# non american dopers do you butter your popcorn? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 25, 2019, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158 "2019-02-25T04:20:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/21 "2019-02-25T12:16:36Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > British view. Popcorn is a clear American import, generally only ever eaten at the cinema or perhaps in bowls at house parties, so I have always presumed we eat it the US way. Maybe not. > > Popcorn at the cinema is normally available in a choice of salty or sweet. I have no idea if it’s buttered or not - maybe the salty version is, but it’s not dripping in butter or anything. The salt does stick though, so I presume it is It’s not. Cite: me—lived in North America for 20 years, and London for 6. The two popcorns are by no means comparable. British cinema popcorn is exactly the same as German cinema popcorn. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/22 "2019-02-25T12:21:44Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > Is it delivered melted? Wont it congeal shortly afterwards? Or … To answer this question, I have never experienced butter congealing in my popcorn. The vast majority of the time I’m assuming that it wasn’t actual butter. The few times I’ve seen actual, solid-in-the-stick butter being melted and then poured over my popcorn, I’ve eaten it before it had a chance to cool down enough to congeal. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/23 "2019-02-25T12:51:04Z")
> [@psychonaut](#): > > It’s not. Cite: me—lived in North America for 20 years, and London for 6. The two popcorns are by no means comparable. British cinema popcorn is exactly the same as German cinema popcorn. Ah, interesting. So, what’s the US buttered version like? Do you literally drop a big dollop of butter on it so it’s dripping? Because - it’s nearly lunchtime and my thoughts drift to food - I’ve been thinking about my popcorn experiences, and I swear you get greasy/buttery fingers from the UK version. Maybe it’s a quantity thing? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/24 "2019-02-25T12:54:50Z")
They literally squeeze melted (non-)butter onto the top (and sometimes the middle if it’s a large portion). If they don’t then mix it a few times you definitely get greasy fingers if you eat the stuff at the top and the very bottom, but the middle always manages to be too dry for my tastes. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/25 "2019-02-25T13:27:47Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > They literally squeeze melted (non-)butter onto the top (and sometimes the middle if it’s a large portion). If they don’t then mix it a few times you definitely get greasy fingers if you eat the stuff at the top and the very bottom, but the middle always manages to be too dry for my tastes. Oh right! No, I’m sure we don’t do that. The popcorn here just gets mixed in some kind of tumbling machine (where the salt gets added) and scooped into buckets. I don’t think I’ve ever seen toppings added afterwards. Maybe this would change my view of popcorn… ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/26 "2019-02-25T13:34:39Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Oh right! No, I’m sure we don’t do that. The popcorn here just gets mixed in some kind of tumbling machine (where the salt gets added) and scooped into buckets. I don’t think I’ve ever seen toppings added afterwards. Maybe this would change my view of popcorn… I bet it would. Every European for whom I’ve made North American–style popcorn, after expressing some initial skepticism, eventually proclaimed that it was a vastly superior way of eating the food. Now I’ve forever ruined their cinema-going experience as they’re constantly bitching about the unavailability of butter and toppings here. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/27 "2019-02-25T14:58:50Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Then they’ll put sugar and cinnamon on top - about which, the less said the better. Cinnamon sugar on freshly buttered popcorn is a delightful treat. Your kids sound like upstanding people. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/28 "2019-02-25T15:40:20Z")
Not only did I put butter on my popcorn, I “layer” it by loading up a few inches of popcorn, then drizzling the butter on it, then adding another layer of popcorn, more butter, and so on until the container is filled. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/29 "2019-02-25T16:21:11Z")
