Cast Iron Pork Tamale Pie
By Sara MayerPublished on July 12, 2017
Time
1¼ hours
Yield
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Do not use coarse-ground cornmeal in this recipe.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Heat 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon oil and heat until just smoking. Add pork and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in scallion whites, chili powder, oregano, and ¼ teaspoon salt and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in beans, tomatoes and their juice, corn, and broth. Bring to simmer and cook until mixture has thickened slightly, 5 to 7 minutes. Off heat, stir in pepper Jack until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, scallion greens, and ¾ teaspoon salt together in large bowl. In separate bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg, and remaining 3 tablespoons oil together until smooth. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until just combined. Pour batter over meat mixture and smooth into even layer. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until topping is golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating skillet halfway through baking. Let casserole cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Time
1¼ hoursYield
Serves 4 to 6Ingredients
Ingredients
Ingredients
Why This Recipe Works
Inspired by Mexican tamales but a lot less labor intensive, a good tamale pie is loaded with a juicy, spicy mixture of meat and vegetables and topped with a golden cornmeal crust. Bad tamale pies, however, are dry and bland and usually have too little filling. We wanted to develop a tamale pie with plenty of rich, well-seasoned filling and a flavorful but not overwhelming cornmeal crust. The cast-iron skillet's deep, straight sides made it an excellent cooking vessel for our pie's hearty layers, and the skillet's superior heat retention offered even, steady cooking, guaranteeing that our filling remained moist while the topping cooked to a perfect golden brown. We started with ground pork as our base for a good balance of richness and flavor without too much grease or heaviness. We then bloomed chili powder and oregano with scallion whites to intensify their flavor and aromatic appeal. Convenient canned black beans made our pie heartier, and corn and canned diced tomatoes provided additional texture and a fresh flavor profile. We stirred pepper Jack cheese into the filling to add another layer of spice and cheesy richness. To finish our pie, we made a simple cornbread batter that we spread over the filling before baking. The slightly sweet cornbread topping relies on pantry staples, is a cinch to mix, and emerges from the oven with a golden brown crust and tender crumb.
Before You Begin
Do not use coarse-ground cornmeal in this recipe.
Instructions
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Heat 10-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon oil and heat until just smoking. Add pork and cook, breaking up meat with wooden spoon, until just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in scallion whites, chili powder, oregano, and ¼ teaspoon salt and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in beans, tomatoes and their juice, corn, and broth. Bring to simmer and cook until mixture has thickened slightly, 5 to 7 minutes. Off heat, stir in pepper Jack until well combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, scallion greens, and ¾ teaspoon salt together in large bowl. In separate bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg, and remaining 3 tablespoons oil together until smooth. Stir buttermilk mixture into flour mixture until just combined. Pour batter over meat mixture and smooth into even layer. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until topping is golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating skillet halfway through baking. Let casserole cool for 10 minutes before serving.
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