Popcorn And The Extras
Gourmet Popcorn By Any Other Name Would Taste As Delicious
Popcorn comes in a myriad of sizes, colors and shapes. To choose a popcorn for your needs let’s break it down in to the following criteria:
- Shape or Color
- Hull type
- Organic vs Non-Organic
- Bulk vs Processed
Most of us think either white popcorn
- Butterfly Popcorn
(Typically considered to be the yellow)
This is what most people use for popcorn at home, it flares out like a butterfly with it’s wings available for seasonings and oils to attach to for flavor. It also fluffs out and takes up more volume which gives you more bang (or pop) for your buck.
- Mushroom Popcorn
(Typically considered to be the white)
This popcorn is smaller and more densely packed like a little mushroom. Mushroom types of popcorn are usually used for caramel or sugary popcorn products because it does not have those “wings” that would break off during rougher processing.
These general size and shape traits are important depending on how you will be using the popped popcorn. The smaller mushroom type is great for the sugary treats. Utilizing the compact surface area the sugar or binding ingredient will adhere and not cause the popcorn to fall apart as it might for the butterfly shaped popcorn. I find that this popcorn shape has more crunch and body, maybe due to its more dense structure.
Butterfly shaped popcorn is perfect for the movie style popcorn for parties and events when you want to dress the popcorn with some nice butter or oil and a gourmet seasoning, for ideas see our recipe section. The yield of popcorn in volume is of course greater with the butterfly shape with its more flamboyant shape, which help when you are getting ready for a crowd.
