 At the cinema last week, a young man in the seat next-but-one to me, plonked a carry bag on the vacant seat between us. Then, just before the main movie began, and with a fair bit of rustling, he opened a bag of crisps/chips which he proceeded to chomp through as the movie progressed.
As if the bag rustling wasn’t enough, the smell of the chips wafting into my nostrils was most off-putting. And, to make it worse, the chips were ‘Salt & Vinegar’ – my most detested ‘flavour’. To me it seemed as if the whole cinema was issuing forth the smell of Salt & Vinegar, somewhat spoiling an otherwise enjoyable film. Which brings me to the subject of cinema popcorn, the smell of which I find utterly repugnant. I cannot conceive as to how or why people seem to like eating it. I once saw a group of children in a cinema foyer huddle around a huge bucket (yes, ‘bucket’ is an appropriate term) of popcorn. Each child thrust his or her hand into the bucket, stuffed their face with a greasy-buttery fistful, licked a few fingers, wiped a hand on clothes and body, then delved in again. Oh, lordy, my eyes were transfixed as my mind (and stomach) reeled. Surely this vile smelling pile of yellow grease encrusted ‘corn’ can’t be a healthy food? Can it? I did a little research and discovered that ‘A maxi popcorn contains 3930kj, 50 grams of fat, 30 grams of saturated fat, and a whopping 2000mg of sodium.’ (Source: ‘Daily Mail’) Read that through again. And….Percentage of daily requirements of the above:
Whether you deal in kilojoules or calories, merely a ‘large’ serving size = Calories: 664, Fat: 31g, Carbs: 75g, Protein: 13g. AND: Doused in ‘butter’ (oil) and salt, a maxi size container of popcorn at the cinema has twice the fat of a McDonald's Big Mac or a KFC Zinger Burger with bacon and cheese, as well as at least 80 percent of the daily recommended salt intake. There's 'Twice the FAT of a McDonald's Big Mac' in a maxi bucket of cinema popcorn! How about that? Still fancy some? AND: The popcorn is often doused in coconut oil and chemicals to give it that irresistible aroma that wafts through the cinema… Chemicals! AND…. What may seem like FRESH popcorn may be from yesterday’s batch, warmed up just for you! You can read more here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2253864/Chemically-scented-popcorn-day-old-hot-dogs-Secrets-movie-theatre-worker-want-know.html#ixzz4ZAlUN8xM The ‘butter’ smell and look is not butter at all, but a butter flavoured oil – often of indeterminate origin. The salt has ‘seasoning’ that may also contain MSG, among other things. If you wish to know why cinema popcorn sometimes makes you feel a little queasy, read some of this: https://plus.google.com/+SpartandietOrg/posts/GskTKgiEaM7 (AND, here’s an interesting little fact… some cinemas make up to 40% of their revenue from popcorn & junk food). HOWEVER, many people obviously enjoy popcorn with their movies. In a US site, ‘Kitchn’ (yes that’s the spelling) I found this statement: ‘Is there anything better than movies and popcorn? They go together like Beyoncé and Jay Z. When you think of one, the other automatically pops into your head. And movie theater popcorn, in particular, is a special breed. As soon as you walk into the theater, it hits you: the buttery, salty smell of popcorn.’ Am I the one who’s out of step? Maybe so, not only do I detest the aroma of warm popcorn, but, if I ever thought of Beyonce – which I wouldn’t – I certainly would not expect Jay Z to ‘pop into my head’! Who or what is Jay Z?
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