Comments on: Jalapeno Cornbread!

By: Topaz

Topaz — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

This cornbread is very good and worth a try no matter what side of the sweet/not-sweet fence you are on. I like my cornbread sweet, being descended from New England settlers who were introduced to maize by the Algonquins, who had been growing and eating it since at least 1000 A.D. Not sure why southerners think cornbread is ‘their’ food. Yankees – don’t be intimidated by the food chauvinists – eat cornbread any way you like!

By: E.

E. — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Of all the corn bread recipes with jalapeno that are out there..this is the one I’m going to make, knowing it will be the best too. Thanks for the post.

By: Lucia

Lucia — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I’ve never understood the “rigids” – folks who will make absolutely no allowances for seasonal, regional, ethnic, or personal differences. Cornbread without sugar or chili without beans – no stone tablets engraved with these ‘rules’ I’m afraid.

By: Dick Black

Dick Black — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

In moderation, fried cornbread sounds like a great little indulgence.

I am not sure how it would stack up against the Brits version of fried bread, where white sandwich bread is fried in the roast drippings of Sundays supper.

I guess one would need to try it before they knocked it

By: Anna

Anna — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I have a scale, but measurements in cups and tablespoons sure help antipodeans like me who measure in the metric system, and have not a clue what an ounce is!

By: Joannah

Joannah — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

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By: Edward in Alabama

Edward in Alabama — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I must admit that I lost faith with the recipe as soon as I read the sentence about sugar. Ruhlman’s phrasing took sugar as a given but I have never known any southern cook to use ANY sugar in cornbread — including jalepeno-style. Chef Frank Stitt writes that “Corn bread sweetened with sugar must be a Yankee invention, because corn bread in the South is always a savory staple.” I agree with that “always.”

By the way, I think the best complement to any good (and unsweetened) cornbread is chow chow.

By: 19thandfolsom

19thandfolsom — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

a teaspoon of baking powder for every 5 ounces (cup or so) of flour, for most batters and some cookies, which need chemical leavening.

Michael, thanks for the response and the info. Good to know, and I’ll stick with a scale for salt.

By: Matthew Pennington

Matthew Pennington — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I had no idea that sugar in cornbread was A) so uniformly discouraged by readers of this web log (although there were some dissenting voices from the South) and B) a point argued often enough that people would be tired of reading about it. If I had known that yesterday, I doubt if I would have made the comment in the first place.

My preference for savory cornbread (often with butter and honey or molasses) no doubt comes from eating it at home as a child, and then being served the gooey flour cakes (with just enough cornmeal to give it some grit) people call cornbread here in the Upper Midwest. There’s no comparison, in my opinion, between the two. Maybe if someone, such as Michael Ruhlman, made me a slightly-sweetened cornbread fried in bacon fat, I might change my opinion, but I don’t see that happening anytime soon.

By: Jenni

Jenni — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Your Ratio is genius! From the fringe, I’ve been trying to proclaim technique and method over by-the-letter recipes for some time now; it’s fantastic to see the idea taking shape and gaining momentum in “the center,” too!

PS I am a fan of some sugar in the cornbread. I tire of hearing folks argue about the issue–make it how you like it, and live and let live, already.

By: MichaelG

MichaelG — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I vote for a little sweet as well. I’ve long added jalapenos to cornbread. Corn and jalapeno is one of the great flavor combinations. They’re made for each other.

By: Chef Barb

Chef Barb — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Sweet or savory? Evidently this is a personal decision.
People, calm down, it’s not like it’s a cup of sugar! As for me, I love a little sweetness because it complements the corn flavors. My husband would pour agave nectar all over this,eat every last bite and then look for more crumbs. This looks fantastic with the fresh corn and the crispy texture, swimming in that butter!!

By: Richard

Richard — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

I love, love, love, cornbread. Even when I have it with chili, I like to slather on some butter. The added touch is to pour on some molasses. The sweetness and acidity of the molasses with the spicy chili is an excellent combination.

Ruhlman, I just ordered Ratio and The Elements of Cooking. As soon as they come in, it will be time to make veal stock and chicken stock. After eating at Fleur de Lys in Vegas last weekend, I’m positive that veal stock is the backbone for the best sauces on Earth. Nothing else even comes close.

By: Adriana Lopez

Adriana Lopez — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Oh, like baker’s percentages. Now I get it. Thanks.

By: Natalie Sztern

Natalie Sztern — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Ah Ha – ‘ratio’ so it doesn’t matter if its imperial or metric…it’s the ratios….(I have a hard time with ‘right’ and ‘left’)

By: ruhlman

ruhlman — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

limoncello, yes, sadly, florida corn–i was testing a recipe and needed. don’t normally buy corn this time of year.

By: Debbie Franco

Debbie Franco — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

My grandmother made some jalapeno cornbread one time and used too many peppers, she said it was so hot she and my stepgrandfather couldn’t eat it. A neighbor had some chickens, and she gave the cornbread to them. She said when they started eating it, you’d hear bawk, bawk, BAWK!!

While the grease in that picture doesn’t look so good, your cornbread looks amazing.

By: limoncello

limoncello — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Add sugar, don’t add sugar — who cares? Your own call.
What I want to know is where the hell Ruhlman is finding “fresh corn” in April?? I’m here in San Francisco, and glad to see tomatoes just barely showing up at the farmers’ markets. Corn? Let’s spell J-u-l-y

By: Cameron S.

Cameron S. — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

Some cornbread recipes have a cup or more of sugar, so this looks pretty good. Just a bit of sweetness.

By: Paige Orloff

Paige Orloff — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:00:00 +0000

The best cornbread I ever ate was in a bbq restaurant in Chattanooga in the 70s. I don’t remember the name of the place, but my family went there regularly, until the owner died and the place shut down. The cornbread was made in pancake form, cooked on a griddle with plenty of that delicious “sludge”, and contained white cornmeal only. Surprisingly, given that this was in Tennessee, it was not sweet. It’s like the redneck madeleine of my childhood, and armed with the golden ratio–I’m going to try to replicate it (and maybe some ‘cue, too, while I’m at it.) Thank you!