In 2008, I read a Frank Bruni review of WD-50. What struck me the most was a course that didn’t have anything to do with modernist cuisine: a popcorn soup.
Interested in some popcorn soup? You should be. It’s no triumph of cutting-edge technology; it’s just a blended, strained mix of microwave popcorn (Paul Newman’s, to be exact), freeze-dried corn, butter and salt.
It addresses the popcorn lover’s plaint of not always getting the right amount of butter and salt in each handful by delivering popcorn via the spoonful. A snack becomes a proper appetizer, especially with the addition of shrimp, which seems fitting, given that other restaurants fry it in nuggets called popcorn shrimp.
I started with a small amount of white aromatics, sweated in butter. I added frozen corn and popcorn, plus salt and pepper, cooked it gently for about 30 minutes and then blended and filtered it a couple times. I didn’t know exactly the result I was looking for, but I knew I wanted something that expresses corn a few different ways, with a full flavor. I was really happy with the results: a really deep corn flavor, with lots of butter and pepper. Also, the popped popcorn is a great thickener.
Since 2008, this has been one of the more popular posts on Tartare. It was originally written in two parts, which I think was likely confusing for people looking for the recipe. I combined the two posts, made a few well-needed edits, and reformatted the recipe. I hope you like it as much as I do.
Recipe: Popcorn Soup
Summary: Inspired by Wylie Dufresne, this is a smooth and delicious corn soup with a wonderful texture.
Ingredients
- 2 small (or 1 medium) yellow onion(s), small dice
- 2 leeks, white parts only, small dice
- 2 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 16 ounces frozen corn, thawed
- 1/2 cup popcorn, popped
- 6 cups + white stock (vegetable or chicken)
- to taste kosher salt
- to taste black pepper, finely ground
- pinch cayenne pepper
Method
- Heat 2 tablespoons of butter in heavy-bottomed 4QT saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and leek, sweating them, being careful not to brown. Lower heat if necessary. Cook until tender, about 5 minutes or so.
- Add frozen corn and popped popcorn. Bring to the boil, then back off to gentle simmer. Cook for approximately 30 minutes, adding additional stock if required. Carefully skim off any foam that forms.
- Purée soup with blender. Strain through mesh sieve. Then strain through fine mesh sieve.
- Add pinch of cayenne. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- For an additional burst of butter flavor, mount the soup with the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter just before service.
Quick notes
Garnishes: I served this with sous-vide shrimp, some brunoised purple potato, and a few drops of clarified butter or white truffle oil. Or try a few pieces of popped popcorn make a nice South American-style garnish.
Preparation time: 50 minute(s)
Cooking time: 35 minute(s)
Meal type: appetizer
Recipe by Dan Tudor, tartare.org.
Photo credit: Karl Baron