Best Popcorn Machines
We made many cups of popcorn to find out which of the six models we tried—including ones from Dash and Presto—made the toastiest, tastiest, and fluffiest snack
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Consumer Reports has tested bagged popcorn that contains only salt and oil as a fairly nutritional and healthy snack, and recently evaluated bagged buttered popcorn. A 2016 review of 45 studies linked eating whole grains (yes indeed, popcorn is just that) to a 22 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease.
But if you like to munch on popcorn regularly (my wife and I do, for sure), particularly to avoid the temptation of less kind-to-your-longevity chips (also check), eating prepackaged popcorn is a lot more expensive than making it yourself. Consider that one of CR’s favorite snack varieties from a recent taste test, LesserEvil Himalayan Gold Organic popcorn, will cost you about $4.19 a bag and contains 13.5 cups of popcorn.
There are two main reasons the Dash wins this face-off. First, between the two air poppers, it delivered the lighter, toastier flavor, probably because it cooks a little hotter. Popcorn fresh from the bowl was at first too hot to touch and came out steaming. Once it cooled, though, it had an ideal texture, with a bit of snap in each piece as my family and a few friends sampled it. Even unseasoned, the warmth and slight caramelization of the flavor was excellent.
Second, it’s even cheaper than the Presto Poplite, the close second in this competition. True, on a per-batch basis, the yield of the Presto is even greater, producing a claimed 18 cups per maximum batch. But because you can just make another mountain of popcorn by adding another measuring cup from the lid (it holds roughly one-third cup of kernels) and hitting the power button on the Dash, I don’t think the difference in production is a major drawback.
Speaking of that measuring cup, it doubles as a butter melter and fits into the top cover (the chute that directs the popcorn into a bowl). But even though the popcorn that’s ejected comes out very hot, because it takes about 2 minutes to pop a whole bowl, that wasn’t enough time to fully melt the slices of cold stick butter I’d put in the measurer. Probably with room-temperature butter, you’d get a full melt. Also, we caught very few unpopped kernels in the bowl. But the few kernels that didn’t pop stayed put inside the basin, so they were easy to just dump out after I turned the machine off and unplugged it.
As with all the other poppers that run on electricity, you can’t put parts in a dishwasher, but there’s little need because the top cover and scoop are easy to clean with soap and water. One tiny worry: The tabs that hold the top cover to the base are dinky, and while nothing snapped while I used the Dash, the top cover construction would be the one concern I’d have.
Wait, if it costs several dollars more than the Dash (as of this writing), how is the Presto a bargain? See my one concern about the Dash’s top cover construction for the answer. The Presto’s ejection chute sits on top of the base on a set of grooves. There’s nothing to snap, so it just seems a hair more durable.
As for the popcorn itself, the output was slightly less crunchy and toasted-tasting. How slight? You’d only notice the distinction if you happened to be assigned to test six popcorn machines and happened to assemble a group of very picky snackers as critics. Yes, the Presto’s output trailed the Dash’s, mostly it seems because the machine doesn’t get quite as hot, so what we sampled had just a hair less crunchiness.
As with the Dash, there’s a small measuring cup that nests in the top cover and holds up to a quarter-cup of kernels. And this one is handier, too, because it has a narrower shape, the better to dig into a container of kernels and scoop them out. That scoop doubles as a butter melter, but as with the Dash, we didn’t quite get full melt.
The Poplite sent very few unpopped kernels into the bowl with the rest of the popped corn, and most remained in the actual base, where they were easy to discard post-use. Also, like the Dash, cleanup was easy, even though it’s not recommended you use a dishwasher because the chute can be washed easily with soap and water.
One demerit: There’s no on/off switch. Plug the Poplite in and it’s on. And the only way to turn it off is to unplug it.
Between the two microwave popcorn models, I give the nod to the version that worked more consistently, even as I have a lot of questions about why you’d spend money on the BPA-free Ecolution. Basically, this is a glass carafe. It yields only 6 cups, which is less than half of the air poppers. If you have any other microwave-safe container, you can make popcorn in it.
