This homemade Southern Cornbread recipe is buttery and full of sweet toasty corn flavor. It’s crispy on the bottom, sides, and top with a buttery, pillowy crumb in the middle. And from start to finish, it takes less than 30 minutes to make. This means it can be made just about any night of the week to enjoy with your favorite cozy spring and fall soups, stews, and slow-simmered smoky beans and ham. For anyone new to making cornbread, we’ve included step-by-step recipe photos at the end of the post.
Homemade cornbread was a regular fixture on our dinner table growing up and still is to this day. My Mom made it several times a week because it’s delicious and convenient to make. Her cornbread was and still is, the best because like every other good southen cook I know, she had a few tricks up her sleeve (which I still use to this day).
What Should the Consistency of a Good Southern Cornbread Be?
People often ask “what makes a good southern cornbread?”. It’s less about whether you use, yellow, white, or blue cornmeal (or even whether or not you add sugar) and more about a few simple tips and techniques that give it its ubiquitous butter, tender crumb. In our family, the qualities we look for in “perfect cornbread” are outlined below.
- Crunchy on the outside and around the edges when you bite into it, but soft and tender on the inside.
- The entire perimeter is full of buttery (and sometimes bacon-flavored) crunch.
- Crumbles ever so slightly as you eat it, but it’ll never break apart or fall off into large chunks (that would indicate it’s too dry).
- And you should always be able to eat a piece of cornbread by itself and not feel like you need 2 glasses of water to wash it down with.
- It shouldn’t taste orfeel like you’re eating a slice of cake. The combination of a tender, smooth crumb, and crispy buttery top provides a perfect textue.
Yellow Cornmeal Vs. White Cornmeal Vs. Blue Cornmeal
You’ll notice that I’ve used white cornmeal for this post (because I brought this back in my luggage from a trip home to NYC and it was a last-minute purchase with last-minute options). Both white and yellow cornmeal is equally delicious, as is the blue kind. Mom mostly used yellow cornmeal, so it’s still my preference for making cornbread, but you can’t go wrong using any of them for this recipe.
- Most white cornmeal tends to be a little finer grind than yellow. This just means that the finished cornbread tends to have a slightly less rustic texture. However, you can find all types of cornmeals that have been finely ground or coarsely ground and everything in between. Depending on what type of meal you choose, this will impact the final cornbread. I suggest experimenting and finding the one that you like best.
- Both yellow and blue cornmeal tends to be slightly more nutritious than white cornmeal. Meals that are ground from corn with darker orange and purple hues, tend to have more nutrients (Vitamin A and beta carotene) than the white kernels.
- Some experts proclaim that a “true southern cornbread only uses white cornmeal!”. This just isn’t true. I’m from the South as is my family (for generations) and although we typically had both white and yellow cornmeal in the pantry, my Mom primarily used yellow cornmeal for just about everything including her cornbread. As did almost every other family we know. It’s simply a matter of access, preference, and what was on sale that week at the grocery store.
- The difference between white and yellow cornmeal vs. blue cornmeal is a few different things. Blue cornmeal has a higher protein content than its yellow and white counterparts and an even higher nutrient value than yellow. And as mentioned above, white cornmeal has the least amount of nutritional value of all three types of meal. Blue cornmeal also has a lower glycemic index making it a great cornmeal to use in this recipe. Plus, it’s pretty! You may decide to use a cake or pastry flour in the blue cornmeal recipe to help offset the higher protein content, but that’s up to you. Either way, it’s very important to just mix the cornbread ingredients until combined, avoiding stirring too vigorously or for too long. Handling it with care help achieve the desired tender crumb.
Scratch-Made Southern Buttermilk Cornbread Ingredients
You can easily halve this cornbread recipe, or scale it up depending on your needs.
