The Naked Kernel Popcorn - Maple Sugar product reviews

For the convenience of being able to have fresh popcorn whenever you want it, this product would be hard to beat. I have prepared home-made popcorn in the past but always ended up with too much - and even though the leftovers do keep well in an airtight tin, it is sometimes a nuisance to have to deal with them when you are travelling. We have a lot of family and friends throughout the country, and frequently stay over with them - and when we do, we take a contribution. Popcorn is ideal as it is light, can be prepared when needed, and is always appreciated by the younger members of the group.

The maple flavour appealed to me even before we had opened the first pouch. When in Canada, I made a point of eating the real thing whenever possible, so it was great to see that the syrup sachet included in this pack is authentic. There are imitations available but they are not a patch on the pure version. We followed the instructions precisely, stopping the microwave process as soon as the pops slowed down, and adding the seasonings in turn. The maple syrup was indeed a winner; we could smell it as soon as we opened the sachet and it became even more intense when it hit the hot popcorn. I could hardly wait to try it, and only the thought of embarrassing myself in front of the young ones stopped me from attacking it on the spot.

We had cooked one packet and left the other for another time; in effect, the other time was some five minutes later. Everyone enjoyed it, even those who do not normally eat regular popcorn; the sweet and salt flavours blended beautifully, offering a taste burst that just begged us to keep on stuffing handfuls into our mouths. The individual packets were certainly not necessary on this occasion - when we had finished there was not a single flake left. As a bonus, this is a healthy snack. There are no strange additives, only corn, corn oil, maple syrup, and sea salt. The preservatives are just Vitamin E and citric acid.

Because we enjoyed them so much, I managed to track down another box at our local supermarket because one of the children was having a birthday party and I thought it might make a nice platter with some lollies and nuts mixed in. I had checked to make sure none of the guests had a nut allergy - that would certainly have been a disaster! - but everyone was fine so I went ahead and popped both sachets. As the children get older, the quality (and quantity) of party food changes. The food has to be filling and tasty, and there needs to be plenty of it! Needless to say, the platter was completely empty by the time the kids had finished. Luckily, I had kept a few aside for the adults just in case.

Nothing says movie night more like some delicious popcorn to accompany it. The smell that wafts through the house once it's cooked makes my mouth water just thinking about it.

The packaging of The Naked Kernel bag was light felt and airy that would breakdown easily in the rubbish. It comes with 2 bags in each box. The flavouring is separate to the popcorn bag itself which you add after to the popped corn. It comes with an oil sachet and maple-sugar sachet.

The instructions for cooking were 3 minutes on high and listening out until the popping slows. This proved a little too much for our microwave which must be a higher wattage. I should have really been watching through the door as well as listening as just after 2 minutes but alas the bag was overcooked and the whole bag burnt.

Luckily I learnt my lesson the second time around and got the timing just right and the majority of the bag was popped perfectly. At first I thought the amount of oil that you add would be too much and make the popcorn too oily however it seemed to be the right amount for the seasoning supplied.

The Maple Sugar flavour was nothing I have had before on popcorn which I surprisingly enjoyed. It was a good balance of sweet and salty which coated the popcorn well. It wasn't greasy and I was easily able to destroy the whole bag on my own. I would definitely try again from my usual butter salt preference.

The packaging of The Naked Kernels maple sugar box is simplistic and natural which is very fitting for the product and also gives off a Retro vibe from its Layout and color choice. I opened up the box and removed a kernel packet then proceeded to unravel it and read the directions expecting it to be the same as all the other microwave popcorns I had made in the past but there was a slight difference with this one. With this one, you cook the popcorn up then open the bag and apply an oil sachet then shake the popcorn up well then add a flavoring powder and shake up once more then it is ready to eat. All the other popcorns I have made are already flavored so it is normally just heat and eat.

I cooked the Popcorn up standing close by watching the bag expanding which I believe is a must as it's soothing and great to watch. I applied the oil and flavor as directed and then sat down with the kids, switched on a movie, and proceeded to try the popcorn. It was very sweet yet savory and also had a slight smokiness to it which was great. I really enjoyed the flavor but I find it very hard to beat the go-to butter-flavored popcorn although it does come close. The texture is nice and crunchy with a soft fluffy center. At a price of $5 a box, it is very good value for money and well worth it.

I highly recommend giving these a try if you have a bit of a sweet tooth and enjoy snacking while watching movies, playing games, or for snacks during the day at work, etc. This was very easy to make and adding the steps of having to apply oil and flavor sachets made it fun for the kids to make. The kids loved them and want to get more next time we come across them so they can divide the popcorn up into sandwich bags and take them to school. I will be keeping an eye out for the butter flavor one as that would be my preferable one to get.

