Lazy Cornbread

November 13, 2009 5:26 PM

I want to make cornbread in an electric cast iron skillet/pan. Is this a good idea, or bad?

I've got a basic recipe: flour, cornmeal, baking powder, eggs and buttermilk. Also sugar and salt. Butter or olive oil.

I've got cast iron skillets with wooden handles so they can't go in the oven, and they also don't have lids so they can't really go on the stovetop. I guess if it came to it I could unscrew the wooden handles but I'd rather not.

But I've got a massive electric cast iron frying pan. With a lid. Can I make a tasty cornbread in there?

posted by turgid dahlia to Food & Drink (18 answers total)

An electric cast iron frying pan? I've never seen such a thing.

But it should make excellent cornbread if you keep the temperature down. Biscuits are great in frying pans, and that's the only way to make bannock.

The worst that'll happen is you'll screw up a batch. Go for it!
posted by shetterly at 5:38 PM on November 13, 2009

I've never tried it, but I can't see why that wouldn't work just fine for a stovetop recipe. Heck, this recipe even has an electric skillet setting recommended. [Disclosure: first google result; no personal endorsement.]

You probably won't get a nice browned top, though, without a trip to the oven.
posted by Netzapper at 5:40 PM on November 13, 2009

Response by poster: I know, it's the craziest thing I ever saw too, but that's what it is! It's a Breville Country Kitchen job, about 20 years old I'd guess. I'm desperately Googling for pics to give an example. But I guess it doesn't matter what the medium is, the key thing is a consistent temperature...right?
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:41 PM on November 13, 2009

I'd think you'd have trouble getting it to cook through without burning the bottom. Maybe use 1/2 the batter and make a thin, flat loaf.

Or...thought about jonnycakes instead?

Here's a recipe:

* 1 cup corn meal
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon sugar
* boiling water
* milk

Combine first three ingredients. Pour boiling water over mixture very slowly, adding just enough to swell the meal. Let it sit several minutes, then add enough milk so mixture will drop from a spoon. Heat greased pancake griddle or iron skillet and spoon batter onto hot surface. Turn to brown other side. Serve with maple syrup and butter.
posted by palliser at 5:42 PM on November 13, 2009 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I was looking at jonnycakes as well but they seem a little too much like pikelets, and I was hoping for a thicker, breadier sort of snack. But maybe I could flip the cornbread in the pan? Sorry, a lot of this is probably facepalmy stuff to Americans, but I'm an ignorant Australian and only know about cornbread from Aliens.
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:46 PM on November 13, 2009

This looks mighty promising. Maybe it's just the pictures:

http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/2007/01/iron-pan-perfect-cornbread.html
posted by shetterly at 5:57 PM on November 13, 2009

Yeah, jonnycakes wouldn't be thick and bready. Less so even than a "pikelet," if what I just came up with on google is any indication. Best to go with your recipe, but don't fill it more than a 1/2 inch or so, so that you can be confident it'll cook through.

Jonnycakes are worth a try in themselves, though -- you reminded me of an article about Rhode Island food in the New York Times several years ago with some discussion of jonnycakes, which was so inviting that my friends and I embarked the next weekend on a packed-car road trip throughout the small state:

Finally, no overview of Rhode Island's culinary heritage would be complete without johnnycakes, the unleavened cornmeal pancakes served at breakfast haunts. The name's origin is a matter of some dispute as is its spelling: johnny-cake, jonnycake, Johnnycake and Johnny Cake are frequent variants. Some say the name derives from ''journey cake'' or ''Shawnee cake,'' although Mr. Chiaro dismissed both theories. ''Johnnycakes don't travel well,'' he said, ''and our Narragansett Indians never had anything to do with the Shawnees.'' His favored explanation is that the term derives from joniken, an Indian word for corn.

In any case, it's generally agreed that johnnycakes, or something very much like them, were being prepared by the Narragansetts as far back as the 1600's, when European colonists arrived and learned about them.

