Hello all. Just signed up today. Having problems with cornbread recipes calling for 8x8 pans. I know you're supposed to use cast iron, but several recipes and makers of cornbread mixes say not to use cast iron. The recipe I have says to grease, oil, or spray a 8x8 pan, preheat in oven and then pour in batter. Problem is that a non-stick pan does not cling to the oil. When the pan gets hot enough, the oil just rolls around. I poured the batter in anyway, and when it was done, the cornbread stuck to the pan. I scraped it out, soaked the pan to clean it and noticed exactly where I poured, (exactly where the batter hit first) the pan was discolored. Like a heat bloom. The only thing I can think of is to ignore pre-heating pans like this(cake pans) and just put in oven with the batter like a regular cake.
Any comments or help would be grateful.
Preheating a cast iron makes some sense - the hot oil 'fries' the batter, giving a crisper crust. With all-cornmeal recipies this can be important, since it adds texture, and counters the natural crubliness of the bread.
But with a 8x8 cake baking pan, don't bother with the preheating. Just grease like you would for a cake, pour in the batter and bake. These pans conduct well enough. If it still sticks consider a parchment paper liner. I usually bake a half and half (Northern half flour) style this way.
Thanks for the help. One problem. Renolds Wrap website says parchment paper up to 420F. Cornbread is usually baked at 425 to 450F and even 500F. You have no problems at these temps with the parchment paper?
Kind of funny. I'm trying Spider Cake and found out the cake is sticking to the cast iron skillet. I'm thinking 350F is too low for a crust. Plus I also found that the cream is leaving a sticky mess in the skillet. Won't flip out of the skillet. I should try parchment paper in that recipe.
The high baking temperature is most useful when developing the crust; less important when baking a thicker cake like bread. Cornbread used to be baked in wood stoves and dutch ovens, which were much harder to control (temperature wise).
Also the batter itself is damp until the end, so never gets above boiling water temperature. That means that the paper under the batter doesn't get nearly as hot as the oven temperature. The oven walls and dry air will get up to 400, but not the cornbread itself, nor the parts of the pan in contact with the bread.
I don't know anything about Reynolds Wrap's parchment per se (I don't use that specific brand, and in general, I'm still getting used to "coated" parchment years after it seems to have become the norm), but underneath something that's cooking, whether in pan (like a cake or your cornbread) or even on a baking sheet or stone (like a free-form bread loaf or pizza), won't reach the actual oven temperature itself, so it should be fine.
I use a Pyrex 8X8 pan with good results. I don't preheat the pan.
When making a larger amount of cornbread I use a large 12 inch cast iron pan with good results.
I spray both with oil.
Why not invest in a glass (Pyrex) pan?
I don't use any non stick pans. Rumor has it that the fumes are harmful to my pet bird. With proper cooking techniques sticking is not a problem with good quality cast iron, stainless steel and glass.
I don't think glass does anything particularly special for cornbread, any metal pan should do as well...
As an side, it's just as well to avoid Teflon-type coatings at all if you have birds - I certainly would - since there's no sense taking any chances with their health for so little a "benefit" as not having one's eggs or fish potentially stick slightly to a pan. But just for the record, one has to heat pans coated with the stuff pretty hot before the relevant gases start being released, though I was a little surprised to see that it can happen at temps lower than I'd previously thought (at least with some coatings on some products - see, e.g., www.ewg.org/research/canaries-kitchen...). At the lower temperatures , it's not due to the non-stick layer itself "breaking down", but the vaporization of chemical residues left during the manufacturing process; at higher temperatures, the Teflon layer itself degrades and releases various potentially harmful gases in the process...
I'm eating cornbread cooked in an 8x8 Pyrex right now. We do the same. Cold pan into a hot oven.
I made cornbread twice in the past week, and tho my way might be less authentic, I had no trouble with sticking:
-- Used a regular cake pan, room temp;
-- Buttered and "floured" it (but used cornmeal rather than flour);
-- I let the finished cornbread cool in the pan but atop a wire rack (for better air circ) for at least 20 min before upending it and letting the cornbread slip out.
Thanks for all the help.
1) I've never used Pyrex at High temps. 450F. Kind of scared they might shatter.
2) I try and follow a new recipe and use what is called for. Then, depending on how it turns out, I'll start changing it.
3) I have a 6", 2-10", 12" cast iron skillets that I normally use. I have an 8" and 9" cake pans rated to 550F and just got a new 8x8 non-stick pan rated to 500F.
I started finding recipes calling for 8" and 9" cast iron skillets and I was not about to buy them. So I ended up with the cake pans. (Fat Daddios brand) Ended up at $3.00 each for the pans. Now I'm finding recipes for 9x9 pans, but for these I'll use a 10" cast iron. I haven't run across any recipes using a 9x13 pan, but I should be able to squeeze that into my 12".
