# Nut-based Popcorn? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 3, 2008, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914 "2008-03-03T04:25:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/1 "2008-03-03T04:25:46Z")
I was just reading through the Wikipedia page on popcorn and saw this little factoid: > [@Wikipedia](#): > > Popcorn was very popular in the 1890s, until World War Two. As corn crops became more depleted during the War, **nuts were used instead of corn**. (bolding added) What sorts of nut was this? Has anyone here ever had any popnut, and is it any good? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 8:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/2 "2008-03-03T08:21:38Z")
I think it’s just saying that people switched to snacking on nuts, rather than popcorn. I don’t think there’s any kind of nut that can be popped like corn. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/3 "2008-03-03T08:28:45Z")
Doesn’t the eating of chestnuts necessitate throwing them into a fire to cook them off a bit and break the shell? ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/4 "2008-03-03T09:14:59Z")
[QUOTE=Raguleader] Doesn’t the eating of chestnuts necessitate throwing them into a fire to cook them off a bit and break the shell? [/QUOTE] I think so, but you don’t eat the shell. With popcorn, you eat the “shell.” It’s not really a shell. Nuts and corn kernels are two different things. People roast (husked) nuts all the time, and they never “pop.” ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/5 "2008-03-03T09:46:43Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] I think it’s just saying that people switched to snacking on nuts, rather than popcorn. I don’t think there’s any kind of nut that can be popped like corn. [/QUOTE] Ah, hm. Well I’ll wait to see if anyone contradicts that, if not maybe go change the Wiki page to be a bit more clear or check its cites or such. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/6 "2008-03-03T10:48:27Z")
Good plan. I’m about as certain as can be that it’s just bad wording - popcorn works because the starch granules inside it melt, then the moisture turns to steam, bursting the shell (which happens to be just strong enough to constrain the process for just long enough) and blowing the gelled starch out and inflating it in the process. I don’t think there’s any kind of nut with the right material properties to do this, or even anything similar. Most nuts are oily chunks of protein - they fry themselves crispy when they’re heated. ---
**Author:** ![lobotomyboy63](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobotomyboy63/32/2900_2.png) [@lobotomyboy63](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lobotomyboy63)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2008, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nut-based-popcorn/439914/7 "2008-03-03T10:51:39Z")
[QUOTE=Raguleader] Doesn’t the eating of chestnuts necessitate throwing them into a fire to cook them off a bit and break the shell? [/QUOTE] Yes, they’re very popular (roasted) in France.