How to Pop Popcorn in a Brown Paper Bag

What an interesting idea, Kerry.

We use a microwave popcorn bowl instead. This works very well and uses no paper or oils. You can pop 1/4 to 1/3 cup at a time depending on the type of popcorn.

We buy our kernels directly from an organic popcorn farm (see blog post http://bit.ly/POPcorn). Our favourite is Ruby Red. It’s dark red on the outside, snow white inside and delicious. It’s time to get more … but hard to rationalize that an eight hour round trip drive saves us money.

Please add a warning about not leaving the microwave unattended!

People are always letting microwave popcorn burn, and the smoke stinks up a place forever! 😛

My 2c – I’d ditch the microwave along with the microwave popcorn. Go for *real food* by cooking it the traditional way in a pan on the hob. 🙂

I’ve been doing this for years. I’ve found that 1/2 cup overflows: 1/4 fills my regular lunch bag brimming. The fumes from the store micro bags is toxic, dangerous to your lungs.

I’ve been doing this for a couple of years now. Very cheap and tasty. I use 1/4 cup of popcorn for one person and I melt about 1/8th of a cup of margarine to drizzle over it and then add some salt. I worked it out to about $0.25-0.30 per bag fully prepared.
Note: Microwaves vary – you have to stand by it and wait or you WILL burn your popcorn. You’ll learn after a few uses how your microwave works. My microwave at home is an older model (not sure how many watts) that starts burning after about 2:10. My work one starts burning at 1:55. I’ve learned that I can set the microwave to that time and get the margarine ready for the microwave while the popcorn pops.

I prefer a saucepan with a little oil. Either way, I find the tastiest way to dress it is:

– a few spritzes of extra-virgin olive oil from a pump sprayer
– powdered salt (sticks better, just grind regular salt in coffee grinder)
– nutritional yeast (my meat-eating hubby thinks this stuff is magic!)

I line my paper bag with parchment paper, put in the popcorn and a small dab of margarine. The parchment stops it from leaking (the bag will still end up with some marg on it). Works great, the margarine disperses evenly throughout the popcorn. Then add salt or other seasonings.
The parchment paper is very cheap at Costco and you don’t need much, just enough to line the bottom and up the sides a bit.

Great idea. I like the control you have in making only what you want and adding only the flavors you want. Sadly for my hips, I like butter best.

I’ve done this for years now.
AND, I don’t pay for bags. I re-use the paperbags I occasionally get bulk products in at my food co-op (when i forget a container and really need dry beans or something).
One bag works for about 2 dozen popping events. So you can even buy the bulk popcorn in a paper bag, put in a jar when you get home and use the bag for popping. Closed system if you compost the bag when you’re done (the worms in my vermicomposter like the paper bags)

I like it with some bragg’s liquid aminos and nutritional yeast or just fresh cracked pepper.

I have use an air popper for the past few years, and I’m in the butter spray and sprinkle of salt camp. Faster and easier than melted butter, although probably not as healthy since it’s fake. For a treat, I add Parmesan and garlic salt. Mmm, popcorn is one of my favorite snacks! I think I’ll make some now…

I’m trying this tonight – thank you so much.
I have a never-ending supply of brown paper lunch bags as my mom and dad (both 86 years old) get 2 of these every day with their Meals on Wheels. I was starting to get quite a collection.

Drizzling some tamari on popcorn is a great replacement for salt & butter. And it makes a fun sizzle 🙂

I gave it a try with white paper bags: that works for me, too!

I do this all the time. I also use staples. It isn’t a problem. They don’t spark.

Just a tip… Our microwave is large and one of the more powerful ones and continually burned popcorn.

To fix it, we stopped putting the popcorn in the center and put it on the side. I assume this more even distributed the microwave heating.

Now I’m really hungry! Thanks for the brown bag in microwave tip. We use a popcorn-popper, which is also very economical (use you’ve purchased the appliance)

Another great way to add some flavor to it is a little bacon grease and salt. It is quite good. I also love grated parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and some olive oil, maybe a little salt if the parmesan cheese is not salty enough.

I wish I had known about this in college! I first learned about this in one of Alton Brown’s books a couple months ago. He explains that it’s okay to use a couple staples (as long as they’re not right next to each other), because they have such a small size and mass, they’re actually smaller than the microwaves cooking the popcorn. You just need to make sure you have a turntable microwave, and that the staples don’t touch the sides of the nuke box. But hey, if you don’t have to use staples, I’m all for that too!

To keep the bag closed I fold the top and punch a couple of holes an inch or so apart and thread a tooth pic through them. Bigger cocktail type pics work best. I use a hand-held single hole paper punch since puncturing my finger with a knife!

I coat the kernels with Tabasco before cooking.

Nice to see a solution to why all my kernels weren’t popping, when using the microwave bag method!

Still like the oil in saucepan method. Don’t need butter, just a little salt. The olive oil does the rest!

Popcorn with olive oil is healthy too

Popcorn with curry powder & maple syrup — pure win.

Thanks! I’ll have to try this! We uaually make ours on the stove-top w/ a whirly pop. We’ve added old bay seasoning to after popping–awesome w/ beer! Sometimes we cook up fresh garlic and rosemary in olive oil and use that to whirly pop the popcorn.

This way looks handy for some situations but I prefer using a sauce pan and coconut oil to get good flavor.

