Ever since middle school, when I discovered that bags of steamy, salty, fake-butter-infused microwave popcorn made an excellent afternoon snack, I've been hooked on popcorn. At this point in my life (several decades removed from middle school, ahem), I am fairly certain that my body is at least 73% made of popcorn.
Over the years, I’ve moved away from those bags of pre-packaged microwave popcorn and steadily worked my way through every conceivable method for popping my own, from our Simply Recipes stovetop method to all sorts of countertop gadgets that promised perfect bowls of movie theater popcorn. All of them worked fine (I stand by our stovetop method!), but I still felt like I was chasing after some imaginary popcorn-popping holy grail.
I am delighted to say that I’ve now come full circle on my popcorn journey and am back to making popcorn in the microwave—no, not the pre-packaged stuff! The best popcorn popper that I’ve ever found is the W&P Microwave Silicone Popper.
What I’m Looking For in Popcorn (And a Popcorn Popper)
My platonic ideal for popcorn is big, dry, crunchy puffs. I want those kernels fully popped and looking like exploded cotton balls. No shy, undersized, barely-popped kernels in my bowl, please.
Some of this has to do with the kind of popcorn kernels you buy, but a lot still has to do with the method of popping.
I don’t particularly like popcorn popped in oil or butter; for me, this makes a chewier, smaller puff than I prefer. I’ve had the best luck with air-popped methods, particularly popping the kernels in a brown paper lunch bag in the microwave...though this method makes less popcorn than I like, sometimes leads to scorched popcorn or singed bags, and results in a fair number of unpopped kernels.
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Why I Love the W&P Popper
This leads me to the discovery of the W&P Microwave Silicone Popper. I wanted something that was reusable, that made at least eight cups of popcorn, and that didn’t require oil. I also didn’t want yet another gadget taking up a ton of space in my cupboard or that I’d have to haul out every time I craved my favorite snack.
The W&P Popper is all these things.
The bowl doesn’t look that big out of the box so I was initially skeptical of its promised 9.3 cups capacity, but it did not let me down! I generally like to pop between 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup of kernels in one go, and with the W&P Popper, it’s only toward the very end that the popped popcorn starts pushing on the lid of the bowl. By that point, only a few unpopped kernels remain, so I’m never worried about making a popcorn blizzard in my microwave.
And that’s another thing: Every other method and gadget I’ve tried tends to leave a fair number of unpopped kernels. But not the W&P Popper! There are certainly a few duds at the bottom of the bowl, but overall, this popper has an enviable completion rate.
The popcorn is also exactly the way I like it. The individual pieces are fully exploded, extremely light, and supremely crunchy. I pour it into a large bowl with my favorite toppings and I’m ready to sit down to a movie.
Last but not least, this silicone kit cleans up easily and collapses down to the size of small Tupperware for easy storage. Since I’m not using oil, I usually get away with a quick rinse to remove any popcorn debris between uses and then give it a deeper clean in the dishwasher once a week.
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My Few Quibbles With This Popper
The W&P Popper is nearly perfect, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a few downsides. For one thing, the silicone material is fairly floppy, which can make fitting the lid over top, removing the bowl from the microwave, and pouring (or eating) from the popper a bit of a challenge.
Second, the silicone material of the bowl gets very hot in the microwave. I use oven mitts to remove it and also when pouring, but I would not recommend younger children handling the popper without supervision.
If you want to add any toppings, you need to pour the popcorn into a separate bowl. This isn’t a deal breaker for me, but I mention it in case it is one for you!
My Perfect Bowl of Popcorn
I’ll conclude this love note to the W&P Popper with how I make my perfect bowl of popcorn. My go-to toppings are coconut oil (I use a spray), fine sea salt, and either nutritional yeast if I’m in a savory mood or this maple butter seasoning from The Spice House if I’m in a sweet mood.
I pour about a third of the popcorn from the popper into a larger bowl, spritz it with coconut oil, and sprinkle it with the salt and seasonings. Then I layer on another third and repeat, finishing with the final layer. This gives me the perfect ratio of toppings to popcorn in every bite without having to bother with tossing or drizzling.
BUY IT NOW: W&P Microwave Silicone Popper
