I often forgo popcorn at the movies. I bring a stick of gum or a square of good chocolate. If I have something to entertain my mouth as the lights go down, I don't miss popcorn too much.
Last night I tried something new. I ordered a small popcorn (no butter), but asked to have the container only half full. I felt dumb requesting this, but the concessions guy just smiled and did it. I enjoyed 2-3 cups of popcorn. (If I had a full popcorn I would have eaten 5+ cups.)
Such a simple change, but I feel so smart!
That is smart, in my opinion. We all know that portion control is a critical part of the management equation. Achieving it is a case of "do what works"!
That's a genius idea!
That is a really great idea. I have found portion control to be KEY. There are many "treat" things that I love, and I have found as long as I'm careful about the portion size. I can do ok with "treats". It's really that portion size more than anything. I might be able to have one Entemain's Chocolate donut, but even bolusing for it, if I push it I will experience spikes. So I have ONE and I enjoy the heck out of it, LOL.
Just a FYI. My brother and sister in law have worked at several theaters- and they both told me you can ask them to pop the popcorn without butter entirely and almost all of them will. They just don’t advertise it.
Why would you want to? To me the butter and salt are what make the popcorn yummy and it's not like it's added carbs.
I agree the butter doesn't really add to the carbs. I just avoid butter cause it causes stomach issues for me. Our theaters here add butter to the popcorn once its purchased. So even if they use some to pop the popcorn...which usually I always thought it was just oil. You don't have to get extra butter added to it.
You ARE smart! I think a big part of the fun of the going to the movie is the popcorn. Even if the movie sucked...well the popcorn was good! I prefer it without the butter, too :)
I do things like that all the time. I order kids meals a LOT. Or ask for a smaller amount. I also make a real effort to leave 33% on the plate. However, I still weigh too much. At my age, it is a struggle.
At the movies..popcorn is infamous for major dentals bills... so, just I just drink diet soda and enjoy the movie. After all these years, I no longer equate food with events.
Is it even real butter that movie theaters use anyway; I thought it was some kind of chemical thing.
Now there is the real paradigm switch, Spock!
LOL I have no idea, BUT it wouldn't surprise me if it was some chemical imitation of butter.
I skip the butter because regular movie theater popcorn already has a lot of fat.
What kind of fat does it have? Isn't popcorn just popped corn kernels? A whole bunch of it popped with a couple tablespoons of oil? I know some of us regulate fat and some don't.
I'm still wondering about the artificial butter; I think I remember hearing that movie theaters used that years ago and that explained why it never tasted as good as when you made it at home (I mean home made not microwave packages). God, I'm such a food snob..lol/p>
It's saturated fat, but not sure what kind. As this article points out, the fat issue is more concerning for the moviegoer who eats a tub. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/19/popcorn/
They fry it in oil to make it pop so there's probably some stuck all over it. Sort of like cooking it in a pan. It's not quite buttery saturated but, nonetheless, is all greased up.
Very different than homemade. With homemade you put a very small amount of oil on the bottom of a large pot, like a tablespoon and then pop tons of popcorn so it's definitely not coated in oil.
They don't fry it in oil (I used to make the popcorn at the local theater). The commercial popcorn machine has a drum at the top which heats and spins the oil to pop the corn. You drop the kernals in there and pop away! I would ask the Theater what oil they use, there are many more options today. Ours was probably seasoned lard but that was some time ago, and it was delicious - no butter needed.
ps - you should see what goes on the garlic bread at the grocery store =/
So was it just a tablespoon or two like you use at home, Karen, or lots more? And what about the butter they used, was it real?
Zoe, on the popcorn it was a little measure scoop that came in the jug of seasoned lard (don't remember the measure but I doubt it was a cup). You put that in the drum, and then another measure of popcorn / a big ole scoop - and wah lah! The butter came in some other container and I can't remember the details/ingredients, you just screwed a new butter tub on the butter squirter when it ran out - LOL and GROSSS!!