When it’s done popping I put the stove on “Low” and drizzle butter while shaking the sauce pan back and forth to mix around the popcorn. This way I get a good amount of butter without soggy popcorn.

Looks like you missed one key step; Sneak this into the movie theater. I don’t know what I’m more excited about saving, the calories or the $5.

Did this years ago before microwave popcorn was in the stores. This was one of the first tricks we tried when we got a new microwave. Another cool thing to do is “roasting” marshmallows in the MW. They puff up nice. This is a rainy day treat when the campfire wont start.

To get rid of the burnt stench of the microwave, just boil lemon.
If you’re more patient, boil cinnamon.

I pop my popcorn in a pan and use a little oil and pour some Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning in the bottom and then add the popcorn and this way it is cooked in.
This way makes the popcorn have a little zing to it!

Problem is…All the chemicals required to turn wood into pulp to make these bags…Brown bags like these are for utilitarian use and not meant for food cooking unless you enjoy a little mercury or heavy metal additives with your popcorn…And adding butter or margarine to the bags only helps to leach out the chemmies…Please visit a pulp mill sometime, I work at one, and you won’t want to blow your nose with a tissue…

I never liked that smug look on Orville Redenbacher’s face anyway!

Great article thanks for the tip.

I had saved this in my reader and FINALLY got some paper bags.

Yum!!

I liked reading through all the variations too. In the end, I made salt and freshly ground pepper popcorn tonight.

Oh my, be still, my beating heart.

Thanks for this. My husband has been antsy to get an air popper, and I kept insisting (at his scoffing) that “we can make in paper bags!” 🙂 He had butter and salt tonight.

Wonderfully old idea! We line the bag with parchment paper also, and add about 2 TBL of butter and about 3 TBL of finely ground pot for a great movie night! Thanks for the post!

Maple Butter is so delicious on popcorn – and so easy to make – maple syrup, butter and brown sugar. mmmmmmm.

Nice little trick, I may copy this page for some gourmet topping ideas but I have no problem buying 1 lb. bags of unpopped kernels and popping them myself on the oven range, in a pot with a little cooking oil, and of course a lid. The trick is to start everything at room temperature and let the kernels heat up WITH the oil, so when they finally burst they are big fluffy kernels. (I actually considered it sort of a psuedo-scientific experiment.) If you wait too long to add the scoop of kernels (I use those little plastic scoops that come with powdered iced tea mix) then while the exterior of the kernels gets hot enough to pop, the interior ‘meat’ of the kernel isn’t as hot and they ‘barely’ pop.

This is an incredible idea. I always thought you needed some sort of oil or fat in order for the kernels to pop! I have been pot on the stove guy for years because I didn’t want the crap in the microwave kind.

For toppings, I use a light drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and some salt. It’s similar to butter but has a slightly more interesting flavor and is way more healthy.

A great variation on the old school pan method, a wok. the sloped sides help insure the unpopped kernels are in the heat. I like adding some cloves of garlic to mine and roast them at the same time the corn pops.

I love this and cant wait to try it, i like to incorporate my flavors with my theme’s. we always have dinner and movie night with company, so if I make a chicken enchilada casserole, we might have magaritas for a cocktail and then make spicy mexican popcorn with a taco seasoning packet or i’ve even put a touch of lime juice and salt on mine, yum. thanks for posting 😀

Why do we call un-popped kernels orphans?
Because they have no pops.
🙂

Ok, so I tried this last night, and it was fantastic! The kernels popped perfectly. Nothing burned, and it tasted so much more light and fresh than the pan on the stove method. Thank you so much for this wonderfully easy idea!

I have an air popper, but that heats up the house, so I might try this. It’s the smell of the burning oil in microwave popcorn that really stinks. Burning corn isn’t that bad.

I use a little olive oil, some nutritional yeast powder, and Veg-It. The BEST. Furry kernels rule.

I LOVE IT,screw the pop corn man this is awesome…..
NO really this is great thanks for the idea…Rox

season-all salt and sugar

Erm, the milk in your popcorn is from the butter :

Growl n sputtah. Popcorn popped in a bag is greasy ONLY if one adds grease to it in the form of butter or oil. One could use the same bag several times. If one MUST butter, do it in a bowl. (do you really want butter spots on your jammies?)

… and “whirly pop” or Jiffy Pop as we call it in the States, is chock-full of salt and oils (or faux butter).

… and popping corn at stovetop in a pot or pan requires oil.

I’m ALWAYS looking for ways to get a tasty nosh that’s guilt free, and microwave poppin’ rules over those big “air poppers” that spit out tasteless packing materials.

There, I’m done. 🙂
… and OTC popping corn reeks od and drips with chemicals and all sorts of nasties to coat your arteries.

This method worked GREAT! I had to lower the amount very slightly so as not to burst the bag like it did the first batch I did … but it turned out great!

This was a lame and overly wordy situation. I only read it because I thought I was going to learn something. I’m going to dislike on my stumbleupon toolbar, which brought me here in the first place. Do you think you’re clever?

BTW, bacon popcorn is awesome, and you can’t make it in a paper bag. But I’m not going to share that with you.

Also, you’re female and about 25. Amirite?

Love your idea for the paper bag popcorn / microwave thing. Mine burst into flames at juuuuust past 3 minutes and 30 seconds. To be fair though, there were a number of iffy variables at play in my own effort.