I had tried and been impressed with The Naked Kernel's Sea Salt popcorn so I was excited to try their Maple Sugar flavour, especially as maple is one of my favourite flavours. The packaging is quite clever as it can be stored in a landscape format or a portrait format as each of the large sides have the writing in either landscape or portrait. According to the box, the maple sugar is crafted with real maple sugar from Vermont, USA, which makes you think you're getting the real deal! The box contains 2 x natural popping bags, 2 x corn oil sachets, and 2 x maple sugar and salt sachets.

I was a bit of a pro when it came to making this and knew all the tricks of the trade. My microwave is 1100 watts and 3 minutes, the recommended time, was too much. Last time I had burnt popcorn and I wasn't going to let it happen again. I put the popcorn on for 2 minutes and 20 seconds which was perfect. I carefully opened the packet and placed it in a round bowl so it wouldn't topple over. I then used scissors (don't try and rip it, the sachet rips and the oil goes everywhere) and then poured that in, closed the top, and gave it a good shake. I then put the bag back in the bowl and used the scissors to open the maple sugar and salt sachet. I poured the sachet in, making sure to pour some down the sides so it would get to the bottom and be spread evenly. After giving the bag a vigorous shake, I then put the popcorn in a bowl and had a piece... it was delicious and probably the nicest popcorn I have ever tried. There was a delicious sweet maple flavour that wasn't overpowering.

My girls came over and started trying it and they just didn't stop! They both agreed it was a tasty popcorn and my youngest said it was her new favourite. This is a little bit more expensive than other packet popcorn but you've not only got all the health benefits with The Naked Kernel, you've also got the superior taste!

Popcorn... it's such a simple snack really - popped corn. With the advent of microwave popcorn, it became even easier so that anyone could whip up a batch of popcorn during an ad break and be back before the last advert has finished bleating. Then we started to see some pretty wild flavours appearing, and that's about when I lost interest in this 6,700-year-old Peruvian snack. (No kidding, that's how long humans have been making popcorn!) So when these samples arrived, I thought I would take the opportunity to get a taste of the current state of the art, especially as this popcorn claims to be something quite different.

The first thing to note is that the box contains two packs of unflavoured poppable corn in microwave pouches. What makes these pouches so different is the lack of a metalised "susceptor" - that little grey panel that heats up when struck by microwaves. How on earth the popcorn manages to get up to popping temperature without something to convert the microwave radiation into heat is beyond me, but being the geek that I am, you can bet I'm going to find out. If for no other reason, this is why I will be buying more of this popcorn.

The box also contains two tear-packs of corn oil, and two tear-packs of the Maple sugar flavouring - a mix of maple syrup crystals and salt, by the looks of it. You pop the corn - more on that later - and after carefully peeling open the bag - watch out for the steam! - you pour in the pouch of oil, give it all a good shake to ensure all of the popcorn gets an even coating, then pour in the flavour sachet and give it another good shake. That's the theory at least. Having an up-to-date ManCard, of course I ignored the instructions and just did it my own way. Pop the corn, dump it into a bowl that has a lid, pour in the oil and flavour sachets, lid on, shake it like a polaroid picture... #NomTime.

OK, so I have had a few other microwave popcorns in my time, and it's usual for them to require 2-2.5 minutes, so I was a little surprised when I read "Microwave on high for 3 minutes" on this packet. Still, that's what it says... oh, and then adds the caveat "Stop when the pops slow to 1-2 pops per second". (Or something to that effect, I'm not quoting the pack exactly.) If you leave it nuking after the kernels stop turning inside out and exploding, they will start to burn, and that's so not the favourite flavour of the party. But I noticed that a few times after the 2 minute mark that the pops slowed right down, then there would be a flurry of pops just as I was reaching for the stop button. This popcorn is a tricksy hobbitses... it likes to mess with your head a bit, so be brave and stay away from the stop button until you hear a distinct lack of poppingness for 2-3 seconds.

Overall, this was quite a fun new way to prepare popcorn, and there's no denying that the flavour is to die for! Well, if you like maple syrup, that is. But what I also like about this style of making popcorn - if you want to replace the corn oil with melted butter, you can! Feel like tossing some hot chocolate powder in with the maple sugar for something really amazing? Sure, why not! There's nothing in the bag but popped corn, unlike the other offerings in the supermarkets, where the manufacturers decide what flavours you can choose from and be damned with your own cravings or experimental urges. Sure, you can make whatever flavour you want if you make it in a pan, but that makes dishes to clean and often takes a lot longer, so this is not only fast, but fast and versatile! My only momentary "What the...?!" moment was when I first started to pour over the maple sugar - I love the taste, but it had an odd smell that was momentarily a bit unpleasant. Don't let that put you off though - it's so worth the effort.