They haven't changed much over the years, mainly because the recipe is simplicity itself: cornmeal and water. The batter is fried in a skillet and topped with butter, syrup or honey.

posted by palliser at 6:02 PM on November 13, 2009

Response by poster: Okay, I'm on my way to the shops to get some ingredients now, and I'll try it at 1/2 inch as you suggest, palliser, until I'm a little more confident with what I'm doing. Please keep posting your hints and tips and I'll keep you updated on my progress!
posted by turgid dahlia at 6:13 PM on November 13, 2009

Best answer: For what it's worth, you can make very good cornbread in a Pyrex or metal pan. It won't have as crisp a bottom crust, but you can bake it like any other cake/qucikbread. This is how Northern cornbread is typically made, which tends to be sweet and cakey. In fact, I'd reckon most Americans are more familiar with the Northern type, since it's what tends to be served in all the chain restaurants nationwide. It's also more familiar if you bake, since it's basically a muffin batter poured into a square or round pan.

To be honest, I tend to prefer Northern cornbread. It's just a more accessible flavor than the squat, savory southern type. I was raised on the coasts, though, so take that as you will.

Here's a thread on Chowhound talking about the difference.

Also, make sure you make the right amount of batter for your pan. If you have a 12 inch pan, double the amount of batter if it's written for an eight inch pan. If it doesn't say, it's most likely for an eight or 10 inch pan, so doubling is fine.

Anyway, though, don't worry too much. People get really particular about cornbread, but that's how people get about any dish they feel a sense of pride in. It's really just a simple rustic baked good. You can get particular about the type of cornmeal (stone ground yellow is what I like), and some Southerners insist that you must add absolutely no sugar and use bacon grease, but it'll be edible no matter what you do. It's made of cheap ingredients, and I don't want to scare you into getting picky and scoping out ingredients that may not be in an Australian supermarket. If you want something good to eat it with, I like it with chili, either vegetarian or regular (which I shamelessly make by browning ground beef and adding that to vegetarian chili. Texans and vegetarians hate me equally for it).
posted by mccarty.tim at 7:00 PM on November 13, 2009

PS: Forgot to link to an example of Northern cornbread. This one looks good. You can substitute yogurt or milk and lemon juice/vinegar for the buttermilk if that's not handy.
posted by mccarty.tim at 7:04 PM on November 13, 2009

I would say go for it. I've made cornbread in a crockpot and it was totally fine. You'd be at a higher temp, presumably, but it's still the same idea.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 7:50 PM on November 13, 2009

Response by poster: Well I prepared the batter and had some shortening melting and heating up in the skillet, and stupidly poured the melted shortening into the batter mixture, and mixed it up some more, and then put the whole lot back in the pan. The settings go from 1-5 on the knob thing so I've got it at one. The recipe Netzapper links above suggests 30-40 minutes so I'll just leave it covered and alone for 20 and check the progress. Thanks for all the great advice guys. More news as it breaks!
posted by turgid dahlia at 8:19 PM on November 13, 2009

The 1 setting may be too low--that sounds like a "warm" setting. I would suggest bumping it up to 3. Uh, the worst that'll happen is you'll burn the outside and have to cut it off, but the inside will still be great.
posted by shetterly at 8:53 PM on November 13, 2009

Response by poster: Yeah, I kinda blew it by keeping it on so low. It came out okay, definitely cooked through and quite tasty, but was extremely crumbly. I grated some cheese over the top and slapped the bread itself into the oven for fifteen minutes which helped a little, but it still fell apart when serving, so I guess it's back to the drawing board with the next one. Good learning experience though. Thanks for all the help everyone!
posted by turgid dahlia at 9:45 PM on November 13, 2009

Crumbly cornbread can be fried and eaten with maple syrup or honey or jam. Makes a nice breakfast.

Mmm. Cornbread!
posted by shetterly at 10:34 PM on November 13, 2009

Response by poster: That's a neat idea, thanks!
posted by turgid dahlia at 11:23 PM on November 13, 2009

I thought cornbread was one of the things that can wreck the seasoning of a cast-iron pan. But perhaps this is enameled cast-iron?
posted by stopgap at 11:40 AM on November 14, 2009

stopgap, I did a quick google and found plenty of recipes for cornbread in cast-iron pans. Including one at Lodge, who may not make the best cast-iron pans, but I would hope would know what to avoid.

Also, if you do hurt the seasoning of a good cast iron pan, it's not that hard to season it again.
posted by shetterly at 10:12 PM on November 14, 2009