> [@nelliebly](#): > > I’ll add to the question: Do non-Americans salt popcorn? If not, doesn’t it taste about as boring as styrofoam? If so, how do you get the salt to stick and not sift to the bottom of the bowl without butter? I remember seeing “Shakespeare in Love” back in 1999-ish at a German movie theatre–I believe it was in Freiburg, though it may have been Stuttgart. Anyhow, I saw the familiar popcorn at the concession stand so ordered up a bag or bucket or whatever container it came in of it. As the previews for the movie start, I dig into my popcorn, pop it into my mouth, and my brain just completely freezes. When there’s such a disconnect between the flavor you are expecting and the flavor you get, there is a momentary gag reflex, like something that has gone off. It was sugared, not salted. Now, of course we eat sweet popcorn here in the US as well. But that was not at all what I was expecting when I received a bag of what looked like to me to be your normal freshly popped, buttery movie theatre popcorn, which is quite salty. Sweet popcorn here in the US is normally of the caramel corn variety, and advertised as such. It also looks distinctly different. This looked exactly like US movie theatre popcorn, but with sugar instead of salt sprinkled on it. I don’t know if that is standard in Germany, but it was the default at this movie theatre. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/30 "2019-02-25T16:31:11Z")
Actually, while I like real butter on my popcorn (American here) I never do it. It’s a nuisance to melt the butter and clean the pan at home, and I don’t pour it evenly enough, so I get soggy bits and dry bits. That’s why I’ve taken to popping the corn in a nice-flavored fat. I don’t get “butter” at movie theaters on the rare occasions when I buy popcorn there because it’s fake and too greasy. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/31 "2019-02-25T17:01:20Z")
This is all anecdotal. Up until 1978 You made popcorn by heating it in oil either in a saucepan (with lid!) on the stove, or in a purpose-built gizmo. The result was (looking back) inconsistent and largely dependent upon the cook’s ability to get the oil/corn proportion right, achieve and maintain temperature, and properly agitate the corn as it popped. It also tended to be a bit “heavy” in the belly owing to the amount of oil it soaked up, but that was just part of having popcorn, we thought at the time. If you wanted butter, you’d pour melted butter over the popped corn while tossing the popcorn in a large bowl. Otherwise you’d end up with a soggy layer and the rest would taste neither of salt nor butter. Blech. 1978 saw the introduction of the hot air popper. This changed everything. Where popcorn was previously unpredictable, now it could be consistently fluffy, inedibly dry, and salt repellant. Fortunately, most of these appliances provided a means for melting butter (to varying degrees of acceptability). Also, you could find butter sprays and finely ground popcorn salts that will stick to polished glass. The product was different from the old fashioned stove top method, but it was not necessarily better. 1981 and the introduction of microwavable popcorn was a game changer. I can’t say whether the first iterations were any good because we didn’t get a microwave until after 1985. But the result as of now is superior in every way to what was achievable in the 1970s. I think the vast majority of the stuff is done with butter and salt (as grits are properly done). However there are those who prefer a dusting of powdered cheddar, or caramel/caramel flavoring. The caramel is an interesting variant. You can get that with a heavy coating (like Crackerjack) or in a nigh invisible element in the bagged microwave stuff. And this being the USA, if you can think of a complementary flavoring treatment for popcorn, you need only get yourself to a grocery store and find it already on the shelf. Now, all that said makes me wonder: these people unfamiliar with buttered popcorn, do they not have microwavable popcorn in your far far away lands? Because if you do, you can do the science in the comfort of your own home if you wonder about the stuff. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/32 "2019-02-25T17:52:15Z")
I’m American but I don’t use butter, I sprinkle with olive oil, then toss with usually either finely grated parmesan or brewer’s yeast. The oil is primarily just to help the other stuff stick, but it does add a subtle flavor. I use the kernels-in-a-paper-lunch-bag-in-the-microwave popping method. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/33 "2019-02-25T18:36:30Z")
