Popped Sorghum
Popped grains are one of those things that I experienced at a restaurant years ago, and I’ve been figuring out the easiest and best way to make them ever since. Sorghum is a good one for popping novices (no shame in that, I consider myself a popping novice too) because the technique is as simple as microwaving popcorn. With just a few-minute blast in the microwave, whole sorghum grains turn into what looks like miniature popcorn that’s deliciously nutty and great as a salad topper, soup topper, or snack on its very own.
A delicious snack and an even better salad or soup topper that's as easy as microwave popcorn.
- 1/4 c. whole grain sorghum, uncooked
- 1/4 tsp. olive oil
- 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
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Put the uncooked (unpopped) grains in a small bowl and top with 1/4 teaspoon olive oil. Swirl and toss the grains with your fingertips to completely coat them in the oil. Transfer the grains to a clean, unused paper lunch bag and sprinkle the kosher salt into the bag as well. Roll the top 3-4 inches of the bag to securely close it and give the sorghum and salt a brief shake within the bag.
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Lay the bag on its side (still rolled shut) on top of an upside down micriwave-safe dinner plate at the center of your microwave (the plate helps heat circulate around the entire bag). Set your microwave on high for 3 minutes and hit start. Don't go anywhere—wait and listen. After about 60-70 seconds you should hear intermittent popping. Pause the microwave at 90 seconds and give the bag a brief shake. Resume heating for another 30 seconds and pause and shake again. For the last 60 seconds, listen for the popping to slow and stop the microwave when there is more than 1-2 seconds between each pop. Most sorghum is perfectly popped in about 2.5 minutes (give or take 10 seconds). Err on the side of under-popped vs. burnt. When done, pour the contents of the bag into a bowl, let the un-popped grains fall to the bottom, separate, and enjoy the popped grains over salad, soup, or as a snack!