
Virgin olive oil is also unrefined, pure and has a less intense olive taste. It has a slightly higher level of oleic acid. It’s not so widespread in shops, so it’s highly unlikely that you’ll come by it.
Pure olive oil is a blend of refined and unrefined oil. It has a lighter color, a level of oleic acid of 3-4%, and a neutral taste. It’s also called all-purpose cooking oil.
Refined olive oil doesn’t have olive flavor, color and bitterness. Also, it doesn’t contain the antioxidants that originally makes olive oil so valuable.
Avocado oil
This oil contains a lot of monounsaturated fats, has a delicious nutty flavor, and has a high smoke point of 482°F. There’re two types of avocado oil such as extra-virgin and refined. This oil is perfect for cooking popcorn because it has a buttery flavor.
Extra-virgin avocado oil has similar properties as avocado fruit. Its color is green, and it has a buttery and fatty flavor. The green color of the oil is caused by a lot of chlorophylls in the flesh and skin of the fruit, so it’s important to store it away from the sunlight.
Refined avocado oil is a light yellow color, with a higher smoke point between 500°F and 520°F. It has a delicate taste due to a lot of processing that oil goes under.
Sunflower oil
This type of oil is widespread and the easiest to use while making popcorn. It has a high smoke point of 440°F, and it can be preserved for a long time without changing its flavor. There are four types of sunflower oil such as high linoleic, mid-oleic, high oleic, and high stearic. Linoleic oil is rich in linoleic acid, also known as omega-6, while oleic oil is rich in oleic acid, which is known as omega-9. Stearic oil consists of stearic acid, and isn’t used in home cooking, but can be found in chocolate, ice cream and industrial frying.
Canola oil
This oil contains omega-3, omega-6, oleic acids, a low amount of saturated fatty acids, and vitamins K and E. It has a high smoke point of 435°F, which makes it a good choice for making popcorn. The only downside is that it has a distinct flavor that might transfer to popcorn.
Grapeseed oil
This oil has omega-6, antioxidants and vitamin E. It has a high smoke point of 420°F and an almost neutral flavor with a hint of nutty taste. Due to its taste, it can be combined with other fats, and it’s said to be a good choice for making gourmet popcorn seasoned with special flavors.
Peanut oil
This oil is rich in omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids, vitamin E, and a small amount of palmitic acid. It has a variety of flavors, from sweet to nutty. It has a high smoke point of 437°F. There are 3 types of peanut oil such as refined, cold-pressed and gourmet.
Refined peanut oil doesn’t have allergens and is used by restaurants to fry foods. Cold-pressed oil is made by crushing peanuts and has more nutrients and a rich peanut flavor. Gourmet oil is made from roasted crushed peanuts and has a more intense nutty flavor.
Conclusion
We hope that you gained an understanding of how to pop popcorn on the stove with vegetable oil of different types. To make the crispiest popcorn, you need fresh kernels, an oil of your choosing and a stovetop popcorn maker. Generally, it’s a good idea to choose an oil with a high smoke point and almost neutral flavor. If you want the seasoning to stick to the popcorn, you should generally add 2 or 3 tablespoons of oil into the stovetop popcorn maker.