#504 – Diacetyl
Posted on May 9, 2008 at 12:00 am by Chris
Chapter: Comics
I was a kid when microwave popcorn first became mainstream. It was an exciting magical treat. We would stand around the microwave as it popped and watched in amazement as the bag inflated hoping that it wasn’t about to burst into flames. I recently made some popcorn in a pot on the stove the way I used to before the fancy bag version was invented. I was astounded at how good it tasted. Did microwave popcorn always taste so bland and generic? I wonder if it originally it was good but over the years they replaced taste with speed and efficiency.
Check out the photo of the Biff kitty that Soudaiya posted in the forums.
It’s really cool!
That’s our Biff. Always willing to do what others would consider suicidal in the name of efficiency. And flavor.
“It tastes…lightning-y.”
I remember the first time my dad made JiffyPop. I thought it was the coolest thing ever.
I made some JiffyPop last week… it was baaaaad.
I remember doing the jiffypop around the campfire as a kid…there was always that risk of the burnt popcorn because the adults were drinking too much.
From the looks of the sky, he’s going to be waiting a really long time. Or maybe thunder clouds are a light blue in the Biff world.
…not like it seems that Biff is exactly lacking in time to kill…
http://www.thebookofbiff.com/2006/06/09/70-cheese/
I have a wonderful hot air popper…. i wonder if work would let me bring one in (we’re not allowed to heat up microwave popcorn).
Chris: I don’t know if some one has mentioned it but you have a nasty spyware ad attached to your advertising. it takes over the browser, claims to have found an infection on your computer and then pulls the page away.
Lisa: I have to agree, hot air popping is the best way to go. Very little danger of burnt popcorn, you can season it exactly as you like at the end without having to worry about too much or too little oil, and it’s really convenient. Also, many hot-air popcorn poppers can be used as coffee bean roasters!
I’ve never been a fan of microwave popcorn. It always tastes fake and chemically and too salty and it’s got this horrible lingering odor.
ugh… my latest experience of microwave popcorn, WITH cooking it EXACTLY as it said on the packet involved it pretty much turning into a lump of black stuff that was stuck to the back. The smell of it was like running headfirst into a brick wall. As for Biff, I suppose that might get it cooked. I want mythbusters in on this. In any case, I want to know the origins of that weather vane.
When I eat popcorn I eat all the kernels possible – both popped and unpopped. The feeling of feeling the unpopped kernels break in half in my mouth is quite satisfying.
What’s with the title of the comic? ‘Diacetyl’
Only link I can think of is that it might be an additive to some flavoured popcorns.
Your color is very well done.
What IS that thing on the top of the weather thingy? A mouse?
I usually like to put lemon juice and garlic salt with extra butter in my popcorn. Can’t be good for me, so I do it on rare occasions.
Looks like there’s a pretty good chance of the weather vane being hit first. And then the lightning would continue though that vane and/or Biff’s body downward to the ground, completely missing the popcorn.
Hmnn… how did Biff discover that? Was he eating popcorn in the middle of a thunderstorm or something?
I’m scared now. Before I read the caption I thought, “what’s he doin’ now, poppin’ popcorn”. Seems it could be a dangerous thing to start thinking like Biff.
Biff’s pretty smart- I believe he’s planning on the weather vane being struck by lightning allowing the current to travel through him and into the pot to pop the popcorn. If the lightning strikes the pot itself, he might end up with burnt popcorn! At least his way lets him have some nice popcorn in the hospital bed…
You can pop regular popcorn in the microwave in an ordinary brown paper lunch bag
Put 3/8 to 1/2 cup in the bag. (I use a coffee scoop – they are usually 1/8 cup). Do NOT add any oil or anything else!.
Fold over the top of the bag twice, then fold over a corner to hold it shut.
Put it in the microwave on high for 1-2 minutes. (It can be upright or on it’s side. I’ve noticed no difference in performance.) DO NOT LEAVE IT UNATTENDED. Take it out once the popping slows down. (You will have to experiment to find the exact right time for your microwave. On mine, it’s 1:15. The time can be very sensitive. At 1:15 it sometimes gets just a tiny bit scorched. At 1:20 it’s def. scorched and working on burnt.)
Take the bag out and pour into a bowl. Be careful, it WILL be hot! The bag can be reused a couple of times. Just watch for popcorn stuck inside after popping, and for seams opening, sides tearing (the popcorn sometimes puts a hole in the side!). There will be “widows” and “orphans”, but no more than with regular microwave popcorn.
Season the same as you would air-popped. I like to spray mine with a little butter-flavored cooking spray, then some salt. (The spray helps the salt stick, and has a LOT less calories than butter/margarine!) All the convenience of microwaved popcorn without the chemicals (the glues on lunch sacks are food-safe, naturally).
YMMV, and you are responsible for doing this in a safe and responsible manner.
Further thoughts after re-reading my post:
Store your popcorn in an airtight container.
Contrary to popular belief, storing it in the ‘fridge REDUCES its popping. Store it at room temperature.
Old popcorn won’t pop as well, you may have to adjust your time. Better would be to just throw it out and get fresh.
Bulk popcorn (from health food stores, etc.) varies greatly in its quality. Some of it is too old to pop properly.
Diacetyl is the artificial butter flavoring in microwave poppitycorn. Became infamous a few years ago because it caused a lot of cancer in microwave popcorn factory workers. Safe for consumption in small doses, apparently, but not for inhalation in large doses.
I never have too many problems with popcorn, but the most annoying thing is that everytime my brother puts a bag of popcorn in the microwave, the entire kitchen smells like butter for at least an hour.
Nice Toaster-Weathervane 😛
Blinking ads spoil the taste
of flash-popped goodness.
I remember I made popcorn the wrong way once, I decided to microwave again in an uncovered bowl.
Luckily, I stopped soon enough.
“It tastes…lightning-y.”
Nice Rattatouille reference 😀
The Duck Has Spoken.
I used to love listening to popcorn pop. I never really liked the microwave stuff, so I’d always get my mum to cook some but then never eat it.
Biff would like Colorado for his snacking pleasure… Ground lightning strikes were common in Ft. Collins – I saw the horse in hte back paddock nearly get fried. If it hadn’t shied at the last possible instant, it’d have been BBQ pony.
Another time, a bolt hit the silver maple in our back yard, some twenty feet from the house, whilst I was looking out the window. I was deaf for about a half hour, and all I could see was this magenta bar down the middle of my vision for even longer.
I really don’t like the microwave popcorn. The stuff you get in movie theatres is way better, with all the probably artificial butter dumped on.
With the proper physics application I’ll bet Biff can find out exactly how much popcorn one bolt of lightning will cook, if he knows the energy it takes to cook one bag.
Mmm, science.
† Metal Matt †
I work in a movie theatre, I have literally popped thousands of of pounds of popcorn, did you know that Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn is kosher? And ironically enough the agitator that spins the popcorn around is in the shape of a swastika, alas I can no longer smell popcorn unless it is burnt.
There is also, curiously, evidence that the slick waxy stuff they line the inside of the popcorn bags with may be toxic.
Biff is waiting for a lightning bolt out of a clear sky, both physiccly and metaphoricly. That is so like him.
Essence of Biff: A new cologne for those times when you need to defy the laws of reality.
Heh, never really liked microwave popcorn.
But, I know that microwave burgers sometimes taste yucky, though some taste GORGEOUS!
Anyway, I DETEST microwave fries.
They taste like rubber, and take just as long as fries in our super quick-as-lightning frier.
Fries-to-go… eurgh… *shudder*
And K, do they do perfume aswell?