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This general notion has already been alluded to numerous times in
the HB (see links) but as far as I can tell never actually posted in
its
own right. I am now going to rectify this serious oversight. Also,
some of the previous postings also seem a tad impractical - yes,
I'm
looking at you
[swimswim]. I must also give nods of appreciation
and
inspiration to [Gordon Comstock] and the steamed
[MaxwellBuchanan] for their postings on nut cracking devices.
Anyway, my idea is to simply alter the garden-variety bell jar and
vacuum pump device found in every kitchen by adding a heating
element into the base as well as a bit of Teflon for nonstickiness.
Place your popcorn kernels into the device, evacuate the air from
the chamber then activate the heater. As the pressure
differential
builds the kernel will burst or 'pop' in the normal manner but now
the resultant delicacy will not emerge into the usual glutinous
miasma of our atmosphere but instead will find its goodness
released
into the non-restrictive embrace of vacuum. The ensuing fluffy
snack will be a glorious hybrid of puffed corn and popped corn and
will be much fluffier and highbrow than its lower-class, workaday
cousins.
An added benefit will be an enormous reduction in those pesky
'popping' sounds which have bedeviled popcorn-makers and the
surrounding community since Time Immemorial, forcing popcorn
aficionados and merchants to ply their craft far from the screen of
the cinema or flat screen tv. Further enhancements may include
inbuilt stirring devices and so forth but the higher cubic yields per
kernel and improved monetary value obtainable by this delectable
product, combined with the ability to manufacture it in near
silence
- hence closer to the main markets of cinema screens and so on -
will quickly recoup any additional expenditures.
All that is lacking is a really good marketing name. 'Popffed corn'
or
'puffped corn' just don't do it for me. 'Cornucopia' isn't bad but I
think it can be improved upon.
Similar idea but somewhat impractical in the home or cinema
Popcornado
[AusCan531, Mar 06 2012]
Vacuum assisted food technology
Hypobaric_20Nutcracker
[AusCan531, Mar 06 2012]
More nut-cracking brilliance
Self-shelling_20nuts
[AusCan531, Mar 06 2012]
Same words - but just plain 'wrong'
Popcorn_20Vacuum
[AusCan531, Mar 06 2012]
Barely related...
PSA_3a_20Popcorn_20Security_20Alarm
[normzone, Mar 08 2012]
Video - Popping Corn in a Vacuum
https://youtu.be/aiMseDBTp7s?t=1m05s
It works (though not silently)! [aguydude, Feb 07 2017]
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Annotation:
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Alternate title: "Silent popcorn" |
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When this was first posted, I was sure I'd seen a video of
popcorn being made via vacuum chamber, but I can't find
it anywhere. Alas, I often have trouble telling the
difference between my memories and my imagination. |
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You could call it Krest Korn, after the Bond baddie. |
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In space, no one can hear you pop. |
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Does anyone know if butter would melt at a lower
temperature if in a vacuum? I know the boiling temp of its
liquid components would be lowered, but can't picture it
liquefying just because the pressure drops. |
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It's unlikely to melt, but it might. Most liquids
contract slightly on freezing (water being a
convenient exception) and, conversely, putting
them under vacuum "tries" to expand them, nudging
them towards melting. |
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//It's unlikely to melt, but it might//. Ummmm, thanks. |
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Butter is a solid, water in oil emulsion and the water
component
at least would begin to to boil at room temp as the
pressure drops. That may well de-emulsify the stuff but I
don't believe it would turn into a liquid emulsion which is
what we
want. This might be a case requiring empirical research. |
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Personally, I've never been able to visualize water
simultaneously boiling and freezing if ejected into outer
space. That speaks to my inadequacies of visualization, I
guess, but do you end up with ice foam before it all
sublimates away? |
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hmm.... instead of heating it, which I see as a problem since the only contact surface with the heat is a small portion of a kernel, why not have it in a vacuum canister... then shake the canister, bouncing kernels off the sides, until they all pop. |
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I wonder if it's possible to infuse air with butter and salt: after the kernels are popped, the seasoning concoction is slowly allowed into the chamber. |
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Quite right, [toaster]; you basically can't make popcorn by heating the kernels in one spot. That's why microwaves, a pan with lots of oil, and hot air all work (and the first 2 of these could be used with a vacuum), but a dry pan does not. |
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//the only contact surface with the heat is a small portion
of a kernel// The bottom of the pan could have kernel-sized dimples to increase surface contact area. Add a bit
of vibration to stir them around and you're set. Although a
bit of oil would probably be easier as long as it doesn't boil
away in the vacuum. |
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[+] I was wondering how you were going to get out of that one... nice. |
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I don't think the dimples will work, on the grounds that oil only works well when it's nearly deep enough to cover the kernels. |
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Oil almost certainly won't boil away in a vacuum within the necessary 15 minutes or so, especially if you use a less volatile oil, such as coconut (which happens to make superb popcorn). An added advantage of the vacuum is that it would reduce oxidation (= rancidity) of the oil; a real issue when oil is heated with a large surface area exposed to the atmosphere, even for a short time. |
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//I don't think the dimples will work//. Yeah, that's what
they told Shirley Temple too. |
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In fact, she said they would, but was told "Temple you jest". |
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The reduction in popping sounds is overshadowed by the
noisiness of the vacuum chamber's motor. Might be solvable
be a Rube-Goldberg system of tubes, but overall I'd say only
the fluffiness benefit is worthwhile. |
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//overshadowed by the noisiness of the vacuum chamber's
motor.// |
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Ah, but simply encase the vacuum chamber motor in a bit of
leftover vacuum from the previous session. Golden Popcorn,
Golden Silence. |
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In space, no one can hear you pop. |
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Since "pop" is a noise, then shouldn't it be called
"_"corn? |
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It's also a great meme media, beware it's viral capabilities. Earworms are readily transmissible. |
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