Food - Drink
Your Cast Iron Should Be 'Sizzling Hot' Before Pouring Cornbread Batter
By WENDY LEIGH
Before making cornbread, it’s crucial that your cast iron pan is sizzling hot to ensure a golden-brown crust, to keep the bread from sticking, and to keep it moist and cakey.
You can see if your cast iron is hot enough by adding a thin coating of oil, butter, or bacon grease, then heating it either on the stovetop or in the oven at about 425 degrees F.
Leave a tablespoon of hot fat in the skillet and add the batter. If the pan is as hot as it needs to be, you'll hear a sizzling sound as the bread's crust starts to turn crispy.
If your pan isn't hot enough, it can be hard to fix, so give it time to heat up. You can also brown butter in the skillet before adding batter for delicious brown butter cornbread.