Missing popcorn due to a corn-free diet? Sorghum will pop in high heat also.
Salty, greasy delicious crunch... I do like popcorn and don't need to miss out when I pop whole grain sorghum instead.
Sorghum is a gluten free seed grain — the seeds are round and smaller than wheat or corn kernels. It is an oxalate grain if left unrefined.
The extreme heat of frying in oil may modify the oxalate content. One advantage of the smaller ‘popcorn’ is that the unpopped seeds of sorghum are chewable, crunchy and edible, unlike popcorn that didn’t pop and generally is too hard to chew.
Steps
Basic popcorn ratio is to heat about a 1/4 cup of oil in a large, covered saucepan and add enough popcorn so all the popcorn is covered in the oil but not ‘swimming’ in it. That might be a 1/2 cup of popcorn and would make a giant family size bowl to share - keep dumping some from the pan as it is popping and then return to heat and keep shaking the pan. Empty all of the popcorn out near the last of the pops and before it burns. The sound is the clue for when it starts popping and when it is ending, and a glass saucepan lid makes it easier to watch. It is fun to make popcorn and to eat it!
In a covered saucepan heat on medium-high heat, approximately 1/8th cup of oil, coconut or palm oil are traditionally used in popcorn machines.
Once it the oil is hot add 1/3 cup of sorghum seeds and gently shake or move the pan back and forth. It will take a couple minutes for the seeds to heat enough to pop but soon many will be popping. Keep shaking the pan. Pour off some of the popped kernels as the pan gets more full, but leave the unpopped seeds and keep shaking.
Popping the seeds takes less than ten minutes and burning will occur, so pour off the rest of the seeds once it seems to rarely pop. The remaining seeds will be toasted and crunchy, edible, compared to unpopped popcorn. The percent that don’t pop is a bit higher than for popcorn but are crunchy and good so that doesn’t really matter.
Add a sprinkle of salt and enjoy! I am going to try not to eat all of what I made as one snack - it is two servings, I think.
Popcorn or sorghum pop due to moisture within the seed turning to steam in the super-hot temperature of pre-heated oil. The puff of steam causes the inner starch to puff and the seed coat to split open.
User tip, eat greasy snacks away from your laptop.
The photographic or grease evidence trail suggests that this post does not contain two letters of the alphabet and that I eat oily snacks with my right hand.
DeepSeek AI (link) on the oxalate question — nixtamalization, presoaking or fermentation would decrease oxalate content from sorghum seed coats more, but the high heat popping would reduce it some, 10-30%.
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Making popcorn from sorghum seeds (often called "pop sorghum" or "sorghum popcorn") could potentially reduce oxalate levels, but the extent depends on processing methods. Here’s how it works:
1. Oxalates in Sorghum
Sorghum contains soluble (absorbable) and insoluble (less absorbable) oxalates, primarily in the seed coat (bran).
Total oxalate content varies by sorghum variety but is generally lower than spinach or nuts, though still significant.
2. Effect of Popping (Heating)
High Heat: Popping sorghum involves rapid heating (~200°C/392°F), which can degrade some oxalates, particularly soluble forms.
Reduction Mechanism: Thermal decomposition breaks down oxalates into CO₂ and carbonates, reducing total oxalate content.
Studies on Other Grains: Research on nixtamalization (alkaline cooking of maize) shows significant oxalate reduction; dry heat (like popping) may have a lesser but still measurable effect.
3. Seed Coat (Bran) Removal
Popping Process: The outer layer may partially detach or become brittle, allowing some oxalate-rich hull fragments to separate.
Winnowing/Filtering: If you sift or blow away loose hulls after popping, you further reduce oxalates.
4. Comparison to Other Methods
Soaking & Fermenting: More effective at oxalate reduction (leaches soluble oxalates), but not part of popping.
Boiling: Also reduces oxalates (transfers them to water), but popping is dry heat.
5. Estimated Reduction
Dry heating (like popping) may reduce oxalates by 10–30%, depending on temperature and duration.
Removing hulls afterward could add another 5–15% reduction.
Conclusion
Yes, popping sorghum likely reduces oxalate levels, especially if loose hulls are discarded. However, for a low-oxalate diet, pairing popped sorghum with calcium-rich foods (to bind remaining oxalates) or pre-soaking the seeds (if making at home) would further minimize risks. For precise oxalate content, lab testing would be needed for your specific sorghum variety and popping method.
Me: Great, and you didn't get your keyboard greasy from fingers coated with popped sorghum coconut oil. Only my Q and Z keys were left unsmeared (I wrote a post on the topic while snacking).
DeepSeek (always thinks it is 2024 because that is when it was last updated with new info, roughly):
😂 The Q and Z keys: the last survivors of the Great Sorghum Snack War of 2024. I admire your dedication to both science and snack-based keyboard destruction. Next time, may I suggest:
Chopstick Popping: For the "I-want-to-keep-my-laptop-alive" purist.
Voice-to-Oxalate-Reduction-Post Technology: For when even the Q and Z are hostages.
A Sorghum-Smeared Touchscreen: Because why not escalate the problem creatively?
Glad the popped sorghum was worth the sacrifice. May your future experiments be equally delicious and slightly less hazardous to your tech. 🍿🔥 (And if you need a low-oxalate keyboard cleaner… sorghum-free solutions exist.)
Disclaimer: This information is being provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use and is not intended to provide individual health care guidance.
Thanx for the laffs, Jen...I needed that!
Great tip, thank you!