Cornbread

This is my first cornbread ever. And I don't just mean the first cornbread I've ever made-- this is the first time I've eaten it, too. Oh, I may have tried a cornbread muffin sometime, but I certainly don't remember it. I guess it's just not a very popular food in southern Ontario.

Not knowing what cornbread is supposed to taste like, I was a bit nervous. I needn't have been- it was dead easy to make, and seems to have turned out fine. And it was so quick-- done it about 30 minutes, from start to finish. How can I have gone on so long without knowing about such a quick and easy bread?

I did a little research first and discovered that cornbread is best made with freshly stone-ground cornmeal, and buttermilk, and is best baked in an cast-iron skillet. These three points presented a bit of a problem: it's hard enough to find regular cornmeal here, and I'm pretty sure stone-ground, fresh or not, is unavailable. Buttermilk is also unavailable. And a cast-iron skillet? Even if I could find one, it wouldn't fit in my little oven. I almost bought a cast-iron sukiyaki pan, which looked like it would just fit, and then I noticed that the care instructions warned not to use it in the oven.

So I improvised: regular cornmeal, milk with a touch of vinegar, and a pyrex baking dish. And it worked-- the crust even turned out crispy, which I expected would be impossible without cast-iron. That might have been thanks to the bacon fat I used, which was heated up in the dish before the batter was poured in. Thank god I can at least buy bacon in Japan.

Here's the cornbread cut open and buttered. It was delicious and I'm totally satisfied with the flavour, but is it supposed to be so, well, dry? I know cornbread is not supposed to be moist, and is mostly meant for supping up juices, but man was it ever dry! Did I screw up? Maybe overcooked it a bit? I'm not sure what the colour on top is supposed to be like, but it looks a bit dark. Otherwise this cornbread is great, and as long as it's well-buttered or served with something soupy, it's going to be a regular on our table.

Here is the recipe. I chose it because it was the simplest one I could find (no sugar or flour), but if anyone else has a recipe they can recommend, please let me know.

Oh, and I did serve it with something soupy, something both Hideaki and I have been craving for ages. Can anyone guess what it was?

Comments

[Courtney]

Chili! Cornbread was for chili at my house, anyway, so that's what I always think of. According to mom, cornbread is also lucky food for the new year, so when I went home last December we had it along with black-eyed peas, mashed spuds, and salmon.

I remember cornbread as generally being very dry and benefiting from butter, but I prefer it a bit damp, with chunks of corn mixed in -- I don't remember if that was something mom made years ago, but it was really good. If you can find a recipe like that, I recomend trying it.

I am sure I have seen corn meal in Japan before... probably at Nisshin or one of those specialty foreign shops. Don't think I've seen buttermilk, though.

[Absolutely Tokyo!]

yum, yum! It looks so delicious! And, as Courtney said, it usually goes with chili. Sometimes I made it "from scratch" at home in the U.S. and, when I felt lazy, made it from a very inexpensive boxed mix. Of all the recipes I tried, including using cast iron skillets, I found the one that tasted best to me was the boxed version! :-) It wasn't as dry as the home-made version. If you want a little more moistness, you could wrap it in foil after it's cooled, and then serve it the next day. For me, it always disappeared the same day, though. And, it tastes best of all hot out of the oven, slathered with lots of cold butter. OK, now I'm drooling. . .

[Kat]

Chili would be my guess. Your cornbread looks very nice!

[junglegirl]

There are two schools regarding cornbread: sweet or not sweet. I like it sweet with salty butter, therby getting the best of both. Try using yogurt in place of buttermilk and adding a 1/4 to 1/3 cup of oil for a moister bread. Also, use a recipe with flour and cornmeal. It helps, though the texture of the plain cornmeal type can be addictive, especially when you have it toasted with butter and honey for breakfast as I used to do as a child growing up in the south. Yum!

[Cass]

Your cornbread looks incredible. Did you use what my international supermarket calls 'corn grits'?

[Gabriel]

Hi!
The cornbread I eat is very diferent. It as no butter nor sugar. It's a tradicional Portuguese cornbread named 'Brôa'. You can also make sweet 'Brôa' ('Merendeira' or 'Brôa Dôce') adding some sugar and olive oil to the mix. The particularity of the recipe is that you have to scald the mix (when making sweet cornbread the olive oil and sugar are added in the end, just before putting it in the oven. Just mix the newly added ingredients and put it in). I couldn't find a good recipe of it in english, the best one I could find is in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broa
If you would like more informations, please ask.
Compliments, Gabriel

[Tamara]

I agree with Kat. Add more oil or bacon grease. Cornbread should not be dry, and the amount of liquid it can absorb is unbelieveable. I'm from Kentucky, and even though the iron skillet thing is supposed to be sacred, I got by fine without one for many years. The batter should be runny, a little thinner than pancake batter. I was always taught to heat the oil up in the skillet, then pour it into the batter, mix and pour back into the skillet, but that really just makes the outside crunchier and doesn't make any difference in the texture. I've used glass fine too. I never use flour. My grandfather used to crumble day old cornbread up in a tall glass then fill the glass up with cold milk and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. It's like a poor man's breakfast cereal...and surprisingly it's kind of good. :)

[Amy]

OK, I guess these comments prove what I read online- that chili and cornbread are made for eachother!

Thanks for all the tips and stories. I love how this food has such a strong following, with everyone having their own methods of cooking it and family histories. I'll be trying it again soon with a new recipe, and I hope it becomes a family tradition!

[Lisa]

Hello,
The reason your cornbread was so dry was because of the omission of flour in the recipe. The author of the recipe says that her grandma would not want to "waste" her flour on cornbread--but the flour is what gives the cormeal it's lightness. Cornmeal is dry and heavy, and when not combined with the cornmeal it makes for a VERY dry bread. Most cornbreads also benefit from the addition of sugar. Not to make it a sweet cake, but to help in the "lightening" of the texture and flavor. The sweetness is a foil to the salty tast of the cornmeal, and goes perfectly with a dish like chili or bbq chicken. Try those two ingredients (sugar and flour) next time--the bacon grease or the cast iron skillet are not necessary to make a great batch of cornbread.
Take care,
Lisa
San Francisco Bay Area

[Vanessa]

You can also cook honey in the cornbread. I have a friend that puts some butter and honey on top of the batter after pouring it into the baking dish. I've also noticed that the cheap boxes of "Jiffy" cornbread mix are really the best

[Amy]

So it seems like everyone has their own version of cornbread. I was originally going for an authentic southern style cornbread, and apparently in the south it's considered a crim to put sugar into shortbread. But I think next time I'll try it northern-style, with a little sugar and flour.
Thanks again for the tips!

[Cass]

I tried this on the weekend, subbing plain yoghurt for the buttermilk, and it was delicious. Thanks for the recipe (and the vote of confidence that it would work in a toaster oven).

[JenPack]

Hi Amy,

I love cornbread...and yours looks delicious. Next time, try adding corn to the cornbread. I usually use a can of corn or a handful or two of frozen corn...just add it to the batter at the end and stir carefully. It adds a nice little sweet crunch and probably a little moistness as well.

The other thing I do with boxed cornbread is add flavorings. One of my favorite combos is fresh rosemary and lemon juice added to the cornbread. Another good one is cilantro and lime juice (to accompany chili or mexican food).