Growing Popcorn Corn

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How to Make Popcorn: Homegrown and Homemade

Once your corn is shelled, dried, and cleaned, it's ready to store. Kernels that haven't been oven-dried should be kept in a freezer ... since they might harbor insect eggs which could hatch if left at room temperature. Heat-dried corn, on the other hand, will store well in a sealed jar on the shelf. (Corn seems to pop better when it's chilled, though, so I always keep some in a container in my refrigerator ... ready to be poured right into the pan.)

Most any kind of cooking oil or shortening—even bacon grease—is fine for poppin' corn. Some of these enhance the flavor of the popcorn, too, so experiment until you find the oil that best suits your palate.

And, while there's nothing wrong with plain salted popcorn, you can add different toppings to turn your corn into something special. Dribble some molasses on the popped kernels, for instance, or stir a little honey into a bowl of hot, buttered corn. Brown sugar and butter-melted together and mixed into a container of popcorn—will produce a delicious homemade caramel corn ... and most cookbooks contain recipes for popcorn balls and similar goodies.

These treats will please your family, of course, and will also make great gifts to say "thank you" for the kind of everyday favors that good neighbors do for each other. You can send gaily decorated jars of unpopped kernels to your "city cousins" for Christmas or birthdays, too, and be sure that the present will be enjoyed for a long time to come.

And, best of all, many folks will gladly pay much more than the supermarket price for fresh, locally grown popcorn. So work up that weedy patch on your farmstead (or in your yard), put in a few rows, and get ready to earn some extra cash. Don't worry about expensive packaging, either ... small plastic bags of popcorn, closed with twist-ties, seem to sell as rapidly as do kernels packed in fancy labeled jars. (Do be sure to heat—dry any corn that you plan to market, however ... customers who suddenly find their shelves weevil-ridden won't be eager to buy from you again!)

It's also a good idea to offer whole dried ears of popcorn for sale (especially if you grow one of the colorful varieties). Lots of people will buy these to use as seasonal decorations ... and shell the cobs for poppin' later.

But, whether you raise popcorn for yourself, to give as gifts, or to bring in needed money, you can rest assured that you'll enjoy the whole experience ... from plot to pan.

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