For starters, I used this weird coloured corn from an ancient jar our young daughter gave us I can’t even remember when, with no name or markings now that I look at it to indicate even its country of origin. For all I know this could be Cuba’s first stab at making popping corn, and they had to smuggle it out disguised as aquarium gravel.

Ditto that I went with a paper Starbucks gift bag as a means to much greater capacity, since I was excited and imagined I would want lots. I believe it was right at the location where the little rope loop handles attached to the paper part that the first flames shot up.

Luckily I was standing there, watching the turntable go round and round, and was able to snatch it out of there pretty quick and tried to blow it out as I worked my way across the kitchen, but it would puff out and then re-ignite like those annoying trick birthday candles some clown sneaks onto your cake now and then. I swung open the kitchen door to the deck and tossed the whole works out over the railing down onto our back yard. That really got it going and it started crackling loudly, and still popping now and then.

It’s summer, and as a coincidence for some reason our British neighbours next door are sleeping outside in a tent. I had to wonder if they thought maybe I was trying to get into the spirit of things with them, starting a crackling little campfire in the middle of my sunburnt lawn. That might have felt awkward for them in there, tucked away in their bags trying to sleep, all the while while wondering if it’s might be a custom of good manners instead to rise and sing traditional songs with us in response to the overture.

So then as I was watching it all burn conspicuously bright and noisy out there in the dark of my otherwise quiet neighbourhood, wondering vaguely about the dire possibilities an unattended kitchen fire might have presented, I drifted into a brief but intense reflection on my very own mortality, it’s fragility, and the purpose of this Life in the first place.

So now I’m sitting in the dark in my living room, laptop balanced, eating a nice big bowl of Cranberry Almond Crunch with some banana instead. It’s really good, and kind of comforting.

Anyway good idea though, thanks; and maybe I’ll try that again sometime!

BK

For a college student (who loves popcorn!) this is such an amazing, cheaper alternative to the store bought kind!

I like using Emerils steak salt, and shredded sharp cheddar cheese in my popcorn concoctions. Melted cheese covered kernels never tasted so gooood.

So I read this last week and decided to buy paper bags and kernals when I went to the store tonight. I was so excited to try this, since I always eat a bag of popcorn before bed and don’t like all of the salt and butter that they add to it (yes, I like mine plain with just a glass of juice by my bed!).

Well, I tried it tonight without checking back to the instructions. I put a whole cup of kernels in the bag!

Yeah, whoops.

It exploded in the microwave. As of right now, I have a ton of kernels in my microwave and on my kitchen floor, but I have a nice bowl of popcorn to write this with 🙂

My friend does this and I was intriqued. I use a microwave safe bowl with little to no butter or oil. Microwave popcorn bags are now falling under scrutiny because of the chemicals that the steam carries with it. Anyway, I was shocked then when I read in Real Simple magazine that brown paper bags should never be used in the microwave. Shocked! Did more research. Never occurred to me to think about what chemicals they use in the production of these bags and that they are not “food safe” for heating! I loved this idea. But did feel the need to share.

*
Brown paper bags for cooking

Here’s what the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) says about this practice:

“Do not use brown paper bags from grocery or other stores for cooking. They are not sanitary, may cause a fire, and can emit toxic fumes. Intense heat may cause a bag to ignite, causing a fire in the oven… . The ink, glue, and recycled materials in paper bags can emit toxic fumes when they are exposed to heat. Instead, use purchased oven cooking bags.”

USDA also advises, “These bags may not necessarily be sanitary, particularly since they may be stored under a variety of conditions.”

Ever since I saw Alton Brown do this on his show, I was hooked! But now that I just read the above commentator’s notes about toxicity, I’m questioning it.

A few things I wanted to add:

1. You CAN staple the bag – but just two staples, not more (a trick from Alton) – two staples will not cause sparks.

2. An alternative to the microwave method is just to buy a popcorn popper at a thrift store (where they abound, and often sell for $5 or less). Although the paper bags can be recycled, using a popper creates no waste at all. Based on the above questions around the health/safety of using paper bags, maybe this is a better option anyway.

Nice – didn’t realize you could microwave your own (of course I can never microwave the stuff anyway)

We actually use an air popper for ours – makes terrific popcorn and we just use the something-mart house brand air popper (works the best of all we tried and it’s cheap.

We also use the butter-flavoured canola oil spray to “butter” it – again, the Wal-mart house brand works well and tastes good (Presidents Choice from Loblaws tastes pretty good too, but it’s generally pricier)

I love this idea and will definitely try it. I’m always looking for new healthy ways cook and make all sorts of goodies. I post them on my site for moms to see. Would love to put your link on my blog, this is a great idea and so easy to make.

Love this! But you can also throw the kernels and olive oil on the stove in a pan … that way you can “reduce” sans the brown bag instead of recycling.

Thank you! I had no idea it was this easy!

any one remember the microwavable caramel corn? but i am gonna to try Danielle’s peanut butter version!
as far as toxins in the bags i am sure they are far less than the prepackaged ones.

Followed the instructions but my popcorn burned 🙁

Instead of using a paper bag, I actually make my popcorn on the stove! I put some oil in the bottom of a pan and then dump the kernels in once it’s heated. I shake the pan to keep things from burning and in no time I have popcorn!

I don’t think I can ever go back to that microwave popcorn stuff.

