Campfire Cornbread with Pulled Pork and Chilis
A delicious twist on campfire cornbread filled with pulled pork, green chilis and cheese, all cooked into one hobo pie using a pie iron.
I’m sharing a unique twist on campfire cornbread that combines pulled pork with other delicious ingredients all wrapped up into one handheld meal.
This campfire cornbread is made in a pie iron with pulled pork, cheese, and green chilis and is a perfect meal for camping!
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It’s a camping meal that goes by many names – pie iron sandwich, hobo pies, or pudgy pies. Whatever you want to call it, one thing is certain – it’s a fun way to cook over the campfire. If you don’t love the idea of the fillings in this recipe, you can easily just make plain cornbread in a pie iron as well!
Camping Cornbread Ingredients
- Canola Oil Cooking Spray: It’s important to oil your cast iron prior to cooking to prevent sticking and to help build up the seasoning layer. Easily substitute a regular cooking oil and rub it over the inside of your pie iron.
- Cornbread Mix: Using the recipe on the side of the box works perfectly for this, but you can also add some sour cream, sugar, or melted butter to make it more moist.
- Pulled Pork: I always cook this ahead of time to use at the campsite. You can purchase premade pulled pork as well which is a great option for easy meal prep as well.
- Green Chilis: These add a nice amount of heat to the cornbread. You can vary the amount depending on how much spice your group can handle.
- Cheese: Pepper jack cheese adds a lot of flavor to these cornbread hobo pies, but you can use any type of cheese for these cornbread sandwiches.
a note from Jenny
My kids found this recipe to be too spicy for them. When I make it now, I leave out the green chilis for theirs. Then, I add the chilis in to the last bit of the batter to make the final cornbread with more spice.
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Equipment To Make Campfire Cornbread
Cast Iron Pie Iron (Camp Cooker): Pie irons are made of aluminum or cast iron, but I highly recommend using cast iron as they withstand much higher temperatures for longer periods of time. However, aluminum pie irons do not require seasoning and can be cleaned like all other dishes, so there are benefits to using them as well. If you do not have a pie iron, you can also make this as one large “casserole” in a cast iron dutch oven.
- Round cast iron camp cooker
- Square cast iron camp cooker
- Double cast iron camp cooker – allows you to make twice as many sandwiches with half the work prepping and cleaning!
- Aluminum pie iron camp cooker – although I don’t like the way they cook as much, they are easier to use because they don’t need to be seasoned and can be cleaned like all your other dishes.
Portable Over the Fire Cooking Grate: While cooking in hot coals or embers is ideal for cast iron pie irons, you can also cook over a fire by using a fire grill grate. It’s perfect for a wide variety of campfire pits and can easily be adapted to work at your site. It’s also great if you just started your fire and want to get cooking right away! Simply place your pie irons on the grate and turn halfway through cooking.
How to Make Pie Iron Campfire Cornbread
In this section you’ll find a step by step tutorial of how to make this recipe with photos. The full recipe with exact measurements, steps and a printable card can be found at the bottom of the post.
Scroll to view the step by step photos ->
1. Mix the cornbread
Use a whisk to combine the cornbread mix, eggs and milk in a bowl. Add green chilis to taste and mix.
2. Fill the pie iron
Spray the inside of the pie iron with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cup of cornbread mix in the bottom of the pie iron. Add pulled pork and pepper jack cheese and then cover with 1/4 cup more of cornbread mix. Close the pie iron.
3. Cook over campfire
There are two options when cooking with a pie iron: in the coals or over the flame. I find that cooking in the coals is faster, but sometimes can result in over cooking/burning more easily. Cooking on a grate over the fire is usually a few minutes slower, but you have a bit more control over the temperature.
- Hot coals: Place pie iron directly in the hot coals and embers from your fire. If your fire has been going for awhile, simply pull a pile of coals a bit to the side and place the camp cooker on those hot coals.
- Over the flame: Use a grill grate to create a flat cooking surface over the fire. Place the camp cooker on the grate and let it cook.
Don’t have a cast iron camp cooker? I haven’t tested this recipe in anything but a camp cooker. I know you could make a large batch in a cast iron dutch oven over coals, but I wouldn’t recommend using a regular skillet or propane stove for this recipe.
4. Enjoy!
At the beginning of the cooking time, make sure that the pie iron is level. If it’s tilted or flipped too early, the cornbread mix will ooze out of the pie iron.
During cooking, try to avoid opening up the pie iron until after you’ve flipped it and cooked on both sides. This helps the cornbread to set up and cook and not run out of the cooker.
Campfire Cornbread Pie Iron Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 boxes Jiffy cornbread dry mix
- 2 eggs
- 4 tbsp melted butter or oil
- 1 cup milk
- 4 oz. green chilis, canned
- 4 slices pepper jack
- 2 cups pulled pork
Instructions
- Whisk together two eggs. Add 2 boxes of Jiffy cornbread mix, 1 cup milk, and melted butter and whisk together to combine. Add green chilis and stir.
- Spray the inside and lip edges of the pie iron with cooking spray. Add 1/4 cup cornbread mix to the bottom.
- Place pulled pork and pepper jack cheese on top. Then add another 1/4 cup of cornbread mix and close pie iron. Do not flip over the pie iron yet!
- Keep the pie iron face up and place on a flat grill grate over the campfire. (If you tilt the pie iron in the beginning of cooking, the cornbread mix will ooze out.)
- Cook for approximately 15 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Video
Let me know if you try out this recipe! You can also make an entire pulled pork cornbread casserole in a skillet or dutch oven. Then just slice and serve!