Popcorn

Related Topics:
Popcorn_Poppers :: Popcorn

Popcorn or popping corn is a type of maize which puffs up when it is heated in oil or by dry heat. Special varieties of corn are grown to give improved popping yield. Some wild types will pop, but the cultivated strain is Zea mays subsp. mays, which is a special kind of flint corn. In 1948, popcorn ears dating back 5,600-years were discovered in bat caves in New Mexico.*Popcorn History Popcorn was first formerly developed by Native Americans thousands of years ago.

History

Popcorn was introduced to the Europeans in the late 15th century when Christopher Columbus noted that the Native Americans made popcorn corsages and popcorn headdresses which they sold to Columbus' sailors. French explorers, around the year 1612, in the Great Lakes region documented use of popcorn by the Iroquois who popped corn in pottery using hot sand. They also reported that during an Iroquois dinner, popcorn soup and popcorn beer were consumed. By the late 19th century, popcorn was being sold in the United States commercially.

Popcorn has become a popular snack food all over the world. Early North American colonists loved popcorn so much, that they actually served it for breakfast with sugar and cream. This represents the first puffed breakfast cereal.

Appearances

In Europe and North America, popcorn is particularly common in movie theaters. It is often served with butter and salt or butter flavored soy extract. It is also sometimes flavored with sugar (especially in the United Kingdom and Germany), nutritional yeast, or spices. In the United States it is sometimes served with sugar and vinegar.

Popcorn balls (popped kernels stuck together with a sugary "glue") were hugely popular around the turn of the 20th century, but their popularity has since waned. Popcorn balls are still served in some places as a traditional Halloween treat. Cracker Jack is a popular, commercially produced candy that consists of peanuts mixed in with caramel-covered popcorn. Kettle corn is a variation of normal popcorn, cooked with white sugar and salt, traditionally in a large copper kettle. Once reserved for specialty shops and county fairs, kettle corn has recently become popular, especially in the microwave popcorn market. The Popcorn maker is a relatively new Home appliance and their popularity is increasing because they offer the opportunity to add flavours of your own choice and choose healthy eating popcorn.

Some popular brands of popcorn in the United States are Orville Redenbacher's, Act II, Jiffy Pop (all three of which are brands of the ConAgra Foods conglomerate), Pop Secret, Jolly Time, Aussie Crunch, Newman's Own, and Black Jewell, a premium brand.

How popcorn pops

As with all cereal grains, each kernel of popcorn contains a certain amount of moisture in its starchy endosperm. Unlike most other grains, the outer hull, or pericarp, of the popcorn kernel is thick and impervious to moisture.

As the kernel is heated past the boiling point, water in the kernel begins to turn to steam, generating an internal pressure of about 9 atm. In kernels of other grains (and in damaged kernels of popcorn), this steam escapes as fast as it forms, but in the tightly sealed popcorn kernel, the steam is held tight by the pericarp and the pressure starts to build until the pericarp suddenly ruptures, causing a small explosion. The force of the explosion turns the kernel inside out. More importantly, because the moisture is evenly distributed throughout the starchy endosperm, the sudden expansion turns the endosperm into an airy foam which gives popcorn its unique texture.

Two explanations exist for kernels which do not pop, known in the popcorn industry as "old maids," after being exposed to high temperatures. The first is that unpopped kernels do not have enough moisture to create enough steam for an explosion. The second explanation, according to research led by Dr. Bruce Hamaker of Purdue University, is that the unpopped kernel may have a leaky hull.

Trivia

Indiana produces more popcorn than any other state in the US.
Popcorn has been served in movie theaters since 1912.
The first popcorn, made by Native Americans, was flavored with dried herbs & spices.
The average popping temperature for popcorn is around 347°F (175°C)
The commercial popcorn machine was invented in Chicago, Illinois by Charles Cretors in 1885.
Stringing popcorn to hang on a tree or to deck walls with is a popular Christmas Tradition in some parts of North America.
At least four localities claim to be the "Popcorn Capital of the World": Marion, Ohio; Ridgway, Illinois; Schaller, Iowa; and North Loup, Nebraska.
In Spanish, popcorn's name varies by region, resulting in more than 10 names differing by country. (For more information, see ^*)
Popcorn is often related to movies as a munching item and there will be a stall selling popcorn in almost every theatre.
Popcorn is the official state snack of Illinois.http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=News&id=404205

References

External links

Snack foods | Popcorn