- white, yellow, or blue cornmeal
- all-purpose flour
- sugar,(optional)
- baking powder
- salt
- grapeseed or other vegetable
- unsalted butter
- eggs
- buttermilk, regular milk (or sub our faux buttermilk)
- (optional) more butter or bacon fat melted directly in the cast iron skillet
How to Make the Best Southern Buttermilk Cornbread
- Preheat the oven. Turn the oven on to 425°F/°220°C and place a dry 10-inch cast-iron skillet inside to heat for 10 minutes while you mix the cornbread batter.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a mixing bowl add cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar (if using) and whisk to combine.
- Melt the butter. In the hot preheated skillet, add the butter and place it back into the oven to melt the butter. Pull it out of the oven when it’s fully melted.
- Combine the wet ingredients. Beat the eggs, oil, and buttermilk (or milk or faux buttermilk) together and set aside.
- Combine the dry + wet ingredients. Add the egg mixture to the cornmeal mixture along with the melted butter and stir everything together with a rubber spatula just until combined and let rest for 5 minutes while the skillet heats back up in the oven. Do not over-mix the batter. *For a smoky bacon flavor add 2 tablespoons (30g) of bacon fat to the pan before popping it back into the oven).
- Finish and bake. Remove the hot skillet from the oven and carefully pour the batter into it. Working quickly, place it back into the oven to bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Enjoy!
What to Do With Leftover Southern Cornbread?
One of our favorite ways to use cornbread is to make the famously delicious southern cornbread dressing (photographed above) for Thanksgiving and Christmas. It’s chock full of chicken, onions, celery, chicken stock, and fall seasonings — it’s so good!
- make Southern Cornbread Dressing
- break it off or cut it into cubes and eat it the way my Grandparents did (in a tall tea glass with buttermilk), or the way my Mom use to eat it with milk.
Ways to Customize Cornbread + Plus a few Tasty Add-ins
Having a good base cornbread recipe allows you the freedom to switch up the flavors and additions if you want. As promised, here are some great ways to play around with the flavor and texture of cornbread. One of my favorites is the Smoky + Buttery Cornbread option below. Mom always kept an old coffee can full of “bacon grease” (all of the reserved drippings, fat, and crumbly bits leftover from frying up copious amounts of bacon) which gets used in this cornbread version to give it a nice smoky bacon flavor.
- For Cajun-inspired cornbread, add sautéed onion and green pepper, sliced fresh scallions, grated cheddar cheese, diced jalapeño, and a mix of cooked seafood (crawfish tails, peeled shrimp, crab leg meat),
- For Jambalaya-inspired cornbread, add cooked sliced or diced andouille sausage or other smoky ham, sautéed bells pepper and onions, plus 1-2 teaspoons cajun spice blend (*if the spice blend contains salt, be sure to account for this and deduct some of the salt called for in the base cornbread recipe).
- For Mexican-inspired cornbread, add chopped jalapeños, sautéed yellow or white sweet corn, shredded pepper jack or sharp cheddar cheese, and sliced scallions.
- For Bacon-Jalapeño cornbread, add cooked crumbled bacon and diced jalapeño.
- For a Smoky + Buttery cornbread, Use reserved bacon drippings (aka “bacon grease” or “bacon fat”) to replace 1/2 of the butter called for in the recipe. Melt the butter and the bacon grease together directly in the cast iron skillet. Once melted, add it directly to the cornmeal mixture, and pop the skillet back into the oven to keep it hot. Stir in the butter and bacon fat to incorporate and let it rest for a few minutes before adding the mixture to the cast iron skillet and baking.
- For a sweeter cornbread, add sugar and/or honey. My Mom made cornbread one of two ways depending on what we were eating — without sugar or with a little sugar. In our family, we love it both ways. But I’m not a fan of unbalanced, overly sweet cornbread even if I do LOVE a sweet corn muffin (because cornbread and corn muffins are not at all the same things!). If you want sweet cornbread, double the amount of sugar called for in this recipe. You may also substitute honey for the added sugar.
