We’ve been sampling a lot of gourmet popcorn and flavored popcorn that’s popped at the factory, then shipped out to the consumer. And it’s been good – far better than any we’ve tried from the grocer shelves (how long has that stuff been sitting there?) and certainly better than microwave popcorn. However, we all started to wonder: How good would this stuff be if it were freshly popped, still warm and amazingly fresh? We particularly wondered about that during annual Buffalo Wine & Dine Dinner Club New Year’s Eve Celebration. Marv and Wendi cranked up their popcorn machine and the freshly popped corn smelled and tasted great.
That made me start researching sources for unpopped gourmet popcorn. Yeah, I know you can get little plastic bags of it at the grocery and I know Whole Foods sells it in bulk, and that’s okay. But could it get better from a really good unpopped popcorn purveyor? To begin my search, I began sending emails and reading forum posts from foodies that I’ve known for years via the internet, and asking for their favorite gourmet popcorn. Only two companies “popped up” (just couldn’t resist) repeatedly as great places to get unpopped gourmet popcorn. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to personally sample these yet, buy my order is on the way and we’ll be back to our sampling for an update as soon as possible. In the meantime, I’ll let you in on what my internet foodie friends recommended.
When people told me about Fireworks Gourmet Popcorn, they used the words “tender” and “fluffy.” I started to wonder if they were talking about marshmallows or kittens. Eventually, I called the company headquarters in Port Washington, Wisconsin to ask what was different about their popcorn. I learned that smaller hulls typically produce more tender popcorn. Since 1988 Fireworks has a small group of farmers through the Midwest growing popcorn exclusively for the company growing 12 different smaller-hulled varieties. No dyes are used to enhance the beautiful colors of their corn, and none of the corn is genetically altered or crossed with low grades of corn to produce these smaller hulls. This popcorn may pop smaller, but the small, tender hulls shatter when they are popped. Better for your teeth, your digestive system and, most importantly, better flavor.
Several foodies raved about the Savanna Gold Popcorn, and I thought that this Five Variety Pack was a smoking deal – $29.23 with FREE SHIPPING for pack of TWO variety popcorns – five different flavors in each pack. One variety pack to try yourself, another to give away.
It’s not pretty gourmet popcorn and the packaging isn’t much, but Amish Country Popcorn gets big raves, especially for those that are making popcorn for kids. This company has a variety of popcorn that has kernels so small that it compares with hull less popcorn. Hull less popcorn is often recommended for small children who can sometimes get the hulls stuck in their throat, but often ends up with a bland or plain taste. Amish Country Popcorn keeps the hulls small and the flavor is big. Especially recommended was the Amish Country Lady Finger Popcorn. There’s one more good thing about Amish Country Popcorn – the plain packaging and ability to buy in bulk costs less for a premium, gourmet popcorn product.
My foodie friends have convinced me that unpopped popcorn is worth the little bit of clean up required. But, as usual, I’m lazy. So tomorrow I’m off to find out about popcorn machines.
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[...] as it pops and settle in to enjoy the flick and the taste of fresh popcorn. For more information on unpopped gourmet popcorn and other gourmet gifts, visit http://www.AnythingGoesGourmet.com. This entry was posted on [...]