From my Table: Half-Popped Kernels

And for good reason. One Thursday night when we were living in Israel my husband got into a cab leaving Geulah with a bunch of packages, among them a large plastic sleeve of popcorn. The cab driver pointed to the popcorn and asked, “Eich korim pupcorrin b’Anglit?” We all had a good laugh!

At one point during those years, we were introduced to a popcorn phenomenon we’d never known existed. Have you ever heard of Old Maid popcorn, also known as half-popped kernels? I don’t know if this is sold anywhere else, but there are a few places in Yerushalayim that will sell it to you in a little container slid under the counter as if it’s contraband, once they’ve made a bunch of batches of popcorn for Shabbos. They’re very crunchy kernels that are just slightly popped, and they have this fantastic texture.

Only a few batches are offered for sale, and I remember rushing to the store to make sure I got there in the little window of time that they were available; under the counter, of course.

I miss those uniquely Israeli Shabbos treats, even though freshly popped popcorn is sold everywhere now. Recently, I decided to try to recreate the Old Maid variety. I researched how to make half-popped kernels and made my own batch. We got a flashback to those clear little containers full of salty goodness, passed on with pride over something so simple yet satisfying, in a way that only an Israeli can pull off.