- A note about “True Southern Cornbread”. I’ve read where some people say that “No true Southern cornbread ever has a drop of sugar in it!”. This just isn’t true because every southern family (including my own) and their preferences are different. In fact, I know many families in the South who grew up eating sweeter homemade cornbread (or boxed Jiffy cornbread which is really sweet). True southern cornbread can void of sugar, or include sugar. I suggest you eat it the way that you want by customizing this recipe to fit you and your family’s preferred tastes.
The Best Southern Cornbread Recipe tips + tricks + FAQ’s
- Why use a scale versus measuring cups and spoons? Using a scale to measure ingredients produces more consistently reliable results versus measuring cups. Plus, it makes measuring ingredients quicker and there’s less mess to clean up.
- Do I cover cornbread with foil while it bakes? No, do not cover the cornbread with foil as it bakes unless it’s browning too quickly because the oven runs hot. Covering cornbread as it bakes keeps it from forming a nice golden, crispy top that adds both texture and additional flavor to the final cornbread.
- Is self-rising or self-raising cornmeal different the regular cornmeal? Yes, they are very different. Self-raising or self-rising cornmeal or cornmeal mix is a blend of dry ingredients that includes salt, baking powder, and all-purpose flour plus cornmeal. To this mix, eggs and oil (or butter) are added, mixed, and baked. Cornmeal is simply the meal of dried ground corn you’ll need to add all-purpose flour, salt, and baking powder to it along with eggs, oil, and butter.
- Are there different grades or grinds of cornmeal and what are they used for? Cornmeal comes in different grinds — fine, medium, coarse grinds. Fine to medium grinds are often used in baking because they tend to produce a lighter crumb. While coarse ground cornmeal has a more prominent corn flavor.
- Can I make cornbread without eggs? Yes, you can make cornbread without eggs, although the end result will be different. There are two perfectly good routes you can take:
- Substitute 50g of applesauce, avocado, or banana for each 1 egg called for in the recipe + 1/4 teaspoon extra baking powder. These ingredients may impart quite a different flavor into the final cornbread.
- Substitute 2 tablespoons of heavy cream, sour cream, or yogurt plus a pinch of baking soda for each 1 egg called for in the recipe.
- Substitute the equivalent of 1 flax egg per each egg called for in the recipe.
- Can I freeze cornbread? Yes, you can make cornbread. Simply wrap and freeze room temperature cornbread or cornbread muffins with sustainable plastic wrap and thaw in the refrigerator overnight. When ready to eat unwrap and let sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes to take the chill off. Gently reheat cornbread wrapped in aluminum foil in a preheated 350°F/176°C oven for 10 to 15 minutes until warm.
- What’s the best way to store cornbread? Store any leftover room temperature cornbread wrapped or sealed in an airtight container on the countertop, or in the fridge. Reheat as needed and consume it within a couple of days.
- What’s the best way to reheat cornbread? Gently reheat cornbread wrapped in aluminum foil in a preheated 350°F/176°C oven for 10-15 minutes or until warm. You may also place a clean damp paper towel inside the aluminum packet to help steam it and avoid it drying out.
- What if my cornbread is too dry? If your cornbread is too dry, try any of the following: turn it into Southern Cornbread Dressing, a savory bread pudding, or crumble it and toast it in the oven to use as croutons for your favorite salad.
- Where does cornbread originate from? When we Southerners think about the delicious cornbread that we grew up eating for generations, there is typically a gap in the history of how this dish actually originated (as is the case with many southern dishes). We have Native American Indians to thank for this beloved down-home staple. The Native Americans taught the immigrants (our European ancestors) how to make cornbread simply from ground cornmeal, mixed with water and salt. It was embraced and grew in popularity and added to as time went on. Then throughout the period of slavery in the American South, African slaves and African-American slaves were making this staple regularly and even making the first version of our Southern Cornbread Dressing which has its roots in a dish from West or North Africa called “Kush”.
Let’s get started!
