Popping amaranth

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Did you know you can pop amaranth (also sorghum, but I haven’t tried that yet)?  I tried it for the first time this weekend–it is yummy.  The seeds are tiny, so even though they become 3 to 4 times bigger than their original size, they are still small.  But you can see from the picture how much mine “grew”. 

I used a cast iron fry pan with a lid, set it medium heat and let it get very hot.  Then I popped the amaranth only one tablespoon at a time.  It is important to stir the amaranth so it doesn’t burn, but you also need to keep a lid on so it doesn’t make a mess of your kitchen.  So I use a lid and hold onto the handles with hot pads and shake the pan.  You will hear the grains popping and when the sound quiets down they are done.  This only takes a few seconds and you have to take them off the heat and dump them into a bowl quickly so they do not burn.  Then you do the next batch.  I popped 1 cup. 

I put mine in some gluten-free granola bars and it gave them a nice texture.  I would like to try the sorghum, because it is a bigger seed and would probably be easier to eat by the handful.

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Filed under Gluten-Free Recipes, cooking