This is a great way to make popcorn. My popcorn maker broke down which was my husband before we got married – he was so disappointed. I told him let’s try it my way and grabbed a coffee paper bag from the cupboard and “voila” we had popcorn. There is no way we are replacing the popcorn maker now! Great money saving tip.

tvet’s quote from the USDA is about actual brown SHOPPING bags, not brown lunch bags made for carrying your lunch. It’s fine people. This is an awesome trick.

You’re buying microwave popcorn the wrong way if you’re paying the $3.53 per pound figure being used in the original post. Why on earth would you buy it in 3-serving increments unless you lived in a paper bag in the middle of a lake?

A 3+ pound box of 24 popcorn packets at a national big-box store is under $5

Yum! Is there any reason one cannot pop popcorn in a glass bowl with a glass lid? It eliminates the brown paper bag factor…

Just found your website via pinterest. Love this recipe! My kids love making it. Just posted it to my blog, ladywiththeredrocker.wordpress.com. Thanks for sharing!

As a true diehard micro popcorn fan, your tips is coming at the perfect time. I have been abstaining from Micro popcorn upon learning that microwave popcorn bag’s lining contains PFOA, and I am waaaay too lazy to make it the ol fashioned way– so this is perfect!!

Know what’s greener than using a brown bag? Stick ’em in a microwave safe glass bowl, cover with a microwave safe plate; we’ve been doing that for years, and the bowl and plate are reusable!
Simples.

Rachelle: I use the same recipe, but have never tried powdered salt or pump spray olive oil. I will for sure buy a pump sprayer for my olive oil and grind my salt. The nutritional yeast flakes are such a hit at my house as well. I use this recipe on Friday nights for our youth Bible study and the kids love it! Thanks for the extra tips. What a blessing:-). Also, I really am enjoying this site!

Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime seasoning. It will change your popcorn life forever!

Love this idea! Great for college students who aren’t allowed hot plates in dorm rooms. Cheaper and way healthier than the pre-packaged stuff. For my large brood at home, we do the oil and pot on the stove method, but this is great for my daughter who is not as comfortable with the stove yet. She is a pro at microwave popcorn.

After reading all of the great ideas in these comments, I arrived at my own hybrid of this awesome idea.

1.) Soak one-fourth of a cup of popcorn kernels (I use white popcorn) in water for about 10 minutes before draining and putting in the paper bag. This prevents burnt kernels.
2.) Staple the bag shut using 2 staples near the edges of the sack. I have tried this in 3 different microwaves so far, and none of them have caused sparking.
3.) Cook until popcorn has about 10 seconds between pops.
4.) Dump popcorn into a large bowl.
5.) Spray a coat on the top layer of popcorn with EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) Non Stick Cooking Spray. This gives the seasoning something to stick to and has 0 calories and 0 fat calories.
6.) Apply Desired Popcorn Seasoning (I used Kernel Season’s Popcorn Seasoning – Butter) to top layer. If you decide to do something more in-line with using EVOO, Molly McButter makes a natural, no MSG, no fat, butter flavored seasoning.
7.) Shake popcorn bowl to get a new layer of popcorn on the top and repeat steps 5, 6 and 7 until popcorn is seasoned to desired level. I did 3 applications of oil and seasoning and felt it was seasoned to my taste.

What a great idea. I keep the simple and inexpensive supplies at work as well as at home. Thanks You.
-Rik

Are you kidding me?! That easy? All these years I’ve been doing it the old fashioned way: shaking a giant cast iron skillet back and forth across my burner for like 10 minutes! Although, the old fashioned way gave me some defined arms. haha!!

I just tried this and it works great!! Thanks for posting this

I’ve used both the brown lunch bags in a m/w and an air popper. Both work well but we now use mostly the air popper as it means less to recycle.

A great topping I tried one night, and still use often is the following: melted butter with grated or ground nutmeg, garlic powder & a little cayenne powder. Tastes great! Adding salt is optional – the butter has enought for us.

Experiment with different herbs & spices you might use when cooking – mix them up & you might just discover your new favorite flavor! If you don’t cook, think of tastes you enjoy with food you eat.

Who’d think there would be so many ppl posting thoughts about popcorn? LOL

Thanks to you all for your ideas and thoughts. And a special thanks to Kerry for your site with so many fine ideas – I really enjoy it.

Did 1/3 cup this evening with the popcorn I got from natural food store. Put coconut oil and nutritional yeast on for flavor. Hubby loves it!

Great suggestion – not just for economy, but also to avoid allergens in the microwave popcorn! My son is allergic to dairy and soy but loves popcorn with a passion, so this is a must-try for us! Thanks!

Try McKay’s chicken seasoning, nutritional yeast and a dash of cayenne or curry. Mmmmmm!

just tried this for the first time and was impressed.( I usually pop in a pan on top of the stove with olive or canola oil.) I used a lunch bag, 1/4 cup corn and no oil. Just folded the top twice – no staples. Just in case, I did the water in the micro first and put it on an inverted saucer – it came out perfect. My micro is underpowered, so took 2 min 30 sec. I gave it a spritz of spray evoo and sprinkled with some finely crushed basil and very little salt – yum. As far as the toxicity of the lunch bags – I doubt that it is any more harmful than the microwave “safe” plastic poppers. All plastics release toxins when heated – some more that others.

