Jalapeno Cornbread

Jalapeno Cornbread

Jalapeno cornbread is a twist on a barbecue classic.  Originally popular in the Southern United States, and subsequently influenced by African cooking we’ve taken inspiration from Caribbean cuisine.

Cornbread was a traditional staple when cornmeal was a cheaper option than wheat flour.  Today, it is often eaten at breakfast, served for lunch with pinto beans or widely eaten with traditional barbecue food and chilli.  There are so many different recipes available with different type of cornmeal, also known as polenta, and varying quantities of sugar and eggs.  Some recipes use buttermilk and corn kernels.  This version uses oil only.

This was our second attempt at Jalapeno Cornbread and it was an absolute triumph.  We served it with some candied jalapeño bacon.  Both recipes are perfect for cooking on the Big Green Egg.

Method

1. Setup your Big Green Egg for an indirect cook with the ConvEGGtor (plate setter) feet up and stainless steel grid on top with baking stone. Set the temp to 200°C. Try not to go above 200°C as you may burn the bottom of your corn bread.
2. Pop the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder in a large bowl.  Stir the ingedients together.
3. Whisk in the milk and oil.
4. Finish by folding in the eggs and jalapenos. The mixture is smooth and batter-like.
5. Line a 25cm square baking tin with parchment paper.  Pour the batter into the tin.
6. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until it is golden brown and starting to pull away from the edges.  Use a cocktail stick or skewer to test if it’s cooked; it should be clean when removed from the cornbread.
7. Place on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes in the baking tin before carefully removing it from the tin and leaving it on the wire rack to cool completely.
8. We sampled the cornbread whilst it was still warm, it’s delicious.

We also topped it with candied bacon and sour cream.