Pop question, hot shot!

Orville asks:

Hey Beth, I always burn my microwave popcorn even though I cook it to the EXACT time it says on the bag.  Help!

"popcorn!!" by superiphi is licensed under CC BY 2.0

For starters, if you are serious about your popcorn, you have to at least try another method that doesn't involve the microwave:  stove top (cheaper and healthier since it only has the ingredients you choose), air pop (if you are feeling fancy and want to buy another large kitchen gadget for your home), or the ever-magical Jiffy Pop (I think everyone should try this at least once, preferably over a camp fire).

But if you are taking the microwave route, the secret to popcorn perfection is counting between the pops.  Once you've heard the majority of the kernels fulfill their destiny, start counting the seconds between the residual pops.  Once it gets to about 2 or 3 seconds between, your popcorn is ready for snacking.

If those seconds are far too much to deal with, you can always download the app from PopSecret that uses the microphone in your device to time those pops for you.