This is such a great idea! I just tried it out– but be careful! The problem I encountered was sealing the bag TOO much. I folded it over about four times, and the popcorn ended up expanding and needing more room, so the bottom of the bag ripped open and it went all over my microwave! Still, a great idea, and one I NEVER would have thought of.

I’m a college student– so popcorn is a staple when you’re pulling an all nighter and starving. This is SO economical. I love it. My friends can’t believe it!

I would suggest using less than the suggested 1/2 cup. The bottom of the bag tore in the middle of popping so we were left with a LOT of unpopped kernels. But it’s a great idea and turned out SUPER tasty! I used my purple kernels from Amish country!

i cook popcorn in a sauce pan which creates no waste at all. this article is obviously a conspiracy by BIG PAPER manufacturers to get you to buy more paper bags…

Nutritional Yeast flakes are usually available at any good health-food store. I use cinnamon/Truvia “sugar” & Himalayan Salt to make my “Kettle” popcorn. Yum!!!!

Since corn is mostly genetically modified in North America, I make sure to buy organic popcorn to make sure I’m not eating GMO. I can get it in bulk food section of my grocery store and its really cheap.

try melting coconut oil and drizzling it over the popcorn. yumo

I prefer the stove-top method. It’s more fun than using the microwave and I think the popcorn taste better.

Not so hip friendly…
Melt butter, spoonful of honey and a couple of spoons of sugar in a pan….caramelise it and then toss in the cooked popcorn….

Decadent! (Of course you dirty a saucepan)

I use a Viking Microwave popper. It airpops in the microwave and is available in the microwave aisle at Target. It’s not quite as frugal as using a paper bag but they last for YEARS….

Yummy popcorn…If you want a really tasty sweet dessert try the melted butter then coat the popcorn with Honey…a bit messy to do, but soooo good…:O) Hugs

I used this in a science fair report on popcorn kernels. (which brand of popcon leaves the least amount of kernels when cooked for the time dirrected) and this help me prove the point that with homemade popcorn, you can put the leftover kernels back in the bag, and re pop them. thank you for sharing.

Mrs Dash is fantastic on popcorn……

Bacon Salt!!

We use 1/3 cup kernels store bought popcorn and before popping shake in hot sauce and a bit of sugar. Can’t reuse the bags after this but it tastes yummy.

I love popcorn with butter, salt, and chocolate syrup. I know it might sound gross but its the perfect combo of sweet and salty. Yum!!

Thank you! Enjoying this tip right now. I purchased the large brown lunch bags and the size is working perfectly for 1/2 C. I love knowing what’s in my popcorn and not having those toxic fumes floating around my home.

Very happy to see how well it worked! 1/4 cup would work better! I love popcorn and hate the act 2 popcorn and hate getting out the air popper every time I want popcorn (That is like everyday)

I use oil in a pan pop it like the package says and then I love to put salt, garlic powder and sprinkle on grated Parmesan cheese

I’m with Portia… olive oil, sea salt, and nutritional yeast. I put it all in then shake. Then pop. It sooo good.

This worked well. I set my microwave for 3 minutes & ended up stopping the time at around 2:30 because I was afraid I might burn the kernels. I have some leftovers kernels but that happens even when I would buy the toxic grocery store popcorn. Cinnamon + sugar + honey = awesomeness! Great tip, thanks!

Hey, you’re in Canada! I notice the No Name brand bags… No Name’s the way to go. 🙂

Hi guys,
how many servings does half a cup make?
a serving for one person or more?
if it makes 1 serving, then thats great for an individual just to eat it out bag haha (:
Thanks!

wow that is absolutely brilliant!! I always wanted to pop gourmet popcorn but thought I would have to get one of those stovetop popcorn cookers (which take a long time) so this is right up my alley!! Thanks! 🙂

Tried this with Bacon Salt – w2hich is actually low sodium and ICBINB Spray. YUM!!

I have a hot air popper that I use for healthy popcorn. Hate the noise, the heat. Have brown paper bags on the list, and if this works as good as you say then I’m throwing my popper away. A diabetic thank you to you.

We use our Whirley Pop and put a little hot sauce in with the oil. Then, instead of regular salt, we use garlic salt. Talk about TASTY!

everyone keeps mentioning how they prefer stove top popcorn and I do too but I live in an apartment. I haven’t had a gas range in well over a decade and anyone with an electric range can tell you that you cannot pop popcorn on an electric range, unless you like tough chewy hard popcorn. It’s disgusting. As a huge fan of popcorn who regularly eats the microwaveable stuff I am definitely giving this a try. While I love reading all the variations and combinations of flavors to sprinkle on after the corn is popped, it is particularly irksome to read all the comments about “why don’t you just pop it on the stove top?” or “it’s better on the stove in a pan with a lid and some oil”. If the recipe isn’t for you, then don’t make it. Sheesh. Part of the appeal of this recipe is that you can omit the oil used in the microwave popcorn bags (AND in stove top preparation)…anyhow…will be getting some brown paper bags during my next trip to the grocery store!!!

VERY interesting. Maybe I ought to actually act out and try this. I wondered about all the crap in bought microwaveable popcorn, like “Reddenbudders”. Worse still, I wondered if the prepackaged microwave popcorn was actually necessary or what.

Now if only I can secure a whole lotta recipes of spices and whatnots to put on this popcorn……

This is exactly how I have been preparing popcorn for almost
3 years now on a tip from our daughter-in-law.

