I’ve been on a quest for a popcorn popper. I mean, the little microwave bags are fine, but I’m a fan of process, and I wanted to pop real corn.

Hands down, the most popular popper out there seems to be the Whirley Pop from the folks at Wabash Valley Farms. Bed, Bath and Beyond carries ’em, so I braved Manchester Road, and picked up a popper today.

After seasoning the pan, I put it to the test tonight. It was easy to set up, and start popping. Frankly, it was as fast as microwave popcorn — about three minutes — but with a lot more corn, somewhere in the neighborhood of six quarts. And it’s fun and easy. Crank the handle, listen for the corn popping to slow down, and dump it out. Pretty basic.

Now, anyone who knows me knows that it’s pretty easy for me to fall down the rabbit hole when it comes to devices. This looks like it could be the same. Different kernels, oils and recipes all seem like they’re likely to start crossing my sights. The Whirley Pop folks make that even more likely with a recipe exchange site, kinda like the Big Green Egg folks, and I’m pretty dang certain I’ll end up trying out some of those recipes.

Let the popping begin!