stove top popcorn with nutritional yeast

for a hit of vegan cheesy goodness

Popcorn was a cornerstone of my youth; whimsical, crave-worthy and surprisingly filling. Cracker Jack at baseball games. The occasional Christmas gift from my dad’s coworker of a Harry & David metal popcorn tin subdivided into sections for caramel, cheddar and plain. Kettle corn at the Puyallup Fair. Movie theatre popcorn was a special treat, courtesy of the rare parent willing to part with a substantial wad of cash for a bucket of popcorn. Shaped like a drum for added sturdiness, these tubs were filled with white kernels, stained with that classic fake butter yellow-gold tinge. Despite already being buttered like a bag of Pop Secret, we then pumped stream after stream of ‘butter’ into the bucket from the silver VATS of who-knows-what hydrogenated oils. For anyone who didn’t grow up in the US reading this, let me state the obvious if you haven’t already picked up on it; popcorn is a big American pastime. 

Popcorn is not a standardised dish of course. One of my favourite parts of sleepovers growing up was the discovery of how other families ate. You got glimpses from play date snacks and your friends’ lunch boxes, but when you went for a sleepover and stayed for dinner, bedtime and breakfast, it was a revelatory experience. I tasted macaroni and cheese for the first time at a sleepover. I discovered different families’ takeaway pizza preferences; was it Domino’s or Pagliacci, Topolino’s or Roberto’s? And then there were all the variations on popcorn. One household favoured parmesan cheese and red chilli flakes, another mixed in plain m&ms, another gummy bears. Some used microwave popcorn, others used air poppers.

In our family, we usually used an air popper and Orville Redenbacher kernels (although once my dad showed me how to make stovetop popcorn, I never looked back). A shower of Bragg nutritional yeast and a healthy dose of salt followed. These days, nutritional yeast can be found in all things vegan to provide a cheese-adjacent flavour, but back then it was relatively unusual. It was only when I went to college that I realised how large the club of uninitiated nutritional yeast lovers was. I converted many of my fellow students, revealing to them the boundless potential of a protein-rich condiment that allows one to rationalise eating popcorn for dinner.

My own children share my love for popcorn (though my five year old is not shy about telling me when the popcorn is a tad too salty, too oily, too burnt; she’s very discerning). It’s a go-to snack for birthday parties, and a simple, crowd-pleasing option for school picnics. These days I continue the old standby of freshly popped kernels, olive oil, salt and nutritional yeast. Olive oil and salt lay the foundation to boost the flavour of the nutritional yeast, which clings to the popcorn kernels without losing its light, flaky texture. Each bite is slightly different, deeply satisfying and just tantalising enough to keep you reaching for more. 

Ingredients

• 60 millilitres (¼ cup) olive oil

•  63 grams (½ cup) popcorn kernels

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 15 grams (¼ cup) nutritional yeast (here in London the most commonly found brands are Marigold Health Foods Engevita or BOSH!; in the US Bragg or Bob’s Red Mill should be easy to find)

Note: I have burnt stovetop popcorn more times than I care to admit. I’ve tried a number of approaches to mitigate the risk of burning and the steps below have given me the most consistent results. This is not one you can walk away from; you need to stay hands-on, but the whole process only takes a few minutes. You’ll be rewarded with beautifully plump, crispy popcorn kernels, with just the right amount of fat to lend flavour to each bite. 

Method

1. Place your largest bowl on the kitchen worktop next to your hob.

2. Place olive oil in a medium to large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add three popcorn kernels and place the lid on the pan. 

3. As soon as you hear the first three kernels pop, add remaining kernels and return the lid to the pan. When the fresh kernels start to pop, gently shake the pan. 

4. Continue to shake the pan until the popping begins to slow (on my hob, this is usually after about 1 minute).  

5. Once the popping slows to a sporadic pop every 2-3 seconds, turn heat off. Transfer popcorn to the bowl. 

6. Add salt, remaining olive oil and nutritional yeast to the bowl. Using large serving spoons/salad servers, toss thoroughly until kernels are evenly coated; the kernels will take on a mustard-yellow tinge.

7. Taste and add salt if needed, one pinch at a time, so as to avoid oversalting.