Brilliant! I mix up melted natural butter, mixed powdered seaweed and seasalt, then drizzle it on.

It would be a great way to take a low-cal snack to work too, since most lunchrooms have microwaves. 🙂

I’ve known for some time that packaged store bought microwave popcorn contains alot of chemicals. I like to pop my own kernals and melt some real butter to pour over the top. Another good topping is freshly grated cheese. Just layer up some freshly grated cheese of your choice over the freshly popped popcorn (I like cheddar)and enjoy!

Love this! I added a smidge of olive oil to mine.

I used to make mine in a microwave popper (no bags to throw away), but after two poppers in a row developed cracks, I decided to try a regular Pyrex bowl. I just invert a colander over the top (a plastic one, of course, not a metal one) to keep the kernels from escaping. The “popcorn” setting on my microwave isn’t very accurate–I either get a ton of orphans or else it burns–but with a little trial and error, I found that four minutes for a quarter cup of kernels is just about right. Drizzle on some olive oil, sprinkle on some salt–delish. And it costs literally pennies a bowl.

Awesome – forgot about this way of making microwave popcorn. I haven’t bought the packaged variety in years since I have a Theater Time II hand-crank stove-top popper.

I’ll give it a try and use my favorite topping – dry minced garlic and a sprinkle of asiago cheese.

try a slight amount of Ramen Noodle seasoning packet, and a little margarine or butter. A small amount flavors best. Mmm shrimp popcorn! 🙂

I did this once and left in too long the bag caught on fire, flames and all.

I did this tonight and it turned out yummy!! Thank you so much!

Totally made this tonight! My husband and son are loving it right now…served with a touch of butter spray, salt, garlic powder, and onion powder. So very happy about this new way of popping! Thank you!

@Wendy: You don’t need oil because the microwave heats the water inside the kernel. When the water turns to steam the kernel pops.
I learned the paper bag trick from a friend a few months ago and I love it! Faster and cleaner than stove top and the kids can help. But after reading the comments I think I’ll try the microwave-safe bowl and lid method…

Can’t believe I didn’t know this. I’m going to have to try this ASAP as I have popcorn kernels in my cupboard but no popcorn machine!

Someone also mentioned popping it on the stove in oil. I’m going to try that too if the bag thing doesn’t work well for me.

I make mine on the stove top with a little virgin unrefined coconut oil to pop in – yay for belly-fat busting MUFAs! Then give it a liberal sprinkle of white cheddar powder and salt, and a bit of butter for the right flavor, and I’m in heaven. Best salty/crunchy snack for you, and it packs a ton of fiber, too!

queenbeeallergyfree – that’s the FIRST thing I thought too, wow, what a clean microwave. How is that possible!? This should be a post about super clean microwaves…

….great idea…just a litle note: we always called the kernels that didn’t pop “old maids”–anybody else heard that expression? Thanks for the post…

This is great, thank you. Microwave popcorn bags are toxic to humans and deadly for animals. We stopped using them once we found out. The smaller the animal, the worse it is for them.

This is great! Just made three bags for my family. We used 1/4 cup of Orville Redenbacher’s. Cooked for two minutes. All three bags came out perfectly! Thanks for posting.

I gpt a lot of un-popped kernels, and at the same time some were blackened on the inside. I estimate a third un-popped, a third burnt inside(but white and looking good on the exterior) and the rest perfect.

Any tip to avoid this? Nobody mentioned this problem. Nobody got this problem?

That looks like a great way of doing popcorn. Only problem is I’m in Denmark where they don’t sell paper lunch bags like that. And i can’t seem to get any online store to send them to me from the US. Bummer!

I will use up my OR mini single serving popcorn bags of Lime and Salt and once gone, will try the glass bowl method. I have an electric stove (yuk – I was raised with a gas stove and miss it) so won’t try popping there.

I can’t wait to try the peanut butter carmel recipe and many others. Thanks for sharing!

Yes, Alice any paper bag will work, I’ve used white bags. I like to make my popcorn lo cal after it’s popped I spray it with Crisco butter spray then sprinkle Molly McButter or my favorite Ranch flavored popcorn seasoning sold in store next to popcorn. At SAM’ club they sell popcorn in 25 lb bags and it comes to only $1.76 per 5 lbs. We divide it up with relatives who also love popcorn.

I know I’m a freak but come fair time I love gyros with extra tsaziki (my spelling is absurd) so I tried to make my popcorn to match a bit
I have this amazing Greek seasoning, and a tiny bit of lemon juice in some melted butter. it is entirely the most delicious treat.

What a wonderful idea !! Since I quit smoking popcorn has been my go to snack… My hot air popper just broke and I like this idea. By the way I like mine with a little drizzle of EVOO and italian seasonings

This is the COOLEST THING EVER!!! I have been wanting popcorn for the past few days! I am SO using this method!

What a fantastic idea! I liked it so much I posted the link to your site from my Facebook page called Bakerette. Everyone has a microwave so it takes up less space so you don’t have to invest in an air popper. Thanks for the tip!

I just want to say something…

It’s buttered popcorn. I would be chocked if buttered popcorn didn’t contain butter and so would I be if that butter didn’t contain milk.