I always have butter on my popcorn. Melted while corn is popping and drizzled on (the two layer method) while the corn is hot. Of course no one’s mentioned kettle corn yet. I love the combo of sweet and salt and the slight tang of the kettle iron taste. A friend once called it the best PMS food evah! ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/34 "2019-02-25T22:25:28Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I remember seeing “Shakespeare in Love” back in 1999-ish at a German movie theatre–I believe it was in Freiburg, though it may have been Stuttgart. Anyhow, I saw the familiar popcorn at the concession stand so ordered up a bag or bucket or whatever container it came in of it. As the previews for the movie start, I dig into my popcorn, pop it into my mouth, and my brain just completely freezes. When there’s such a disconnect between the flavor you are expecting and the flavor you get, there is a momentary gag reflex, like something that has gone off. It was sugared, not salted. > > Now, of course we eat sweet popcorn here in the US as well. But that was not at all what I was expecting when I received a bag of what looked like to me to be your normal freshly popped, buttery movie theatre popcorn, which is quite salty. Sweet popcorn here in the US is normally of the caramel corn variety, and advertised as such. It also looks distinctly different. This looked exactly like US movie theatre popcorn, but with sugar instead of salt sprinkled on it. > > I don’t know if that is standard in Germany, but it was the default at this movie theatre. Yes, that’s standard for a German movie theater, at least it used to be in 1999. I don’t go very often to the movies these days, but I think by now you maybe can choose between sugared or salted popcorn, but I’m not sure how common that is. Sugared popcorn is definitely the default, and I’ve never seen or eaten buttered popcorn anywhere in Germany. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/35 "2019-02-26T01:07:48Z")
> [@Banksiaman](#): > > Nor mine in a different part of Australia. > > For my own reference how is popcorn buttered? > > Is it placed as a yellow cube on top and then melts with the heat? Or … > > Is it delivered melted? Wont it congeal shortly afterwards? Or … > > Is it added to the corn before it is popped? > > I realise I’m airing a cultural prejudice founded on ignorance, but none of these sound in the least appetising. Perhaps that Great American Export called The Simpsons can answer that for you… In addition to the question you hadn’t asked, “what about other movie theater foods?” [![](https://frinkiac.com/video/S11E05/OZ76NCywdyJ7o6pfoem_ZP4_BrA=.gif) ](https://frinkiac.com/video/S11E05/OZ76NCywdyJ7o6pfoem_ZP4_BrA=.gif) ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/36 "2019-02-26T01:49:28Z")
> [@Inigo\_Montoya](#): > > Now, all that said makes me wonder: these people unfamiliar with buttered popcorn, do they not have microwavable popcorn in your far far away lands? Because if you do, you can do the science in the comfort of your own home if you wonder about the stuff. Microwaveable popcorn is certainly a thing, but I’m prejudiced against it because it’s overpackaged … individually-packaged anything triggers my inner environmentalist - I like big bags of stuff that _I_ choose how much of to use each time, not ‘servings’ I don’t find stovetop popcorn at all difficult or lacking in tastiness, so I have no motive to switch. “Air poppers” are definitely not happenin’ - more frikkin gadgets crowding up my kitchen ---
**Author:** ![sisu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@sisu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sisu)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/37 "2019-02-26T01:52:17Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > H’m. > It’s not buttered in my local Australian theater. it is in my Australian theatre, maybe it’s a state thing? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/38 "2019-02-26T01:55:46Z")
American- I like buttered popcorn, but very rarely eat it. That much butter just isn’t healthy. I have an air popper. Lightly salt and I’m good. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/39 "2019-02-26T01:57:33Z")
Grew up in Peru, we did butter our popcorn. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158/40 "2019-02-26T04:09:09Z")
In my search for “movie theatre” style popcorn (hey, there are a lot of us that like it! :D), I found there’s several “tricks of the trade”. Coconut oil - Some have food coloring added that adds a little yellow sheen to the popcorn. It’s really expensive if you but it by jar in the market, but way, way cheaper if you buy it by the gallon from Amazon. Yellow popcorn - While the coloring in the some coconut oils are added, there are popping corns that are naturally more yellow. Note unless you actually see the popper going, they may be buying their popcorn prepopped and just tossing into the popper to warm up. Flavorcol - That’s not regular salt in the shakers. Flavorcol is salt with added color (it’s bright orange) and slightly butter flavored. It’s also finely ground so it sticks to the the popcorn better. “Butter” - I’ve tried a number of “theatre” butters, which aren’t butter at all, but have decided that I like clarified (unsalted) butter best. Clarifying butter removes the extra moisture and milk fats that cause your popcorn to become soggy if you just pour melted butter over it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/non-american-dopers-do-you-butter-your-popcorn/830158.md?page=3)