SE4: Popcorn

                While sitting in my room this weekend I had a big decision to make: stay and do homework, or go out and see a movie with my friends. Being the great student that I am, I made the logical decision to put off my homework for later and catch a movie. Going to a movie doesn’t mean just buying a ticket and sitting quietly through a film. It also means buying a pop and some of that incredibly irresistible popcorn. Once I finally got around to doing my homework there was only one food on my mind, popcorn. I began thinking about its buttery, salty deliciousness, and I realized that I didn’t really know much about the food. Where did it come from? How is it grown? How did it come to be such a big snack in America?  And most importantly, how the heck does popcorn pop? These are just some of the things I will touch on in my investigation of the world of popping corn.

                We do not know much about the origins of popcorn because it is a relatively new food. It is native to the Americas; therefore it was not until the exploration of the New World that traditional civilizations had their hands on it. (USDA, Early History) The oldest discovered popcorn ears were 5,600 years old and found in the Bat Cave of west central New Mexico. (USDA, Early History) It wasn’t until the 16^th century, however, that Europeans were introduced to popcorn. They noticed Native American’s popping the corn with heated sand.

                To early popcorn eaters popcorn was a much different food than it is today. In today’s world we mostly eat popcorn covered in salt and butter or candied with caramel or chocolate. Native Americans and the settlers of the Americas on the other hand used made meals like popcorn soup or popcorn cereal. (USDA, Europeans Meet Popcorn)In the early days popcorn was mostly a small, homegrown crop. It wasn’t until the 1890’s when things like fairs, parks, and expositions became popular that popcorn really ‘exploded’. (Popcorn Board, Recent Popcorn History) Popcorn sales had a small slump in the 1940’s with the growth of television. Televisions caused less people to go to movies theaters which were a big source of popcorn sales. Popcorn had a resurgence when the microwave ovens gained popularity and became a way for everyday people to cook it easily at home. This growth hasn’t stopped yet with Americans eating 17.3 billion quarts of popcorn every year. (Popcorn Board, Recent Popcorn History)

                Popping corn is very similar to the traditional dent corn that we eat, and it is produced in a very similar way as well. Like traditional corn, popcorn is planted in temperate zones. Popcorn is typically planted in the spring during April through mid-May. There are, however, agricultural differences between popcorn and regular dent corn. Popcorn does not have as extensive of a root system and is not as efficient at utilizing nutrients as dent corn. (ISU, Agronomic Characteristics) This means that popcorn plants require well hydrated soil that has a large amount of nutrients. Popcorn is traditionally harvested by combines and other machines in the fall. This can, however, cause damage to the corn kernels. For this reason some farmers prefer to collect their corn by hand to have a superior product. This takes much more time and money to do though. (ISU, Agronomic Characteristcs) Once harvested popcorn is dried and then stored. This stored product can then be distributed and sold to consumers.

                One of the biggest curiosities of people when it comes to popcorn is how the popcorn pops. Native Americans originally believed that there were spirits inside the kernels and they became angry when their home was heated. (USDA, How does popcorn pop?)The real reason behind the popping of popcorn is not quite as magical as they once thought. Inside of each popcorn kernel there is a small amount of water that is surrounded by soft starch. When the kernel is heated, the water turns into steam which builds up pressure within the kernel. Once the pressure becomes too much the kernel bursts, and the soft starch layer expands into the white, puffy exterior of the popped corn. (USDA, How does popcorn pop?)

                Through my research I learned quite a bit about a food industry that I knew very little about. I learned the history of popcorn, including its origin and early use. I was also able to find out the way that popcorn is produced agriculturally, which is very similar to the production of traditional dent corn. The most interesting thing that I learned through my research was the mechanism by which popcorn pops. This information gained through research will influence my relationship with popcorn by allowing me to think about the way that my popcorn is reacting as I cook it, rather than just thinking of it as cooking in an ambiguous manner.

               

Works Cited

1. Duffy, Mike, and Jodi Calvert. "Enterprise Budget: Popcorn." Extension.iastate.edu. Iowa State University, n.d. Web. 7 May 2013.

2. "History of Popcorn." Popcorn. The Popcorn Board, n.d. Web. 07 May 2013.

3. "Popcorn: Ingrained in America's Agricultural History." National Agricultural Library. United States Department of Agriculture, 23 Apr. 2013. Web. 07 May 2013.