The fish is still fishy though… 😉

I have done this for quite some time. Do you really hate those kernels that don’t pop? Well I just shake them to the bottom of the bag, scoop out the popped kernels, then put the rest back in the microwave to continue popping. With this method I can under-pop to avoid burning, and every kernel pops. Try that with your microwave popcorn!

perfect! I’m done buying those supermarket-stuff. I’m addicted to popcorn and this is perfect for me, I can recycle paperbags from groceries and takeouts!

Good try but I am always left with about 1/3 of kernels left un popped so went out and bought a popper on sale and on 1st attempt it popped all but 1 kernel. Like your site though…

for a healthier option.. I use olive oil instead of butter with a pinch of sea salt!! can hardly tast the difference

Great post. My husband makes popcorn on the stove with a large pot. Put some veggie oil and salt in the bottom, instantly lightly salted after popping is done. Yum, the best, and we use a GINORMOUS steel bowl from Ikea to serve it up. Clean up is a dream, and we don’t waste more paper!

Brilliant! I was hoping to make a popcorn garland for our christmas tree but without an airpopper I didnt know how I was going to pull it off. Yay! Popcorn with no oil!!!! 😀

My favorite way to eat popcorn right now is to melt some coconut oil to pour over it then sprinkle some vanilla protein powder!!

This is a great method, but instead of all that butter I use a Coconut Oil butter mixture, about 1:1, and salt. Coconut oil is how all the older theatres used to pop their popcorn and it tastes so much better.

BRIAN K — I fear my popcorn-making experience can never match up to yours. Thanks for sharing your hilarious britches-wetting rendition!

If you put premixed seasoning and I can’t believe it’s not butter chemical goo on you popcorn you may have less calories than butter, but you might as well just buy the jolly time. Gross it should actually be called “I can’t believe we get people to eat this.”

Another tip for making healthy popcorn and eco friendly (saving trees) and money saving is to punch holes in an empty plastic container (ex. yogurt or dip container) pour the kernels in the container, put the top on and put in the microwave and there you have it. =)

Great ideas, I would advise others to read what is in the “fat tree” cooking sprays. Silicone is bad enough but many other very questionable ingredients. Threw them all away!

I have always wanted to try this, but upon buying my new microwave it actually came with a waning that says “Do no use a brown paper bag to make popcorn!”

I wonder why?

I love this popcorn and a little butter,little sea salt and cayenne pepper is great.

That’s a great idea! I can’t believe I never thought of that before. It will be perfect when I want a quick popcorn fix all for myself! Thanks!

mix the butter, some salt, and sriracha sauce.. then spray on the popcorn.. delicious

I do the hot air popcorn but will try this for sure! My fav. topping of late – a bit of coconut oil melted with some cayenne pepper and salt. Zippy & delish!

I tried doing this, but it never came out right. I Tried cooking it for the suggested time, but only half of the kernels popped. Then, when I tried cooking it for and extra 30 seconds, it burned the entire thing! What am I doing wrong?

Add coconut oil to the popcorn! That’s what movie theatre’s add to their to make it smell good.

I am shocked! I never thought this would work but it is perfect!!! My microwave did it in 1 1/2 minutes and 1/2 a cup was TOO MUCH. It blew out the bottom of the bag. Otherwise, the popcorn is absolutely PERFECT!!! (Did I say that already?) Thanks for the recipe/directions.

A sprinkle of Powdered ranch dressing, yumm.

I use the Presto Powerpop that uses the powercups. The reason I use this is because I like using olive oil or coconut oil and salt. You put the oil in first and I put in 1/4 tsp of salt and then 1/3 cup of popcorn. You can also not add anything and just pop and it’s just like air popped. I no longer use the cheap Walmart brand popcorn (lol) and stepped up and have been using Orville Redenbacher (for a few dollars more) and using a better brand does make a difference! Not just Orville but use brands more expensive than Walmart (c’mon).
Lastly, instead of depending on my ears to listen to the popping rhythm, I downloaded an app called Perfect Pop. It was created primarily for Pop Secret Microwave Popcorn, but it works great for detecting the popcorn pops and helps avoid burning the popcorn.

I use a white paper lunch bag, lay it on its side in the microwave, and I use the tip of a steak knife to poke a few holes in the side of the bag once it’s all folded up. This lets steam escape and makes the popcorn much more crispy. Do buy high-quality popcorn for this (like Orville Redenbacher kernels) because a jar still lasts forever, and the fresh kernels pop so fast! A 1/2 cup of Orville’s in a paper bag pops in 2:10 in my microwave.

I hope millions of people follow your advice! But how about the old fashioned way? I use a regular pot with a lid, a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, turn the stove on high, and pop away! Shaking the pot while holding the lid in place makes it feel like you’re actually cooking! And of course after you dump the popcorn into a bowl (or better, separate bowls for everyone) you just let the pot cool down for a minute and it will melt the butter for you at no extra charge. But if you just drizzle olive oil on it along with the salt, you won’t notice the difference. The same applies to corn on the cob. Try it! BTW Gale, you’re hilarious. I’ll bet your late husband got a lot of laughs with you! It’s nice that you can have a sense of humour after losing him.

melt some coconut oil and drizzle it on the popcorn with a pinch of salt – tastes like tropical popcorn heaven!

Here’s a quick tip for everyone, you can buy cheap popcorn kernels and get great results if you store the unpopped kernels in the freezer!

