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You’re going to mix theJalapeno Bacon Cornbread is packed with amazing flavors

I am a big fan of cornbread. I have my favorites, but I wanted to try something entirely new to us and this Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread is the result.

The garden has given us plenty of jalapenos this year, and this is the time of year when we start to wonder what we’re going to do with them all. And, bacon is good with everything in our opinion.

Looking for more Cornbread Recipes?

You decide how spicy

You can control the heat in this Jalapeno Bacon Cronbread by the number of jalapenos you use, and how you cut them. These were not terribly spicy, and they were small, so I used 4 of them, and cut them in thin slices, leaving the seeds in. At times, I’ve had jalapenos that were really spicy. If you want less spice, you can remove the ribs and seeds or use fewer jalapenos. I cut the stem end off and taste a small amount to see how hot they are. For a change of flavor, you can even used jarred, pickled jalapenos if you like – just chop them up and blot them with paper towels so they don’t add too much liquid to the batter.

Fry the bacon until it is very crisp

You’re going to mix the cooked bacon in a wet batter, so you want the bacon to start out very crispy, or it will get soggy. Dicing up the bacon before frying also helps render out more of the fat, which also adds to the crispness. I like to cook it over fairly low heat – low and slow to keep it from burning and achieve maximum crispness without burning.

Cornbread uses the ‘Muffin Method’

The ‘muffin method’ refers to how the ingredients are combined to end up with a light, fluffy cornbread, rather than a heavy, dense one. The dry ingredients are combined in one bowl, the wet in another, and then the two mixtures are combined as quickly as possible. With this recipe, the jalapenos and bacon are mixed in along with the wet ingredients.

Don’t mix the batter too much

Too much mixing develops more gluten and deflates the batter, both of which will make your cornbread tough and it won’t rise as well. You can see in the photo that there are some small bits of flour showing and that is exactly what you want. Don’t mix this batter until it is completely smooth.

How to bake this Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread

I prefer to use a cast iron skillet for corn bread. This is a nice one from Amazon: 8 inch Lodge Cast Iron Skillet. The 8 inch pan is the perfect size for this recipe, as well as Skillet Pumpkin Fudge Brownies.

For this cornbread, we cook the bacon in the pan we will be baking it in. Use good oven mitts, and handle the pan carefully. It is important to keep the cast iron pan very hot while mixing the cornbread batter. You will have a nice, crisp crust and it will bake up quickly, but stay moist. See the recipe below for just how to make this cornbread come out perfectly.

No cast iron? No problem!

If you don’t have cast iron, you can bake this in an ordinary 8 x 8 baking dish. See the recipe card for those directions, or scroll all the way to bottom of this post, and I’ll walk you through it.

How to make Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread

recipe for Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread on The Creekside Cook

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Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread

Author: Donalyn Ketchum

This cornbread is light, with a crisp crust and ton of spicy, smoky falvor!

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: breads

Cuisine: Southwestern

Servings:

Calories: 284kcal

Equipment

8 inch cast iron skillet

Ingredients

4 slices thick bacon [save the grease]
1 - 4 jalapenos
1 cup of stone ground cornmeal
1 cup all purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 tablespoon avocado oil
2 tablespoons reserved bacon grease from frying the bacon
2 tablepoons honey [optional, or use sugar]

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400º
Place bacon in a cold 8-inch cast iron skillet - fry over low heat, stirring very often, until crisp.
Put jalapeno rings in a 1 quart heat-proof bowl, and mix in the crisp bacon, plus the saved two tablespoons of the bacon grease.
Leave a tablespoon of bacon grease, and any bits of bacon in the skillet and put in the preheated oven to keep it hot.
In a medium bowl whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In a two cup measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, egg and oil.
Add the buttermilk and bacon mixtures to the dry ingredients and fold together just until combined - the batter will be rough looking and that is just what you want.
Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and spread the batter in it.
Return the skillet to the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, until the top is getting browned and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cut in wedges and serve with plenty of soft butter.

Notes

Keeping the cast iron pan very hot before adding the batter will give this cornbread a very crisp crust on the bottom, and will make it bake in the amount of time mentioned. Using a cold pan is going to increase the baking time and the result will not be as good.

To bake this in a regular baking dish, preheat the oven to 400°F. Use a pastry brush to grease the dish with some of the reserved bacon grease. Mix as above, and scrape the batter into the prepared dish. This will take around 25 minutes to bake. Use a toothpick to test.

Store leftovers in a sealed container in the refrigerator [NOT in the cast iron pan - the moisture will ruin the seasoning on the pan. You can wrap in foil and reheat for about 10 minutes,

Nutrition

Jalapeno Bacon Cornbread is great with soups or chili

This would be delicious alongside a big bowl of Bean Soup, Creamy Chicken and Rice Soup, or Chili!

No cast iron? Use this alternate method for baking the cornbread. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Fry the bacon in a regular saute pan and follow the directions for adding the peppers to the bacon. Use the remaining bacon drippings to grease an 8×8 inch baking dish or pan – make sure to swirl it around well, or spread out with a pasty brush so that all inside surfaces are coated. Mix as directed above and spread the batter in the prepared dish – bake for about 20 to 25 minutes until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Originally published in September 2012, and updated in October 2019, and again in September 2024