Break Tradition With This Hot Cornbread With Tomato Ketchup
For many, there are only two kinds of cornbread: the right one and the wrong one. Or south and north. [ Editor’s Note: What is northern cornbread? I don’t know her.] For me, both styles are just blank canvases to which I can add flavors. If you’re brave enough to break tradition with me, try this spicy cornbread with tomato ketchup.
Cornbread is a quick cornmeal-based bread, and when you look at it that way, you can let go of expectations. Sometimes it is enriched with bacon fat; sometimes with butter. Sometimes it is fluffy and sweet; other times it is dry, crumbly, unsweetened bread in a pan. Personally, I like stuffed cornbread inside and out—maybe with corn kernels or jalapeño scattered inside, or with a chili ball or macaroni and cheese layered on top . I’ve been missing fragrant red summer tomatoes this week, so I made cornbread with spicy tomato punch.
Simply adding tomato slices to plain cornbread wouldn’t help me. Tomatoes are mostly water, and if you make quick bread out of them, you end up with a moist pocket of hot tomato that doesn’t taste very good and can get a little bland. To get a more concentrated tomato flavor that won’t upset the liquid ratio of the cornbread dough, I thought about tomato paste and tomato ketchup. Any of these would work, but as someone who believes in more is more, I thought the addition of cane sugar, salt, and spices that are included in ketchups would bring out the tomato flavor. I prefer short list ketchups like Sir Kensington’s or Annie’s , but any ketchup will do. Just in case – and because I often like to have two flavors – I added a heavy dose of pepper spice. The cayenne and dried red pepper flakes add to the tomato flavor and make the finished cornbread taste more like tomatoes than ketchup.
To make this cornbread, use the typical muffin mixing method. Add all dry ingredients to a medium bowl and mix with a whisk. Add all wet ingredients to a smaller bowl or measuring cup and whisk together. Pour all wet ingredients into the dry ingredients bowl all at once and whisk until combined. While the oven is preheating to 450°F, add the oil to the cast iron skillet and let it heat up in the oven until the oil starts to brown. Pour all the batter into the skillet, smooth the top and return to the oven for 20 minutes.
The following cornbread recipe is closer in texture to Southern style cornbread – crispy edges in the pan and a more crumbly side. It is rich in tomato flavor, and ketchup gives it a sharpness and sweetness. The peppers are released on time and are sure to wake up your taste buds. The measurements in the recipe provide an undeniable punch that is not for the faint of heart. If all you want is warming spices, do yourself a favor and cut your servings of cayenne pepper and pepper flakes in half. This cornbread is best served with something salty and umami-rich, like crispy bacon, roast pork, or black bean soup.
How to make hot cornbread with tomato ketchup
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ¾ cup fine cornmeal
- 1 cup + 2 tablespoons coarse cornmeal
- ½ cup flour
- ½ teaspoon cayenne powder
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, crushed in a mortar and pestle
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup ketchup (I used Annie’s organic ketchup )
- ¾ cup milk
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Preheat oven to 450°F. Add oil to a 10″ or 12″ cast iron skillet. Set aside until you’re ready. Five minutes before you finish kneading the dough, place the skillet in the oven to heat up and lightly brown the butter.
In a medium bowl, whisk together two types of cornmeal, flour, cayenne pepper, pepper flakes, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
In a measuring cup or small bowl, combine ketchup, milk, egg, and butter. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and beat until combined.
Remove the skillet from the oven and swirl the skillet to coat the bottom with oil. Pour batter into hot skillet. Quickly level the top and return the skillet to the oven.
Bake at 450°F for 20 minutes or until browned around the edges and set in the center. Serve at room temperature as a side dish with tomatoes. This cornbread keeps unopened in the refrigerator for up to five days or frozen for up to three months. Revitalize frozen cornbread in the oven for 5-10 minutes at 350°F.