Southern Cornbread is light and buttery with a little crispiness around the edges. Easy to make, cornbread is the perfect accompaniment for soups, chilis, or a fried chicken dinner.
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
DIFFICULTY:
EASY
YIELD:
10 SERVINGS
TIME:
40 MINUTES
Southerners are known for loving homemade bread in any form, and one of our favorites is cornbread. Sometimes you need biscuits to go with your meal, and sometimes you need cornbread. It's a delicate balance!
This Southern cornbread recipe goes great with chili, almost any kind of soup, or your favorite meatloaf dinner. Best of all, it's quick and easy to make, with ingredients that you probably have on hand.
You'll need these ingredients
- finely ground white cornmeal
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- salt
- buttermilk
- egg
- bacon grease or shortening
- butter
👋 For ingredient amounts and instructions, use the Jump to Recipe button above or scroll down!
How to make Southern cornbread
It takes about 15 minutes to put together this Southern cornbread recipe, and most of that is just the oven and skillet preheating. The cornbread can bake while you're getting the rest of your dinner ready.
- Place the skillet in the oven while it's preheating. After about 5 minutes, remove the skillet and place the bacon grease (or shortening) and butter in the skillet and place back in the oven.
- Mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl and whisk together until well mixed.
- Add the buttermilk and egg and stir gently just until mixed.
- Remove the hot skillet from the oven, and carefully pour most of the grease into the batter, leaving about a tablespoon in the skillet.
- Stir the grease into the batter and then pour into the hot skillet and place in the oven.
- Bake cornbread for about 20 minutes until it's golden brown and crispy around the edges. Remove the skillet from the oven and turn the cornbread out onto a platter.
Cook's Tip: The bacon grease or shortening and butter should melt and be hot but not smoking. Keep an eye on it while you're mixing the other ingredients.
Quick tips
- you can use yellow cornmeal but I prefer white
- if you use cornmeal mix, omit the flour, baking powder, and salt
Southern cornbread faqs
If you omit the flour and use plain cornmeal, then your cornbread should be gluten free.
I kid you not, this is a frequently asked question regarding cornbread! The answer is that while there's nothing in cornbread to cause harm to your dog (unless they have a grain sensitivity), there's also no nutritional value for your dog.
Absolutely! Wrap your cornbread tightly with parchment paper and then cover that tightly with foil. Place the wrapped cornbread in an airtight container or just a freezer bag. Then place in the freezer for 3-4 months.
Cornbread is fine stored just like any other bread, on the counter or in a bread box. Southern cornbread does not need to be refrigerated.
Make cornbread croutons! They are great on a caesar salad.
Yes, but you would need to add another binding agent like sour cream or yogurt.
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Southern Cornbread Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups plain cornmeal
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 egg
- 2 cups full-fat buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup bacon grease or shortening
- ¼ cup butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450. Place skillet in the oven to preheat.
- Whisk together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add buttermilk and egg and stir until well mixed.
- Remove hot skillet from oven and put the bacon grease or shortening and butter in the skillet. Place skillet back in oven for a few minutes until butter is melted and grease is hot. Watch carefully and don't let it start smoking!
- When the bacon grease-butter mixture is melted and hot, pour most of it into the batter, leaving about a tablespoon of hot oil in the skillet. Stir to mix well and then pour the batter into the hot skillet.
- Bake 20-25 minutes until golden brown on top. Remove skillet from oven and turn cornbread out onto platter.
Notes
Nutrition
UPDATE NOTES: This post was originally published October 31, 2011, and on March 22, 2022, was updated with one or more of the following: step-by-step photos, video, updated recipe, new tips.
Sue
Saturday 20th of November 2021
Can you use box cornbread mix as I already have that? Thank you.
Lucy Brewer
Saturday 20th of November 2021
If you use a mix, just don't use the leavening agents as they would already be in the mix.
Eremias
Thursday 29th of July 2021
This is the BEST cornbread I've had in 22 years... Since I last had this style cornbread at my grandfather's. All us kids liked his the best, I've no idea why sweetened yellow cornbread is so popular. It's a crumbly mess! Thank you so much!!!
Lucy Brewer
Monday 2nd of August 2021
Thank YOU! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Jan Giesige
Saturday 18th of January 2020
Step #2 says if using plain cornmeal, add "11 teaspoon baking powder" . Is that a misprint? 11 seems like a lot of baking powder. Thank you for all your recipes. I am new to the South and I have learned much about southern cooking from you,
Lucy Brewer
Saturday 18th of January 2020
Hi Jan, YES, that was a misprint! I have corrected it now to 1. Thank you for your sweet comments! Happy cooking xoxo
Shawn
Monday 31st of October 2011
Sorry to the husband...Yours is definitely my kinda cornbread!
Lucy
Monday 31st of October 2011
I know, right? How does he call himself a Southerner when he wants sweet cornbread?! It just ain't right!