Cracklin’ Cornbread is a southern classic. It’s savory flavor is provided by fried pieces of pork cracklings. Pairs well with Fresh Collard Greens and Smoky Collard Greens.
The key to preparing good cracklings (also known as cracklin’s) is to remove the “very hard meat skin” from the edges of fried salt pork fat back. Many enjoy it as a snack. The skins must be consumed slowly to prevent cracked teeth! They’re THAT hard.
As for the cornbread, simply crumble the soft fried pork and mix into batter before baking. The cornbread is tasty by itself. Also good drizzled with honey or maple syrup.
DISCLOSURE (NOT SPONSORED): Pictured products are personal favorites I purchased and used to make this delicious recipe.
For this recipe, I used Royal Food’s brand of Cured Salt Pork Fat Back which is very salty. Boiling before frying will decrease salt and make it just right for consumption. Fried in my super efficient cast iron skillet provided by Lodge Manufacturing.
Although fried pork is tender, the hard outside edge (meat skin) can damage teeth. Remove hard edges and discard. Do not add to cornbread batter.
Crumbled cracklings after hard meat skins have been removed.
ENJOY!
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Your recipes look great but I needs little more instructions on preparing the cracklin. How long do you cook the salt pork and how much water do you use?
Thank you for visiting and for the compliment! I’ve updated the recipe and added a recipe video. The amount of water depends on the size of your skillet. I suggest starting with 1/4 cup. Gradually continue pouring just until pork strips are covered with water. Simmer for about 10 minutes to decrease salt. The pork will need a “little” salt for seasoning. Drain water before proceeding. If you taste fried pork and it’s bland, simply sprinkle it with a little salt before adding to cornbread batter. Please let me know if I may be of further assistance. Enjoy!