Further, the Ecolution can only be used in microwaves with a turntable. And while there’s a slotted lid that doubles as your measuring scoop (and melting sieve to drip butter on the popcorn below as it pops), my output was a little messy. Some butter melted well before the popcorn popped (which took about 2 to 2.5 minutes), and because the lid is centered only over the basin, pretty much just the popcorn in the middle of the pot saw buttery love. I hacked a solution by salting the resulting popcorn, replacing the lid, and shaking the whole concoction while holding the lid on.
As for taste and consistency, this was a grade below the air popcorn. The kernels were a little chewier and less puffed up, though not as unsatisfying as what the oil units produced. The real demerit is that the Ecolution yield is minimal and the utility is lacking. Maybe if you’re sending a kid off to college, having a distinct container for microwave popcorn production has value, and certainly it’s more cost-effective than store-bought. Yes, the Ecolution is dishwasher-safe, too.
Other Popcorn Makers We Tried
Popco Microwave Silicone Popcorn Popper With Handles
The claim is that this 15-cup silicone collapsable bowl is BPA- and PVC-free and dishwasher-safe. It also cleans up easily with soap and water. Sort of. And even though the instructions say you can use it without oil, our popcorn scorched when we did that, burning it at the bottom and also not popping some of it. We had better results when we used a bit of oil, but we still saw a lot more kernels not pop than with the Ecolution.
Photo: Michael Frank Photo: Michael Frank
Flavor (of the unburnt output) is about on a par with the Ecolution, and unlike that carafe, you aren’t restricted to using a carousel microwave. But given the somewhat inconsistent results and the fact that this is basically just a basin for cooking popcorn, I have to wonder why you’d need this. Again, find a suitable microwave-safe bowl and a lid that fits loosely (this one nests inside and slides up the sides as the popcorn fills the container) and you’ve found a solution. Plus, there were scorch marks on the sides of the bowl I evaluated, so it’s hard not to be concerned about the durability if not the toxicity—and glass won’t cause either of those worries.
West Bend Stir Crazy Popcorn Machine
You’d guess with the ability to produce enough popcorn to feed a small family that this would be a relatively cost-effective buy. But that’s not what the experience was in my house. We actually put the popcorn out for the deer in our backyard to vaporize instead. That’s how much less tasty oil-popped popcorn is vs. the air-popped variety. The result was a little greasy, which you know from the movie theater stuff. But worse, the texture just wasn’t as pleasant, so we got something that’s was a little denser and kind of rubbery, with less of the nutty, toasty goodness of what came out of the two air poppers.
Probably just as disheartening was how the wand that stirs the kernels around the base of the popping surface ground against them, making a harsh dragging noise sort of like rocks caught in your car’s disc brakes. This wasn’t a pleasant sound, and oh, that kettle surface is coated in PTFE, which is used to make it nonstick—but is also a type of PFAS, “forever chemicals” that are linked to several diseases.
Photo: West Bend, Michael Frank Photo: West Bend, Michael Frank
Even if that wasn’t a big worry, we found a lot of unpopped kernels in the batches I tested. Yes, the design is fairly clever; the basin/cover has holes at the top that, as the popcorn is produced, let butter melt on top, and the churning action distributes it well. When done, snap a cover on that lid and invert the whole operation, and the lid becomes a bowl containing all the popcorn.
But with both the PTFE potential exposure and the meh quality of the output, I give this a hard pass.
West Bend Stir Crazy Movie Theater Popcorn Popper
If you have a dedicated game room, you might be tempted by this rather large 10.87x10.27x 17.72-inch machine. Unfortunately, just like the other West Bend unit we tried, the popcorn itself just isn’t great. It comes out softer and less crunchy than that of the air-pop machines—and this puppy is really big, so you’d better have a dedicated space for it.
