There are those people who dream of having grand kitchens, outfitted with eight-burner stoves and walk-in pantries and closet- sized refrigerators, who wish they had a full lineup of the latest electronic gizmos and gadgets, who long for a complete suite of state- of-the-art appliances for cappucino-making, sandwich-pressing, popcorn.
And then there is me.
I hate tools that have only one use. For a gadget to survive in my kitchen, it has to do a multitude of things. I would be happy (and have been, for most of my life) in a tiny kitchen where everything’s within arm’s reach, from the butter to the spices to the sink, with only my cast iron skillet, my Dutch oven, my knife and a fork for equipment.
I do 90 percent of my cooking with the above items. Pasta tonight? Boil in pot, make sauce in skillet. Roast chicken or pork loin? Forget the roasting pan, use the skillet. Apple crumble? Skillet. Grated cheese? Use the knife. Smashed garlic? Knife. Omelet? Fork. French fries? Dutch oven.
You get the picture.
One item I’ve never owned and never wish to own is a popcorn machine. There are dozens of varieties: air poppers, oil poppers; none of these is good for anything other than popcorn. Talk about a waste of electricity. I make popcorn in my Dutch oven on the stovetop, with a minimum of effort. Sure, some of the kernels at the bottom get a little bit overdone (and some don’t pop completely), but that’s part of the charm. Just like a beautiful woman, or a beautiful story, what makes homemade, handcrafted food so beautiful is its soulful imperfections.
Bonus: This is real popcorn, not that horrific microwave stuff, which I cannot bear.
Stovetop Popcorn
American advertising companies have done a bang-up job over the past 60 years convincing us all that it’s impossible to make popcorn at home without a dedicated piece of popcorn- only equipment. Nothing could be farther from the truth. All you need is a covered pot (preferably a covered, enameled Dutch oven) and a very little (much less than you think) elbow grease. Will every single kernel pop? Probably not. And a few at the bottom will be burned. To which I say: yum.
Ingredients
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup popcorn
Salt to taste
Directions
Drizzle oil in Dutch oven and place over medium-high heat. Drop three kernels of popcorn into the pot. Cover and leave it alone until all three kernels pop, about 3-5 minutes.
Pour in the rest of the popcorn, cover the pot, and give it a quick shake. Leave it alone until the popping begins to slow down (less than one pop every few seconds). Give the pot a shake and turn the heat down to low. When popping has stopped completely, remove from heat and pour popcorn into a bowl. (Don’t freak if a late-popping kernel jumps out at you; it won’t hurt.) Sprinkle salt over the top and eat hot.
