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Savory muffins with tasty pieces of fried pork (cracklings). Delicious alone, drizzled with honey or maple syrup. This is a variation of my Easy Cracklin’ Cornbread made with precooked pork fat. Quick and easy to make.
Although my favorite Hormel brand is precooked before packaging, I fry a few minutes in vegetable oil to enhance flavor. Frying also seasons the vegetable oil which is used to grease the muffin tin.
Fried pork fat is famous for the very hard edges called meat skins. Remove before adding to cornbread batter to protect teeth. Press cooked cracklings with back of a spoon. REMOVE all hard pieces that feel like rocks. Only add soft pieces of fried pork to cornbread batter.
Be sure to check my recipes for Cracklin’ Cornbread made with cured salt pork fat back and Easy Cracklin’ Cornbread made with processed pork cracklings.
Enjoy!
Easy Cracklin' Cornbread Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup processed/precooked cracklings
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 box (8.5 ounces) corn muffin mix
- 3 tablespoons self-rising white cornmeal mix
- 2 tablespoons sugar (optional)
- 2 medium eggs, beaten
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 3 teaspoons vegetable oil for muffin tin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Use an 8" skillet (thick cornbread) or a 9" (thin cornbread). Spread cracklings in a medium-sized skillet.
- Add 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Stir until evenly coated.
- Warm on top of stove over low-medium heat. Stir constantly for 2-3 minutes until vegetable oil and cracklings are golden brown. Do not leave stove while cooking.
- Turn off heat. Sprinkle salt over cracklings. Stir well. Crush to small pieces using heavy spatula or spoon. Set aside.
- In medium-sized bowl, combine corn muffin mix, self-rising white corn meal mix, sugar (if using), egg, and buttermilk. Stir together until smooth. Small lumps okay.
- Use a large spoon to scoop cracklings and some of drippings from skillet. Use leftover drippings to grease muffin tin.
- Stir together cornbread batter and 3/4 cup of cracklings until evenly combined. Set batter and leftover cracklings aside.
- Place 1/2 teaspoon of drippings in each muffin's cup (6 cups total). If you don't have enough drippings, use 1/2 teaspoon of vegetable oil.
- Pour 2-1/2 tablespoons of cornbread batter into each cup.
- Reduce oven to 375 degrees. Bake 10 minutes. Carefully remove from oven. Place 1/2 teaspoon of cooked/crumbled cracklings on top of each muffin.
- Return to oven. Bake 10 to 15 minutes OR until golden brown and knife inserted in center comes out clean.
- Serve hot.
I have 2 gallon bags of cracklins. I’m looking for some tried and true recipes and uses. I have the cornbread recipe–awesome. … You can use them anywhere that you might use croutons – like on salads, topping soups, etc, in Chex …
Hi Mathew! Delighted to hear you like the recipe. Thank you for the compliment. Never tried cracklings in Chex. Sounds interesting.