I should add that it’s also a little clunky to operate, with a kettle that has an integrated stirrer, much like the other West Bend model. As the popcorn pops, a flimsy metal lid gives way to let the kernels lift the lid and push their way into the box below. But that kettle is designed to hinge on one side, to let you tilt it down and release the remaining popcorn after the 3- to 4-minute popping procedure. In practice, that operation results in having the kettle fall to one side, and you have to dig around to get the remaining kernels out of the machine.
Photo: West Bend, Michael Frank Photo: West Bend, Michael Frank
Ditto, more digging in the rest of the box. There’s an included scoop for retrieving that popcorn and an angled catch behind the popper’s door to prevent all the popcorn from spilling out of the bottom of the box, but that’s just in the way of trying to scrape out the bits you do want. In the end I just lifted the whole contraption over a bowl and shook out the popcorn. That’s hardly convenient.
If there’s any innovation to be had, a tiny slotted panel at the base of the box lets unpopped kernels through. But that appears to be a two-way sieve because plenty of unpopped kernels also remained in the yield of more than one test batch.
And the kicker: Just like the other West Bend model, this one uses a PTFE coating on the cooking kettle, potentially exposing you and your family to something harmful.
How We Evaluated Popcorn Makers
I compared six makers: two air poppers, two oil units, and two microwave models. The aim was to see which yielded the best-tasting popcorn. I recruited friends and family members to evaluate the popcorn unseasoned and then with clarified butter (ghee) and salt. When units incorporated systems to melt butter while making a batch, my wife and I also tested that function. The goal was also to see whether any of the machines left a lot of unpopped kernels and whether a lot of those wound up stealthily hiding those nuggets in the output—because everyone has had the unpleasant experience of biting into a hard kernel when they least expect it. I also evaluated for ease of cleanup as well as assembly, and although it’s slightly subjective, form factor vs. yield weighed as well, because not everyone has space for another appliance in their homes.
Forever Chemicals in Microwave Popcorn
Consumer Reports has extensively covered the hazards of what are called “forever chemicals” in cookware. What you need to understand when it comes to microwave popcorn in bags you “nuke” in a microwave is that these chemicals are used to prevent the popcorn from sticking when popped. According to Eric Boring, a CR food safety expert, they’re added because “these chemicals have these fluorine atoms that don’t want to stick to anything else.” These belong to a class of chemicals called PFAS, and Boring says they’re contained in something like a nonstick pan (or Westbend’s popcorn makers) by another class of chemicals called PTFE. The hazard, Boring explains, is that PFAS material is used on the inside of fast food packaging, too, and on microwave popcorn bag linings. “It’s on the bag,” Boring explains, “so obviously it’s gonna be touching the food. But also when you heat it up, a lot of these PFAS tend to be more volatile as you heat them up. Once you make them more volatile, the PFAS has a better chance to actually migrate to the food.” All of which is very bad. CR has reported that PFAS chemicals are linked to many diseases, so wherever you can, you want to avoid exposure if at all possible.
A Brief History of Popcorn
Popcorn is an exceptionally popular food. According to Andrew F. Smith, a food historian who teaches at The New School in New York City and is the author of “Popped Culture: A Social History of Popcorn in America,” the snack food predates colonizers and was consumed by Indigenous people on this continent. By the mid-1800s, popcorn became associated with good times in the U.S. because it was a cheap, portable food to sell on city streets and at outdoor carnivals. And although movie theater owners, according to Smith, at first shunned it, by the time of the Depression, “movies provided the public with a welcome distraction,” he said. “Popcorn proved an inexpensive luxury for moviegoers, so theater owners pounced on the money-making opportunity.” Later, bagged microwave popcorn (which may come with risks) boosted the snack food business, and these days, most grocery aisles boom with savory varieties of prepopped deliciousness. According to Popcorn.org, based on popcorn sales between 2016 and 2020, an average of 43 quarts of popcorn are consumed per person each year.
