The Hot Skillet Trick

The hot skillet trick is not so much a trick as a technique, habit, a convenient way to get good results from your cornbread making. I grew up watching my mother and my grandmother do this whenever they made cornbread (southern style, of course) and for me, it’s like the unspoken, unwritten part of the recipe.

STOVE-TOP METHOD
After you’ve made your cornbread batter, heat your cast iron skillet over medium heat. When it’s hot put in the oil (whatever type and amount the recipe calls for). When the oil is hot, pour it into the batter and blend in the oil.

Now pour the batter into the hot skillet. You should hear a satisfying sizzle as the oil sears the bottom of the soon-to-come cornbread. Now put the skillet in the oven and bake.

OVEN METHOD
Set your oven to the recommended temperature and put your cast iron skillet in the oven to heat at the same time. If you are using palm oil (which I recommend over any type of shortening) or ghee, you can put the oil in the skillet at that time and let it get hot along with your skillet.

When the oven is ready, take the skillet out and carefully pour the cornmeal batter into the skillet. You should hear a satisfying sizzle as the oil sears the bottom of the soon-to-come cornbread. Now put the skillet in the oven and bake. Easy!

It’s really a simple thing. But like many simple processes, it takes a lot of words to explain!

TIPS
If you are using butter, you have to watch the skillet closely so that the butter doesn’t burn. You’ll need to take the skillet out of the oven as soon as the butter is melted. Pour the melted butter into your cornmeal batter and return the now greased skillet to the oven to finish heating.

Also, if you are using butter it’s better to pre-heat your skillet on the stove. That way you can more easily monitor the melting of the butter and avoid burning it.