History of North American Popcorn

While some American Indians sat around their fire, they tossed kernels of corn into the flames. Soon the white puffy treat popped out of the fire onto the ground, ready to eat. Then in the early 1600’s, these Native Americans offered their treat to new settlers from distant lands.  The first Thanksgiving meal included popcorn. Blacksmiths went to work to find a way to keep the popcorn contained. One popcorn popper design blacksmiths made contained a metal mesh with a long handle to protect the cook’s hands from getting burned in an open fire.  I’m doing a series about things of interest from my book, The Captive.