Popcorn is one of the most tasty and healthy snacks you can eat and you do not have to just enjoy it at the movie theater.

One of the best options to enjoy a perfect batch of popcorn is to make it with a popcorn machine in the comfort of your own home.

There are many varieties of popcorn makers that you may choose from which includes the most basic models to the all-inclusive popcorn deluxe maker with all the bells and whistles.

When contemplating  the purchase of your very own popcorn maker, you should definitely think about buying this novelty item online.  A few reasons why you may want to get this item from the internet is as follows.

You are Going to Have a Wider Variety Online

When you are purchasing a popcorn maker, and consequentially the popcorn to go into it, you will have access to a far better variety than if you went into a local store.  This machine is a real niche item and not many in town stores are going to a) even have popcorn makers and b) if they do they will have maybe two models to pick from.

As you shop for this item online from concession type websites  you will notice that you can very easily shop around the site and peruse all of your options available from your computer desktop.

You will be able to compare all the possible options (including add-ons) and allow you to choose the best popcorn maker and greatest variety of delicious popcorn kernels easily and efficiently.

Purchasing Popcorn Makers, and its  Accessories, via the Internet Will Save You Money

You will notice that purchasing popcorn machines will be far less expensive by going online.   Online vendors who specialize in selling popcorn makers and other related items have huge warehouses of product and will almost always offer better deals than if you purchase these items locally.

Online sellers have far less overhead than local stores as all they need besides their website is a warehouse to store all the items in. The prices they can offer to potential customers are far less than what retail store location vendors can offer.  They have to have not only a website, but a warehouse, and finally a nicely laid out storefront to sell it.

Many places online also have free shipping at various times of the year to even “sweeten the pot” a little bit more and makes buying a popcorn maker online even more appealing.

Its Just So Much More Convenient!

I cannot speak for everyone but going into crowded stores is just no fun to me.  Some people actually do get a huge kick out of shopping (my mother for instance) but buying a popcorn makers, as well as anything online, is just plain convenient.

So you like to wait in long lines at stores?  How about wasting gas money traveling around town (several years ago this was no big deal but now in 2009 it has become one)  searching for the best product with the best price tag?

At the comfort of your nice, warm home you can shop for your ideal device whether it be a full sized popcorn machine or a stovetop popper. You can browse through the seemingly endless selection and compare prices on these items without ever having to leave your house.  If you are on a mission to buy the perfect popcorn maker for your home, kiction, or personal home theater that has become the rage in the last couple years then this is the way to go.

What Popcorn Machine Size Do I Need?

How do you know which popcorn machine size is right for you?

That depends on what you want.

There are small, counter-type six to eight ounce machines and then there are giant 22-32 ounce monster kettles.

Do you just want a simple set up or a large theater style set up?

Anyway, back to her post about making the perfect batch of popcorn from scratch. She mentioned a lot of things I didn’t know as I always used a popcorn maker or microwave (yuk) to make mine.  Its interested because the way she does it pops almost every kernel instead of leaving like 15% of it behind.

Perfect Popcorn Recipe

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp canola, peanut or grape seed oil (high smoke point oil)
• 1/3 cup of high quality popcorn kernels
• 1 3-quart covered saucepan
• 2 Tbsp or more (to taste) of butter
• Salt to taste

Method

1 Heat the oil in a 3-quart saucepan on medium high heat.

2 Put 3 or 4 popcorn kernels into the oil and cover the pan.

3 When the kernels pop, add the rest of the 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels in an even layer. Cover, remove from heat and count 30 seconds. (Count out loud; it’s fun to do with kids.) This method first heats the oil to the right temperature, then waiting 30 seconds brings all of the other kernels to a near-popping temperature so that when they are put back on the heat, they all pop at about the same time.

4 Return the pan to the heat. The popcorn should begin popping soon, and all at once. Once the popping starts in earnest, gently shake the pan by moving it back and forth over the burner. Try to keep the lid slightly ajar to let the steam from the popcorn release (the popcorn will be drier and crisper). Once the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove the pan from the heat, remove the lid, and dump the popcorn immediately into a wide bowl.

With this technique, nearly all of the kernels pop (I counted 4 unpopped kernels in my last batch), and nothing burns.

5 If you are adding butter, you can easily melt it by placing the butter in the now empty, but hot pan.

6 Salt to taste.

Makes 2 quarts, a nice amount for two people, or for one hungry one.

Additional tips: From the comments section

a If you add salt to the oil in the pan before popping, when the popcorn pops, the salt will be well distributed throughout the popcorn.

b Fun toppings for the popcorn – Spanish smoked paprika, nutritional yeast, cayenne powder, chili pepper, curry powder, cumin, grated Parmesan cheese.

I tried this recipe and it worked great.  It did not leave any kernels behind.  And the taste was fantastic.  Loved it.  I’m surprised it came out as good as it did because I cannot cook.

Here is a review of several websites that have a nice selection of popcorn makers. I tried to find the best websites that had a wide variety of popcorn machines complemented by a nice look to them. Here is what I came up with.

A big player of commercial theater popcorn machines was Standard Concession Supply. They are everywhere. They actually do not specialize in popcorn makers though it is in fact a large percentage of their website. You can find anything concession here including cotton candy machines, snow cone machines, hot dog machines, and other “food cart” items for people to set up stands such as fairs or “carnival type” attractions. What I did realize is that popcorn is their hottest selling item because they devote a little more than half their website to that area and the other half to all the other concessions and holiday themed items.  Overall I would say that they have a semi decent selection of popcorn machines.  They are really nothing special and did not stand out too much but not bad either.  I did not find the website to be too informative and pleasing to the eye but it gets the job done.

Another website of interest would be Popcorn Machine Shop.  I was impressed with this site more than the other one.  It seemed more original and specialized in the “popcorn lovers” niche.  The site is nice and there are tons of cool pictures of various popcorn makers including antique and theater style machines.  What I really like about this website  is that while the former website is more geared towards business applications this site has a variety of items that can be added to people’s home.  They have a wide selection of nostalgia retro hot air popcorn poppers that your average person can buy for their homes for under $100.  They have a nice array of these.  If you want bigger ones they have those as well. Also available are huge choices of popcorn supplies and accessories that you can pick from.  They have portion packs, popcorn bags, butter toppings and warmers, bulk popcorn, and cleaning kits.

In all these two websites are good but different in that they target two different type of potential popcorn enthusiasts or buyers.  The first one targets commercial customers while the latter one targets residential and some commercial customers.

I did find a third website that was very impressive in the “popcorn niche”.  Its very well made and is very cool to look at.  It does not specialize in popcorn poppers but home personal home theaters.  Its an awesome website and popcorn machines are just one of the many items they sell.  They actually do have a large supply and variety of them but its just one item out of what looks like 100s pertaining to setting up your home cinema.  Very cool site, took me a while to find it, but worth checking out nevertheless.  They do have a bunch of items there so its easy to get confused and lost there so you really have to look closely at some items.

If you are in the process of setting up your personal home theater at your house I would highly reccommend buying a popcorn machine online.  No home movie theater room will be totally complete without one.  And the great thing about yours is that unlike when you go to AMC or Regal Movie theaters you will not have to pay $5.50 for a large popcorn….