Cast Iron Skillet Cornbread Recipe -Fluffy Style (2024)

FAQs

Should I preheat my cast iron skillet for cornbread? ›

When cooking cornbread in a cast iron skillet, it's important to preheat the skillet at a high temperature at 425 degrees F. This gets your skillet good and hot for it to create those gorgeous crispy edges, in case you can't you tell how obsessed I am with these perfect edges.

Cast Iron Skillet Size

The recipe is written for a 9 inch skillet with a 1 ½ inch depth. If you have a wider or deeper skillet you are going to need to scale the recipe depending on how thick you want your cornbread.

The most common reason food sticks to cast iron is because the pan is simply too hot. Because cast iron retains heat much better than other types of cookware, you generally don't need to use as high of a heat setting as you normally would with stainless steel or aluminum cookware.

Preheat your pan

A hot, greasy skillet will prevent your cornbread from sticking and give your cornbread the right texture. You want your batter to start baking as soon as it hits the pan. Hear that sizzle? You WANT some sizzle here.

Set the batter aside for 10 to 15 minutes.

By letting the cornbread batter sit at room temperature before baking, the cornmeal has some extra time to absorb the flavor from the other ingredients, and the baking powder gets a head start.

Should I let cornbread cool before removing from cast iron? Let the cornbread cool slightly in the skillet before slicing and serving. It will be a bit sturdier (and less crumbly), and the hot skillet will be a bit easier to handle as it cools slightly. The cornbread is great served warm or at room temperature.

Best Overall: Victoria 10-Inch Cast Iron Skillet

It is hard to beat the "gold standard" Lodge pan, but the Victoria skillet performed just as well and was even a bit more refined. The pour spouts are wider and deeper than the Lodge, so there were no drips when we poured oil from the pan.

But there's one dish that nothing but a cast iron skillet will do: cornbread. Why? If you bake it in anything else cornbread will not achieve the desired crispy crust.

Let the bread rest for 10 to 30 minutes in the skillet before cutting it into wedges and serving. To avoid burning your hand because you've forgotten the pan is hot, I recommend placing a pot holder on the pan's handle while the cornbread is resting, or cooling the handle down a bit with an ice cube.

If the cornbread is done, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool somewhat before either turning it out of the pan or slicing and serving from the skillet.

Is it okay to spray Pam on cast iron? ›

Do not try to use nonstick sprays like Pam to season your cast iron skillet, as they contain other ingredients that aren't good for your pan.

Prior to cooking, add about a teaspoon of oil to your skillet and heat it gradually on the stovetop or in the oven to help reduce sticking. After cooking, allow the cookware to cool, then use a pan scraper to remove stuck-on food, scrub with a nylon brush or nonscratch pad, hand dry, and add a generous layer of oil.

Bake your cornbread batter in a 9" x 13" pan until it tests done, about 18 minutes. Let the cornbread cool completely before cutting it into squares or rectangles; I've made these 3" x 4" but the size is up to you. Toast and serve with butter, honey, or honey-butter.

Preheat your cast iron bakeware before adding your batter or dough for crunchy edges on cornbread, pizza, and biscuits.

You always want to preheat your skillet before cooking with it on the stovetop. Putting cold food in a cold cast-iron pan will make your food stick. Cast-iron skillets don't heat as evenly as nonstick or stainless steel pans, but they keep their heat very well.

The method to cooking with cast iron on the stovetop is HEAT, do not add the cooking oil until the pan feels hot, because the oil will be the benchmark of the pan's readiness. If the butter sizzles, pan's ready. Oil slides across the pan with easy, pan's ready.

The Benefits of Preheating

The skillet holds heat better than other materials, is incredibly versatile and actually adds a bit of iron to your diet. But despite some popular cooking myths, cast iron does not heat evenly—or quickly. That's why preheating is such an important (and often overlooked) step.