Just made homemade fiddle faddle. Pop popcorn as directed place in a large bowl. Put a hand full of peanuts on top (I used honey roasted). In a pot melt one stick of butter and add 1 cup of light brown sugar. Keep on medium low heat. And stir until all sugar is melted. Add to popcorn peanut mixture and stir with rubber spatula Bcareful

My favorite toppings are Nutella, and peanut butter!!! I put a spoonful of nutella and another spoonful of peanut butter on a plate and nuke for only a few seconds until they both become smoother and more liquify. then dip the popcorn in either separately or together. Soooo yummy. I also like to make my popcorn like I make nachos. Cut up avocado and add salsa and some cheese. The salsa makes the popcorn a little mushy but i kinda like it that way Its really good too.

use dental floss and at least 3-4 day old popcorn for stringing for Christmas. Works the best. Fresh popcorn is too brittle and the dentalfloss strings nicely.Can also put cranberries between the popcorn. ( Just a tip from someone who has done this before)

You say you don’t want milk in your popcorn but then you add butter???

MANY years ago, I learned how to also cook bacon and eggs in a brown paper bag on both a car’s manifold and on a backyard grill, the bag absorbing the fat and allowing the egs to fry before the bag burned on a grill. Brown paper bags are excellent in that, they’re not something that will pollute once discarded.

Regarding the bag o’popcorn, I regularly test food stuff for a couple of publications (and Amazon Vine). There is a popcorn salts and/or oil that theaters use, Kernel Season’s, that is a bit safer to use and buttery-tasting jut like a theater’s.

I agree, butter is unbeatable, but in the morning when I do a glucose test, I don’t want to risk high numbers over old habits. What your tastebuds crave are the oils on the popcorn; start searching for an alternative.

Glad so many of us know this brown bag cooking thing!

I tried this 1/2 cup was too much for my powerful microwave and ended up popping a hole in bottom of bag making popped carnival and kernels all over the inside of my microwave I immediately stopped it still has enough popped corn to enjoy going to use 1/4 cup next time and less time popcorn was good

I tried this last week and must say the results were great! My bag fell over towards the end and some popped kernels came out but otherwise turned out great. I prefer white popcorn. I think it has smaller more tender kernels and less husks. The popcorn popped really well and I got a pretty big bowl full. I added salt and melted butter. Yum, so good! The bag was not harmed in any way so I feel I can reuse it. I think I may have to make a batch today! No more store-bought microwave popcorn for me! I think this turned out even better than when I pop in a pot on the stove with oil!

Great idea, can’t wait to try it, but the hysterical comments freaking out over microwave popcorn was really over the top and made you look like a nut.

The hard part is finding the brown paper bags if you want a bigger one than the lunch size. They are nearly impossible to get anymore. I usually make Puppy Chow at Christmas time, but the big brown paper bag is a very important part of that recipe because it helps to soak up any excess oils from the peanut butter, etc. I only use REAL peanut butter from the HFS (it’s just peanuts, ground up to a fine paste/butter, nothing else added).

Any suggestions where one might find big brown paper bags? Maybe online somewhere, in bulk?

Sounds like a fab idea. I have to try this.

I wonder if this method would work for popping sorghum. The kernels are so tiny that supposedly my air popper won’t work well on them so I don’t have a bag to experiment with. But popped sorghum is so good! Like doll-size popcorn but no tough pieces to get caught in your gums or crack your fillings. I buy it already popped but that’s expensive.

Ralph’s comment was the best of all. I had a temp nursing job at a poultry plant and had to tour it to see what caused the emergencies that came to me and didn’t eat chicken for six months. While the paper bag works well, is more economical, I think I’ll stick with my cast iron skillet, the old-fashioned method. Thanks, Ralph.

I really like your idea of making the popcorn in the paper bag. This technique is a lot less messy than what I use to do. haha

So strange that I never thought of this, Ive been making loose kernel popcorn for years as a healthier alternative and I had no idea you could microwave paper bags. I guess I thought it would catch on fire or something haha . Thanks for the wonderful tip

This is a real time saving life hack!

Years ago when my hot air popper quit, I bought a special microwave popper bowl and lid (both seemed to be some sort of plastic). Everytime I used it there was a scorched smell and the inside bottom of the bowl started to brown, ick. I went stove top for a time and then my mom gave me her old hot air popper. It recently quit (it’s over 25 yrs old) so I tried a microwave safe bowl and a plate. I did this a few times and weirdly the popcorn stuck to the bowl and the plate. I could pull it off okay but it was weird. I’ve tried this method (bag) a few times and initially had some burned popcorn but discovered last night that if I stand the bag up, it works better, I may try the water soak too at some point as I found a bag of corn that is older than the current one.

Thank you! I used my white paper bag I got from my local crystals store and it worked perfectly! My I pooped kernels was repopped when I put the bag back in the microwave after eating the yummy kernels that did pop which were quite a bit! Out of the 1/3c I got a whole bag of perfectly fluffy popcorn and had about 1/3c left. I found that I could use the same bag 2-3 times. My gem store bag is completely paper so those using non lunch bags may want to be sure the handles ie., have no supporting wires in them which can break a microwave. Other than that it’s just too easy! Ppl asking what size of bag, I don’t get why their asking that… paper bag, does it fit in your microwave??? That’s it!

Awesome, worked wonderfully! Thanks Kerry!