Nearly Extinct Cornbread
Made from the nearly extinct Jimmy Red corn varietal, you've never had cornbread quite like this.
39 Minutes
4-6 Servings
Easy
Baking | Cornbread
Chef Sean Brock’s grandmother, Audrey, was a seed saver by nature.
In 2007, Chef Sean decided to carry on her passion. Working with a friend, he helped procure a rare red corn varietal, and grew it from the ground up.
The heritage of southern food is essential to Chef Sean Brock’s ethos, so he decided to make it into a cornbread mix, and we are now excited to support his mission by stocking our new Chef Pantry with his
Jimmy Red Cornbread Mix
.
The mix, made from the nearly extinct Jimmy Red corn varietal, created what Chef Sean calls “The most perfect cornbread of [his] life.”
Not only is it delicious, and not only does it help preserve and continue history, it’s also extremely simple to make.
We recommend making it in our
Carbon Steel Frying Pan
. Thanks to its naturally non stick properties, heat retention, and high walls, it is the perfect vessel for this recipe, and plenty others. Placing your cornbread batter in Carbon Steel while on the stovetop allows your cornbread to develop a perfect bottom crust, and the wonderful heating capabilities of Carbon Steel then allow it to bake evenly.
Ingredients
A pinch of black pepper
2 1/2
cups full fat buttermilk
2
whole eggs
1
package Jimmy Red Cornbread Mix
1/2
cup + 4 tablespoons lard, melted (or vegetable shortening)
A pinch of coarse salt
Instructions
STEP 1
Preheat the oven to 450F. Put a 10-inch
Carbon Steel Frying Pan
in the oven for at least 10 minutes.
STEP 2
Whisk black pepper, buttermilk, and eggs. Add in the cornbread mix. Stir in the melted lard. Move the Frying Pan from the oven to the stove, placing it over high heat. Add half of the remaining lard and swirl to coat the Frying Pan. Pour in the batter, distributing it evenly. It should sizzle.
STEP 3
Transfer back to the oven and bake the cornbread for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Brush the top with the last of the lard and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Serve warm, directly from the Frying Pan.