Crackling Bread
Ingredients
Directions
Make the batter
In a bowl, mix the cornmeal and coarse sea salt.
Add cold water gradually to create a thick batter.
Fold in the fried cracklings.
Cook
Heat a griddle and pour a large tablespoonful of batter at a time.
Fry until golden brown on both sides.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Cornmeal
- Forms the main structure and body of the cornbread as its starches set when cooked.
- Cold water
- Hydrates the cornmeal into a thick batter that holds its shape on the griddle.
- Fried cracklings
- Add fat, savory flavor, and crisp bits throughout the cornbread.
The step that matters
Frying until golden on both sides. Cornmeal batter has no gluten to hold it together, so the cakes rely on starch setting as they cook. Flipping too early, before the surface has set and browned, can make them break apart, while cooking them through on both sides ensures the centre is set.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Cornbread345 recipes
Bread Pudding336 recipes
Milk Bread Rolls242 recipes
Potato Bread124 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.