Green Beans with Cracklin-Cornbread Crumble
Green Beans with Cracklin-Cornbread Crumble
By Chadwick Boyd
Photo by Kelly Milhalcoe
This Salty & A Bit Sweet Crumble Dresses Up This Classic Veg Dish
Snapping beans on the front porch was something I got used to growing up. It seemed beans, especially green beans, continually sprouted from our gardens from July to late September. I love to eat them nearly every which way: boiled with ham hock, fried and blistered with bacon grease…steamed and baked, too. But, I love this simple way of dressing up green beans with crispy, salty cubed pork cracklin’s and toasted crumbled corn bread.
The beans are blanched for just two minutes, then warmed and crisped in the rendered bacon fat from the cracklin’s before being tossed in the crumble. I often cook the beans ahead of time, like the day before, and store them in an air-tight container. Then, while I am prepping supper, I cook up the cracklin’s, toast the cornbread, and finish the beans as we are about to sit down at the table.
Chadwick’s Checklist
What you need to know before you cook.
- Have your equipment ready before plunging the beans in the boiling water. They cook quickly and need to be plunged in the ice water right away to keep them bright green.
- The cracklin's need to be cooked just before serving so they are warm and crispy
- While I like to use freshly baked cornbread, this is where store-bought works best as an ingredient. The toasting of it wakes it up and gives it more dimension and flavor.
SERVING SIZE: 6-8 PREP TIME: 20 minutes TOTAL TIME: 22-25 minutes
Ingredients
2 pounds fresh green beans, washed and ends trimmed
¼ cup Kosher salt
1 pound slab bacon, diced (you can find at Whole Foods, such as Neuske’s brand. If not, use the thickest cut bacon available)
1 tablespoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Big pinch of Kosher salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups crumbled dry cornbread
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
Directions
Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a rolling boil. Add salt.
Fill a large bowl with ice water. Set it next to the stove.
Add the green beans to the boiling water and blanch 2 minutes, until they are bright green and crisp-tender.
Quickly remove the beans from the water with a slotted spoon or spider. Plunge into the ice water to stop the cooking. Transfer to several layers of paper towels to drain. Pat well to remove any excess water.
Place the bacon, pepper, sugar, and salt in a medium mixing bowl. Toss until the bacon pieces are fully coated.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Then, add the coated bacon. Sauté, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the bacon is browned and crisp all over, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and place in medium size bowl. Set aside.
Add the crumbled cornbread to the skillet and toast a few minutes until it begins to crisp and become golden. Stir occasionally to toast through. Transfer to the bowl with the cracklins and toss together. Add salt to taste as desired.
Add the oil to the skillet and heat until it shimmers, 1-2 minutes. Using tongs, place the green beans in the skillet to warm through, about 5 minutes. Add the lemon zest and toss to coat.
Transfer the beans to a serving platter and top with the cracklin-cornbread crumble.
Serve.
Chadwick’s Changeups
Switch things up. Have some fun! Do more.
- For a vegan version, I omit the bacon and bake up a simple vegan cornbread ahead of time, then toast it to put over the beans
- Swap out other beans, like wax beans, to get some color and differing texture
- Sub lime zest for the lemon zest. The subtle flavor shift is nice on the tongue.
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