Type against type
A stovetop pan or another way to pop
The pan is one of three common ways to make popcorn at home. Each has a case where it wins.
| Jiffy Pop stovetop pan | Microwave bag | Loose kernels in a pot |
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| You need | A gas, electric coil or camp stove burner | A microwave oven | A pot with a lid, oil and a burner |
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| Time | 2 to 5 minutes on the burner | A test bag starts at 4½ minutes on the timer | Corn begins to pop within 3 minutes of heating |
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| Calories per cup | About 35, from 140 per serving of about 4 cups | 15 to 50 in one maker's range | 35 oil-popped |
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| Works on glass-top ranges | No | Not on the range at all | Yes |
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| Washing up | Nothing: the pan is the package | Nothing: the bag is thrown away | The pot and its lid |
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| Better choice when | You want the show of the foil dome and nothing to wash | You want hands-off popcorn or have a glass-top range | You pop often and want to choose your own oil and salt |
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Air-popped popcorn has only 30 calories per cup; oil-popped popcorn has only 35 calories per cup.
Sources: Hannaford, Jiffy Pop Butter Flavored Stovetop Popcorn, product label text · The Popcorn Board, Preparing Perfect Popcorn · Orville Redenbacher's, FAQ · The Popcorn Board, Nutrition. Read 4 October 2026.
The longer comparison