Consumer Reports did some testing on new pyrex pans and found they could make them break by removing them from a 450F oven and placing them on a wet countertop. I don't think you need to worry too much about them shattering by just putting them in the oven.
It never previously occurred to me that they might break because my mom used them in the oven all the time growing up.
I remember reading years ago that Pyrex changed the formula for their Pyrex dishes causing them to shatter more often. Of course , the company denied they were responsible. Any "older" Pyrex dishes were safe. (original formula)
Yes. In the test they tested both the new type and the old type. The old type was superior. Even at 500F they didn't shatter going into the oven, but they could be made to shatter coming out. They all involved a radical temperature swing. Apparently the old formula glass (borosilicate) is still produced in Europe.
borosilicate glass has a low "expansion" coefficient vs soda lime aka window aka float glass.
the next issue the dummy writers usually fail to address is "tempering" - tempering heats glass to a near molten state - which allows mechanical stresses induced by the forming process to dissipate / relax - and cools the glass at a slow constant rate in order to prevent new stresses from being introduced.
Famously Idiotic Testing Sites ala Consumer Reports have taken the MythBuster's approach to the nth degree. if at first you cannot replicate the rumor, use more C4. to their credit, Consumer Reports freely acknowledged "in normal usage we could not duplicate the reports so we went from a billion degree oven and put the glass pan on a ice cold wet surface to ensure it would fracture."
any material, when subjected to sufficient mechanical stress, will break. dip a rose in liquid nitrogen, toss it on the ground, it shatters. you should demand refund from Star Roses, as their product is obviously defective. and it is to note, temperature changes induce mechanical stress.
the trademark of pyrex / Pyrex etc etc el barfo per internet blogs, originally owned by Corning Glass, was sold to Kitchen (something) whatever, of shady reputation (but WAIT! there's more!)
other manufacturing companies have produced glass bakeware in parallel with Corning borosilicate, using tempered soda lime glass for dozens of decades. where did that outrage go?
that shady Kitchen xxx switched from borosilicate to soda lime glass should be of no surprise to anyone. it's a Chinese thing. perhaps not actually "just as good as Xerox" - but for sure a thing popularly known as "cheepie cheepie."
face it, "idiots" can break anything. tempered borosilicate glass is more resistant to breakage than tempered soda lime glass. "more resistant" does not mean "unbreakable" - and "less resistant" does not automatically imply non-suited for the intended purpose.
dems da' facts - trolls and idiot / wild speculation abounds.
before you start squeezing too much batter into pans that are too small:
While matching pan to recipe is important for cakes where rise and texture is important, cornbread is more like a muffin or quick bread. You just mix the wet and dry and pour the batter into the pan. The depth of the batter in the pan makes some difference in baking time and texture, but as long as you keep an eye on the baking, it shouldn't be ruined if 'too' deep or 'too' shallow.
Less depth means it will bake faster, and have more crust to crumb. Deeper will be more cake like. I'd favor the thin bread when using an all cornmeal recipe.
In my experience a recipe that uses 2c of flour(s) (combined) fits a 8x8 pan nicely. That's about the same as a 9" round pan. 12" skillet should be close to a 9x13 pan. A 3-4c batter should work in those. With a little experience and observation you should be able to adjust the recipe to the pan (and v.v.).
I can't imagine why they would say not to use cast iron. You can put it in the oven dry for a good long while, then add some bacon grease (and a pat of butter if you want) to coat, and it is so easily controlled. Nice brown crust every time.
I make mine in a cast-iron skillet. Start preheating the oven to 425; set the skillet on a surface burner and pour in enough oil to just cover the bottom (corn, canola, or lard--makes no difference.) Mix your batter and let it stand until the oven is at 425 (hydrates the dry stuff). Check your oiled skillet for proper temp. I use an infrared thermometer and wait for 375° or better. Without the thermometer, flick a drop of the batter into the oil: If it sizzles, you're ready. Pour the batter in (it should be sizzling) and put it in the oven for about 18 minutes. When done, you should be able to simply invert the skillet over a cooling rack, and your toasty cornbread should drop out. If you introduce the batter when the oil is too cold (< 350°), it sticks.
I cook cornbread at 400 degrees. (standard quaker cornmeal recipe, fiddled with just a bit)
Can use cast iron, won't harm anything.
Don't preheat non-cast iron.
My mom often baked cornbread in a chicken fryer (deep 10" skillet) or dutch oven - as topping for a stew. Imagine shepherd's pie, using cornbread instead of mashed potatoes.
by Jen Wheeler | Need a spring vegetable guide to what's in season? Consider this your spring produce cheat sheet—complete...
by Rachel Johnson | Whether the kids are still distance learning or returning to a classroom, with school back in session...
by Kelly Magyarics | You’ve sprung for a gorgeous piece of enameled cast iron cookware; protect your investment by cleaning...
by Debbie Wolfe | Home chefs love wood cutting boards because they are durable and reliable. Wood boards are attractive...