Popcorn has been hailed in recent times as the healthiest ‘salty’ snack you can eat. But it’s also the snack with the longest history. And it has proven its supremacy in the hand-to-mouth sweepstakes in the face of repeated challenges…
The undisputed champ
“Popcorn and the movies are as inex-tricably linked as Fred Astaire and Gin-ger Rogers, [and] peanut butter and chocolate; and, as such, represent […] one of the greatest duos in modern history,” Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, told CNN. “It’s hard to imagine a more perfect combination and one that has become part of the culture in such a profound and ubiquitous way.”
High praise indeed. And from someone who should know. But where did pop-corn come from? And how did so spe-cialized a food become so mainstream in a society that so prizes versatility?
Ancient origins
The earliest known ears of popcorn were discovered in a bat cave in Mexico. They carbon dated to around 4,000 years old. But it’s thought popcorn goes much farther back. In fact, some scholars say it was probably being cultivated and popped for several thousands years before that by corn-growing tribes throughout Central and South America.
According to Popcorn.org, “In 1519, Cortés got his first sight of popcorn when he invaded Mexico and came into contact with the Aztecs. Popcorn was an important food for the Aztec Indians, who also used popcorn as decoration for ceremonial headdresses, necklaces and ornaments on statues of their gods, including Tlaloc, the god of rain and fertility.” The same source also recorded young women wearing popcorn garlands in their hair during fertility dances.
Not always a snack
Popcorn was not always considered a snack in more-modern times. In fact, it was first revered as a breakfast cereal. It’s reliably reported that even Ella Kellogg, wife of Dr. John – the inventor or corn flakes – enjoyed a bowl of popcorn for breakfast with sugar and milk.
Kellogg extolled the virtues of corn, in general, as, “easily digestible and to the highest degree wholesome, presenting the grain in its entirety, and hence superior to many denatured breakfast foods which are found in the market.”
The whole Kellogg family clearly believed in the healthfullness of whole grains.
The snacking era
Popcorn was popularised as a snack in the last quarter of the 19th Century. Vendors sold it from street carts, and it turned up at virtually all special events, public and privatea.
It was an early addition to the ‘talking picture’ experience, as far back as the 1920s. Simply because it was cheap both for the cinemas to provide, and their customers to afford.
Popcorn also emerged as a popular bar snack in the Roaring 20s, through the Prohibition Era.
During the Great depression, corn was one of the few readily available, cheap foods. And popcorn, as cheap as a nickel a bag, was widely popular because it was accessible.
Popcorn today
… Is a huge industry. Largely because so many cinemas and sports venues sell literally tons of it to their ticket-buying patrons. But that market is senior only to the home-pop scene, where popcorn remains the hands-down favorite screen-front treat.
Popcorn.org reports, ” Americans today consume some 14 billion quarts [/litres] of popped popcorn each year. That averages to about 43 quarts per person.”
My take
Popcorn has heroically withstood assaults from the likes of Potato and Corn Chips, Pretzels, Cheese Puffs and even Goldfish crackers over the decades, bravely maintaining its snacking supremacy.
At just 30 Calories per cup / 250 ml, popcorn is, indeed, one of the healthiest snacks you can eat. But it gets less healthy rapidly the more butter and salt you put on it. And commercial popcorn – the kind you get at the cinema or stadium – is usually doused in ‘butter-flavoued oil’. Which often contains saturated fats, transfats and other undesirable chemical compounds.
So… For best results and greatest satisfaction, pop your own popcorn in an air popper, and experi-ment with spices and other flavourings that aren’t high in fat or additives. Some salt is usually a good thing, to bring out the nutty, corny flavour of popcorn. But you’ll find your palate doesn’t need a whole lot to achieve the desired effect.
And remember that real butter – in moderation – is a much better bet than other popcorn lubricants. Butter has recently been vindicated as a healthy food, when used properly. And health experts say real, whole-milk dairy foods are a great addition to a varied, balanced diet!
~ Maggie J.