Foods We Love : Eating Dangerously

“Did you say, ‘no more popcorn’?” I asked, panicking.

There was always the hope that I had misunderstood, although not much of one. My dentist, who under ordinary circumstances is really a nice man, had just finished slicing open my swollen gum and extracting the reason for the emergency office visit--a thin, almost-transparent hull that had worked its way under the gum line.

I pointed out that what had happened was just a fluke, that it could happen to anyone. I also mentioned that not only was popcorn my favorite food, but it was very healthy and an excellent source of fiber. How did I know he wouldn’t be swayed by those arguments? It could be because the previous year he had put porcelain crowns on two of my top teeth after, in my over-exuberance, I had cracked them while biting down on one of those unpopped kernels that you inevitably run into if you are not careful when eating popcorn.

But popcorn has always been a part of my life. I can remember in the ‘50s, when we kids popped grocery bags-full to take with us to basketball games. As a teen-ager, working the concession stand at the movie theater making popcorn is how I made money. After a busy matinee, my hair and clothes reeking of popcorn, I’d still buy a box of buttered to eat when I got home. As young adults living on our own for the first time, several times a week my five roommates and I would make a dinner of beer, brown-and-serve rolls, and popcorn. It was cheap and delicious. Even today, hardly a day goes by I don’t eat popcorn.

I’ll eat just about any popcorn: microwaved, pre-popped, even 3-day old. But when it is made fresh in a cast-iron kettle, and then salted and slathered in clarified butter, it’s--well, worth losing a tooth or two.

The ultimate popcorn--the kind found in movie theaters--needs to be made in a commercial popcorn maker, which rotates the kernels in a mixture of hot oil and extra-fine salt as it cooks. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, most theaters have stopped making popcorn fresh, preferring to sell stale, pre-popped corn to moviegoers. But popcorn can be made at home quite successfully. The secret is to use fresh, yellow popcorn, extra-fine popcorn salt and clarified butter. (Always store opened popcorn in a cool place, preferably in the refrigerator, to maintain proper moisture for perfect popping.)

PERFECT POPCORN Peanut oil Popcorn kernels Salt Melted butter, preferably clarified

Cover bottom of heavy cast-iron skillet with peanut oil 1/8-inch deep. Heat until oil just begins to smoke. Add popcorn until bottom is covered with single layer of popcorn. Cover and shake over medium heat until completely popped. Remove from heat and immediately remove cover. Season to taste with salt and butter.