If you are looking for a delicious and truly Southern cornbread recipe, this is it! It is the best cornbread you’ll ever eat, because it’s my fathers. With no wheat, flour or sugar, baked in a sizzling hot cast iron skillet seasoned with bacon fat for that golden brown crust, it is truly a favorite, especially when served alongside a heaping plate of black-eyed peas and greens.
You will need a 9- or 10-inch, well-seasoned cast iron skillet for this recipe.
Ingredients:
3 teaspoons bacon grease (Benton’s bacon grease gives a nice smoky flavor)
1 large egg
2 cups buttermilk at room temperature
1¾ cups cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
Prepartion:
Add enough bacon grease to the skillet to coat the bottom of the pan, then put it in a cold oven and preheat to 450°. In the meantime, mix the egg into the buttermilk, then add the cornmeal and mix well.
When the oven has reached 450°, after about 10 minutes, the grease should be just to the smoking point. Quickly stir the salt, baking powder, and soda into the batter and add the batter all at once to the hot pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top just begins to brown. Turn the bread out onto a platter to cool for a minute, and serve with lots of real butter.
Makes 8 to 10 slices to serve 6
Note: for a twist add chopped (seeded) jalapeno’s, cheddar cheese, or pork cracklin’s.
Tip: My back up is Martha White Self-Rising Corn Meal Mix Hot Rize!