Hoecake, Thin and Crispy by frick

[BakerAunt]

Hoecake, Thin and Crispy
Submitted by frick on September 22, 2011 at 9:35 pm

Good enough to make a grown man cry
Yield: 6 hoecakes
Source: Old Southern family recipe

Equipment needed:
Cast iron frying pan, well seasoned, or non-stick griddle
Useful but not mandatory:
Whisk
A bowl with pouring spout
Shallow pan, half sheet pan or cookie sheet

Ingredients needed:
1 cup boiling water
1 cup white cornmeal
2 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. salt
1/4 to 1/2 cup milk (added in second stage)

Butter or oil for pan or griddle
Butter for the hoecakes.

Mixing Directions:
In medium bowl, place cornmeal, salt and butter. To cornmeal mixture, add 1 cup boiling water, whisking well. Allow the mixture to stand until the water is absorbed and the mixture thickens while your pan heats.

Whisk in milk to a thin consistency. The best comparison I can think of is similar to crepe batter. If using a cast iron pan, only one large hoecake can be made at a time. If using a large griddle, I usually make 6 pancake size hoecakes. The batter should be thin and spatter a bit when added to the hot pan. If I'm not too busy, to hasten the output, I sometimes use the griddle and one pan, or two cast iron pans.

Cooking Directions:
Pour a portion into a medium-hot well buttered (or oiled) pan or griddle. The batter should immediately spread to almost fill the pan like a crepe, with the edges frizzling in the oil. If the batter is not less than 1/4 inch thick in the center, whisk in more milk.

Cook several minutes until golden brown on the bottom with edges very crispy. Turn and cook until somewhat browned on second side. Keep hot in shallow pan in oven until remainder of batter is cooked. Try not to stack them; they might stick. Serve well buttered.

I have been experimenting with the addition of black pepper, and plan on trying a bit of cayenne pepper. You could easily make half of them plain, then add spice to the second half. These are especially good with black eyed peas and ham, and coleslaw or tomato salad. Yum.

comments

Submitted by frick on Thu, 2011-09-22 21:36.
When you are tired of recipes with 20 plus ingredients, it's time to make hoecakes.

Submitted by easyquilts on Thu, 2011-09-29 20:52.
Can you use yellow cornmeal?

Submitted by frick on Sun, 2011-10-09 18:34.
Sorry for the delay. Of course, you can use yellow cornmeal. My mother never did accept the white vs. yellow, north vs. south dictum and made what she wanted to. I always feel a little bad when I use white because I read some nutrition bulletin that said yellow corn & cornmeal has more nutrition than white.

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