stir crazy Stir Crazy Popcorn maker Review

When I originally saw the Stir Crazy Popcorn Maker, it was in a Black Friday ad for about $20.  My husband kept telling me that "we didn't need it" and "where would we put it once we bought it"?  I was adamant, however; memories of my grandmother's popcorn maker and all the times she'd used it to make popcorn for us while watching t.v or a movie in the livingroom were too strong for me to ignore.  It had been years since that time, but I still remembered just how good that popcorn tasted and I wanted to be able to make some of my own.  I had to work that day but I left money and instructions with my step-father, who graciously agreed to do the shopping for my mother and me, to pick one of the stir crazy popcorn makers up for me.

When I got to my parent's house after work, I found that he'd gotten one of the first ones.  I was thrilled!  I looked forward to this so much that when I got home, I opened it right up and read the instructions so I could make myself some of those childhood memories.  Putting the popcorn maker together was really simple.  You have the base, powercord, serving bowl, stirrer, the cap to put the stirrer in place, and a lid to go over the butterwell before you flip the serving bowl over.  

According to the directions, you have to set the stirrer in place and secure it with the cap first.  You'll have to put a little oil in the bottom of the base for the popcorn to go on; I usually just drizzle a little exra virgin olive oil in there.  My theory is that if I'm going to fatten myself up with butter, I don't want as many calories from the oil.  Then, based on how much popcorn you want, measure out from 1/3 of a cup to a full cup.  Next, place the serving bowl on top.  (This will act as your lid while the poprorn maker is on).  The indent at the top is the butterwell; you'll know it by the holes that are evenly spaced up there for both ventilation and for the butter to melt and drip through to the popcorn below.  How much butter you use is up to you, but if you're like me, I usually use about 4-5 tablespoons of butter for 2/3 cup of popcorn.  I've never actually made the maximum of a full cup since with the 2/3 cup, the serving bowl is usually full.  I figure a full cup will either really pack the popcorn in tight or begin to lift the lid off while popping.  Now all you have to do is plug the powercord in to the base and then into an outlet...or vice versa, if you prefer.

It usually only takes about a couple of minutes for the popcorn maker to get up to temperature so be careful!  The base can get really hot while its on and I've burned myself on accident a couple of times.  The inside of the lid will steam up as the temperature rises and the steam coming out through the upper holes will begin to melt the butter so that it will drip down on the popcorn below.  When the popcorn begins to pop, its fairly noisy but finishes rather quickly.  I'll shake the popcorn maker back and forth a couple of times while its cooking to keep the kernals in the center; sometimes they'll get pushed up above the inner edge while the spinner is going.  Just like when you make a bag of popcorn in the microwave, you'll have to be there to listen to the pops and unplug the popcorn maker when appropriate.  Be careful with that though, if you wait too long with it you'll singe the layer of popcorn closest to the heat source.

Now that you're done popping and have unplugged the popcorn maker, you'll need to put the lid over the butterwell.  Next, grab the handles and flip the entire thing over onto the lid.  Again, be careful since the whole thing is hot.  Now that you've got the maker flipped over, take the base off and set it aside.  You're lid is now your serving bowl so you can take it with you to enjoy the fruits of you and your Stir Crazy's labor!  I might sprinkle some salt on the popcorn but its good to go as is.

Now, there are some things I've realized since I got the Stir Crazy Popcorn Maker.  One is that the butterwell isn't really that effective.  You almost have to put double the amount of butter you actually want in there because only about half the total will drip down the holes to the popcorn below.  That makes is a bit of a pain when it comes to clean up, too.  Regardless of instructions, I've stopped using the butterwell all together and I just cut up my butter and place it inside the popcorn maker after the oil and kernals have been put in.  I find it actually works a great deal better and the popcorn is coated more evenly.  Another thing is that the stirrer was a little bit bent and, as a result, the first time I used the popcorn maker, it left a scratch in the bottom coating.  Its not that deep but I still found it irritating and I had to bend the stirrer a little to fix it.

Clean up is really simple.  It takes me less than 30 seconds to take the Stir Crazy apart for washing.  You can't put this in your dishwasher!  You'll have to handwash everything with warm soapy water and I'll usually use a soft sponge.  Be careful when washing the base; it can't be submerged in the water.  I accidentally did that once but pulled it out quickly and drained it.  I left it alone for a few days and there don't seem to be an adverse effects but doing it for too long or on a regular basis will probably ruin it.

All in all, I'm extremely satisfied with the Stir Crazy Popcorn Maker.  I use it all the time and have even converted my husband on the purchase.  Just be careful; once you start using this you'll never want to go back to microwave popcorn again!  Enjoy!