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The Best Southern Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 8-12 people depending on hunger level (2 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This homemade Southern Cornbread recipe is buttery and full of sweet toasty corn flavor. It’s crispy on the bottom, sides, and top with a buttery, pillowy crumb in the middle. And from start to finish, it takes less than 30 minutes to make. This means it can easily be made just about any night of the week. If you don’t have buttermilk, see the notes below for how to make faux buttermilk, or homemade buttermilk.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups white or yellow cornmeal (300g)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (280g)
- up to 1/4 cup sugar, (optional)
- 6 teaspoons baking powder (24g)
- 2 teaspoons salt (12g)
- 1/2 cup grapeseed or other vegetable oil (100g)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (113g)
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 2 cups buttermilk, or regular milk, room temperature (472g)
- (optional) 1/4 cup more butter or bacon fat melted directly in the cast iron skillet for cornbread batter to be poured over just before baking.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven. Turn the oven on to 425°F/°220°C and place a dry 10-inch cast-iron skillet inside to heat for 10 minutes while you mix the cornbread batter.
- Combine the dry ingredients. In a mixing bowl add cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, and sugar (if using) and whisk to combine.
- Melt the butter. In the hot preheated skillet, add the butter and place it back into the oven to melt the butter. Pull it out of the oven when it’s fully melted.
- Combine the wet ingredients. Beat the eggs, oil, and buttermilk (or milk or faux buttermilk) together and set aside.
- Combine the dry + wet ingredients. Add the egg mixture to the cornmeal mixture along with the melted butter and stir everything together with a rubber spatula just until combined and let rest for 5 minutes while the skillet heats back up in the oven. Do not over-mix the batter. *For a smoky bacon flavor add 2 tablespoons (30g) of bacon fat to the pan before popping it back into the oven).
- Finish and bake. Remove the hot skillet from the oven and carefully pour the batter into it. Working quickly, place it back into the oven to bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Enjoy!
Notes
- To make Cornbread Muffins, pour the cornmeal batter into lined or greased muffin tins, filling them 2/3 full. Bake at 425°F/220°C in a preheated oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown. This recipe makes 24 cornbread muffins, but you can halve this recipe to make just 12 muffins.
- You can cut this recipe in half, but it won’t be as tall/deep as the photos shown in this recipe unless you use a 9x9x2 baking pan or an 8x8x3 inch baking pan.
- If you don’t have buttermilk.
- Option 1: Make faux buttermilk. If you don’t have buttermilk, make your own by adding 2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice into a liquid measuring cup and fill it with enough whole milk to make 2 cups of total liquid. Stir it and let it rest at room temperature to thicken for at least 5 minutes and up to 15 and proceed with recipe.
- Option 2: Make homemade buttermilk. You can easily make homemade buttermilk by first making homemade butter. Place a large quart mason jar into the freezer to get really cold. Add heavy cream to the jar, seal it, and start shaking it vigorously until you start to see butter forming. When all of the butter solids have separated from the milk solids strain it. The leftover liquid from making homemade butter is buttermilk. Use it in any recipe. Alternatively, you chill a stand mixer bowl, add super cold heavy cream to the bowl and whisk it until the butter solids start to separate. Strain buttermilk from the butter solids.
- Add a smoky bacon flavor to your cornbread, by adding 2 tablespoons of bacon drippings (bacon fat) to the skillet after you’ve removed the melted butter. Heat the bacon fat directly in the skillet in the oven for 5 minutes while the batter is resting. Add the cornmeal batter to the pan and bake.
- If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, use a buttered 9x13x2 inch baking pan, OR two buttered 9x9x2 inch pans, OR two 8x8x3 inch buttered baking pans and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- I used 00 flour since I’m in Italy, but if you use King Arthur AP flour, or a similar flour, the gram measurement may be closer to 240g for 2 cups flour.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Breads
- Method: Oven Bake
- Cuisine: Southern
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 wedge or slice
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The Best Southern Cornbread recipe step-by-step photos
