Skillet Corn Bread with Poblanos, Corn, Bacon, and Cheddar

I love when you can finally meet a person after following them for so long on social media. I had the wonderful opportunity to finally meet Pati Jinich early last year when she visited Denver for a book signing.

I arrived a little late (as always), as she was already talking about her new cookbook and love of Mexican food to a room full of fans. As I snuck in the back row she stopped talking and said, “Hey, I know you!” She really knows how to make someone blush. I was seriously, so excited that she recognized me. To know that a very-well known Mexican chef recognized me, totally made my day.

Her beautiful cookbook has been sitting on my bookshelf for months, but I haven’t had a chance to cook anything from it, and now I’m excited to finally share one of her recipes with you.

Pati Jinich cornbread

I made this skillet corn bread with roasted poblanos, fresh corn kernels, crisp bacon, and sharp cheddar cheese and as you can see this corn bread is studded with every ingredient. Every flavor is highlighted and the bacon fat gives this corn bread an amazing buttery flavor with a crispy and crunchy crust.

I have a couple of corn bread recipes on my blog like this savory cheesy cornbread and this sweet corn cake, but for a crowd-pleasing and slightly spicy and flavorful corn bread you can bet this recipe will be my new go-to recipe. I can already imagine making this again to take for our next camping trip.

cheesy cornbread

This recipe is in Pati’s new cookbook, Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens.

What I love about this book is that it is a true reflection not only of the food of Mexico, but also of Pati herself. As you read each story you can hear her beautiful voice and imagine her smile, and know these recipes were made con mucho amor.

I’m a huge fan of hers and knowing that her recipes taste as good as she makes them look on her PBS show and YouTube channel is a true sign of an amazing chef. I feel truly blessed to call her a friend.

Pati Jinich Mexican Today

Skillet Corn Bread with Poblanos, Corn, Bacon, and Cheddar

5 (1 rating)
This skillet cornbread with roasted poblanos, fresh corn kernels, crisp bacon, and sharp cheddar cheese is studded with every ingredient. Every flavor is highlighted and the bacon fat gives this corn bread an amazing buttery flavor with a crispy and crunchy crust.

Ingredients

  • 3   poblano chiles charred, sweated, peeled, seeded and diced
  • 6 to 8  slices  center cut bacon
  • 1/2  cup  yellow cornmeal
  • 1 1/4  cup  all-purpose flour
  • 1/3  cup  brown sugar
  • teaspoon  baking powder
  • teaspoon  baking soda
  • 1/2  teaspoon  kosher or coarse sea salt
  • 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
  • cup  whole milk
  • 1/2  cup  heavy cream
  • 4   eggs well beaten
  • cups  grated cheddar cheese, recommend Cabot Sharp Cheddar
  • cups  corn kernels preferably fresh, or thawed from frozen

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 375°F. 
  • In a large cast-iron pan, over medium-high heat, add the bacon. Cook until crispy, about 3 minutes per side. Remove the bacon from the pan and turn off the heat. 
  • In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine the milk, cream and eggs. Whisk the wet ingredients into the dry. Add the cheddar cheese, corn and poblano chiles. Crumble the bacon and toss it in. Pour in most of the bacon fat from the cast-iron pan into the batter, leaving about 1 tablespoon in the pan. Mix well. 
  • Place the cast-iron pan with the remaining bacon drippings again over medium heat, pour the batter into the pan. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into wedges and serve.

Notes

Calories: 323.65kcal, Carbohydrates: 34.58g, Protein: 12.46g, Fat: 15.65g, Saturated Fat: 8.78g, Cholesterol: 108.34mg, Sodium: 475.18mg, Potassium: 287.78mg, Fiber: 2.42g, Sugar: 10.56g, Vitamin A: 682.8IU, Vitamin C: 29.23mg, Calcium: 238.75mg, Iron: 1.81mg