Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Popcorn

I made a great find at a thrift store recently--a popcorn maker!


My kids LOVE it. I love it, too and here are some of the reasons why:
  • Popcorn is an easy healthy snack.
  • By making my own popcorn I can control how much butter and salt is used.
  • Popcorn kernels are MUCH cheaper than pre-popped popcorn or microwave popcorn.
  • There is very little waste with popcorn kernels, as opposed to microwave popcorn which often has a plastic wrapping, plus the paper bag, not to mention to cardboard box it comes in.
  • It's fun to watch the popcorn popping (and it takes about the same amount of time as microwave popcorn)
  • No hot dangerous oils or burning microwave bags.

As you can see I bought it for a great price! New popcorn makers cost between $14 and $20 on average. For all the benefits listed above, I still think they are worth that price. However, buying a fun appliance like this at a thrift store not only saves you money but it also means you're giving something a second life--which is always more environmentally friendly than buying something new. Plus, you won't be contributing to any landfills with all the packaging of a new appliance.

If you decide to go thrifting for a popcorn maker I'm sure you'll find plenty to choose from. When I bought this one there were four others on the shelf, including a brand new one still in the box. Just be sure to check the power cords for kinks or fraying--setting your house on fire is not frugal or green. :)
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8 comments:

  1. HeatherFebruary 18, 2009 at 7:37 PM

    I am so pleased to see the return of frugally green! :-) I was raised on that EXACT popcorn maker. That reminds me I do have one of my own in a closet or garage somewhere, due to my nostalgic loooooove of it. I love the healthy factor and I am inspired to go dig it out!

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  2. My Year WithoutFebruary 20, 2009 at 9:17 AM

    My favorite, healthy way to enjoy fresh popped corn is to add a little melted butter (or spray cooking oil lightly) and then add nutritional yeast. It is a delicious snack that I learned from my local movie theater!

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  3. RobbinMarch 4, 2009 at 9:31 AM

    I love, Love, LOVE my air popper. I recently had to find a new one because my original one (20 years old!) finally died. I scoured around and finally found one at our church garage sale! Two of the women from church got a giggle that I was so intent on finding another one. In the interim, as a joke, they bought me a microwave corn popper bowl. So now I use that one at work :-)

    Robbin

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  4. MandelinMay 25, 2009 at 9:04 PM

    I found one of the stove top poppers at a thrift store and I love the texture and flavor of just plain popped corn. I also like that the one we have is interactive; there is a handle on the side that you just turn to move the popcorn around. As an alternative we used to just throw the popcorn in a large pot with a bit of oil and shake the dickens out of the pot till it was all popped. yum and fun!

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  5. AnonymousJuly 4, 2011 at 11:48 AM

    Plus, with making your own you don't have to worry about the dangerous chemicals and plastics used in the microwave variety.

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  6. AmandaDecember 7, 2011 at 9:23 PM

    I found an air popper super cheap about 2 years ago and now I don't know how I ever lived without it! So much cheaper and totally delicious! Works great when I'm making large batches of caramel popcorn too!

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  7. SarahJanuary 28, 2012 at 12:17 PM

    I don't know if this is necessarily "greener", but you can pop bagged popcorn in a simple paper bag in the microwave if you don't have an air popper or the room to store one. No oil needed, just listen for the popping to slow the season like you would any other air popped pop corn.

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  8. AnonymousJanuary 16, 2013 at 10:49 AM

    We love popcorn makers. My kids thought it was fun because we called it "crazy corn" as it bounced around in a dome style popper we bought practically brand new at a garage sale for 50 cents!

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