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Skillet Cornbread

Corn bread baked in a searing cast iron skillet, golden crust outside and soft crumb within, straight from the American South.

Gluten-free#cornmeal#skillet#bread#southern#baking
Skillet Cornbread

Photo : Douglas P Perkins · CC BY 3.0

Prep
10 min
Cook
25 min
Total
35 min
Serves
6
Difficulty
Easy

Method

  1. Put a 25 cm cast iron skillet in the oven and heat it to 220°C.
  2. Mix the cornmeal, bicarbonate of soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.
  3. Beat the eggs into the buttermilk, then pour the mixture over the dry ingredients. Stir until no lumps remain.
  4. Pull out the hot skillet and melt the butter in it, tilting to coat the base and sides.
  5. Pour the melted butter into the batter and stir. Enough fat stays in the pan to build the crust.
  6. Tip the batter into the skillet. It should hiss on contact.
  7. Bake for 22 minutes, until the top is golden and a knife comes out clean. Turn out after 5 minutes.

That searing skillet is what makes the crust. Cold batter hitting cast iron at 220°C sets the base before the crumb has time to rise, which is where the crisp edge comes from.

Nutrition · per serving

Calories
327 kcal
Protein
7.8 g
Fat
12.7 g
Carbohydrate
44.8 g
Fibre
2 g

An estimate computed from the recipe quantities and the USDA food composition database. Real values vary with the products used.

Frequently asked questions

What can I use instead of buttermilk?

It supplies the acidity that sets off the bicarbonate and lifts the batter. Failing that, stir a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar into 350 ml of milk and leave it ten minutes. Plain milk alone gives a dense bread, since the bicarbonate has nothing to react with.

Why is there no wheat flour in this cornbread?

This is the Southern style, made with cornmeal alone, barely sweet, with a close, slightly sandy crumb. Northern-style recipes add flour and sugar and land much closer to cake. It is also what makes this version naturally gluten free.

Can I make it without a cast-iron pan?

A preheated metal tin can work, but cast iron stores far more heat and gives it back all at once, which is what builds the crust. Avoid glass and ceramic, which heat too slowly and leave the base pale.

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