How To Pop Sorghum!

Sorghum can be trickier to pop than corn, but here are our tips, tricks, and suggestions for getting a good yield!


IMPORTANT: We do NOT recommend popping black sorghum; it is especially difficult to pop and often leaves large amounts of burnt or wasted grain. Instead, you can use our DIY white sorghum products that come in sizes of 1-lb and 6-lb: https://naturenatesllc.com/collections/organic-popping-sorghum-diy-do-it-yourself 

Before popping, please be sure to sort out anything in the grain that is not sorghum. Our popping sorghum is a natural organic product, and may contain occasional pieces of debris such as plant stems. 

We recommend stovetop popping since it often delivers the highest yield of popped sorghum; however, you can also microwave or air-pop sorghum as well. 



Stovetop Popping: 

         What You’ll Need: 

  • ⅓ cup Nature Nate’s DIY Popping Sorghum
  • 1 tsp water (optimum, but optional)
  • 1 tbsp oil of your choice
  • Bowl
  • Small saucepan with lid
  • Stirring spoon
  1. Hydrate the sorghum grain by adding ⅓ cup sorghum and 1 tsp water to a bowl and mix until the grain has absorbed the water. (Optimum, but optional). 
  2. Pour 1 tbsp of oil into the saucepan and turn heat to medium-high. 
  3. Once the oil begins to smoke, pour in the sorghum and stir briskly with the stirring spoon. 
  4. Put the lid on the pot once it starts to pop. 
  5. As the sorghum pops, shake the pan back and forth once or twice every 5 seconds. 
  6. Optional: when the popping of the sorghum slows down, turn the burner down to medium. 
  7. Do not attempt to get every kernel to pop, or it may scald or burn. Expect 70-90% to pop, or 2 to 4 cups yield of popped sorghum per ⅓ cup grain. 
  8. You may sift out the unpopped kernels, but it is not necessary. 
  9. Season with whichever salts/seasonings you prefer, if any. 
  10. Enjoy!



Microwave Popping: 

  1. In a small paper bag (2 lb) pour ⅓ cup of popping sorghum. 
  2. Stand the bag up straight, and close the top of the bag by folding it down several times. 
  3. With the microwave on high, set for ~2 minutes (time varies per microwave and/or location and time of day). If it scalds or burns, try it again with slightly less time. 
  4. When it’s finished popping, remove it promptly and pour into a bowl or strainer. This method yields a little less than the stove/pan/oil popping method. 


Air Popping: 

  1. Preheat air popper. 
  2. Pour in ⅓ cup popping sorghum. 
  3. Place a bowl next to the air popper to catch the popped sorghum.
  4. The grain is smaller and lighter than corn; you may need to tilt the popper back about 40° to keep the grain from blowing out. Once it starts popping, you may need to tilt the popper forward to allow the popped sorghum to blow out. 
  5. Once popping slows down, turn off air popper and empty any remaining popped sorghum into the bowl. 


We have tested several different air popper models, and we have found the Tasty Hot Air Popper works great! If you use this link to purchase the popper on Amazon, we may receive a small affiliate commission (at no extra charge to you).

 

Video Tutorials: 

Here are some videos showcasing different methods of popping and tips for popping effectively: 


Increase yield: https://youtu.be/0ne8xtw3jsU 


Increase yield (no music): https://youtu.be/v_3tLrfnAAA 


Stovetop popping: https://youtu.be/cLd1aYq1-AQ 


Microwave popping: https://youtu.be/l4IxWDEtkFs 


Hand crank stirring pot popping: https://youtu.be/2RmnPYnLD74 

 

Air popping: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emBSIZMsuos

 

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at nate@naturenatesllc.com, or give us a call/text at (360)-901-4340. Thanks, and happy popping! :)