Homemade Cornbread
Updated
Updated
You’re only 30 minutes away from the absolute best Homemade Cornbread with a golden crust, fluffy crumb, and buttery taste, and it’s so simple to make. This easy cornbread recipe will be your go to!
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5 STAR REVIEW
Nothing creates a fury among friends quite like a cornbread recipe, whether being served some to eat or just discussing the topic.
This country is as divided over how people like their cornbread as they are about whether beans belong in chili or not. It mostly comes down to whether you like a sweet cornbread or savory, fluffy or dense. I’m in the fluffy, slightly sweet camp!
Unlike my Creamy Cornbread Casserole or brown sugar cornbread, this homemade cornbread recipe is more of a traditional cornbread with a crispy golden crust, fluffy crumb, and wonderful flavor without any mix-ins. It’s made from scratch using one bowl and a cast iron skillet with simple pantry ingredients, and all in just 30 minutes.
Helpful Tips & Variations
- Ground cornmeal. You need ground cornmeal for this recipe, not to be confused with masa, which is used to make corn tortillas.
- All-purpose Flour and Eggs. The flour acts as a binder so the bread isn’t too crumbly and the eggs provides structure to the batter. Don’t substitute or skip either.
- Moist cornbread almost always incorporates some type of soured milk, such as sour cream, yogurt, or buttermilk. Buttermilk is definitely my preferred ingredient and produces the best texture.
- Honey. This adds some sweetness to balance out the other flavors. But this cornbread is not overly sweet at all.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Overmixing will result in a dense crumb, instead of tender and fluffy.
- Make sure your skillet is HOT! That crispy, buttery crust is achieved by pouring the batter into a very hot skillet. You want to hear that sizzle when the batter hits the surface.
- A cast iron skillet is ideal for this cornbread recipe, but all is not lost if you don’t have one! An ovenproof skillet or baking dish will work – just make sure you heat it up first in a hot oven before pouring the batter into it.
- Add-ins. My preference for this easy cornbread is to stick with the basics and let the cornmeal and buttermilk shine, but you can definitely add in (up to a 1/2 cup total) of crispy cooked bacon, cooked and crumbled chorizo, fresh corn kernels, shredded cheddar cheese, or diced fresh jalapenos.
Homemade Cornbread
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, (or regular butter is fine)
- 1 1/4 cups ground cornmeal
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Place 8 tablespoons of unsalted butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet (see note.) Transfer to the oven on the center rack and preheat the oven to 400F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Add in the buttermilk, milk, honey, and eggs; whisk until the batter is smooth and combined.
- Remove the skillet from the oven (CAREFUL-THE HANDLE WILL BE HOT!) Transfer all but 1 tablespoon of the melted butter into the batter mixture; whisk to combine, then (make sure the skillet is still hot) pour the batter into the buttered skillet.
- Place skillet back into the oven; bake until the center is firm and a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean, 20-25 minutes.
- Allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy with some butter or honey!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information given is an automatic calculation and can vary based on the exact products you use and any changes you make to the recipe. If these numbers are very important to you, I would recommend calculating them yourself.
Did you make this? Leave a rating below!
What to Serve with Cornbread
We love to enjoy a slice of this bread with some honey butter or whipped maple butter. This recipe makes a great little snack or side paired with chili or soups. We love a slice with a pat of butter or a few candied jalapenos. It would also make a great base for cornbread dressing at Thanksgiving time!
Proper Storage
- Storing leftovers. Allow to cool completely, then wrap any leftovers tightly in foil or transfer to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to four days.
- To freeze. Because of the dairy content, the texture changes a bit once thawed, which isn’t ideal. But you can freeze it, if necessary. Allow to cool, transfer to a freezer-safe dish, then wrap the entire pan tightly in 2 layers of foil. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
- Reheat. The quickest way to reheat portions is in the microwave for 10 to 20 seconds, wrapped in a lightly dampened paper towel to lock in a bit of moisture.
More Cornbread Recipes:
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I have not made this recipe yet but want to know what size cast iron skillet you use? Looks to be a 12”? Mine is 13-1/4”, any suggestions on quantity increase? I don’t want my bread too short/thin.
Hi Todd – It’s a 10-inch cast iron skillet (as mentioned in the printable recipe card.) For best results, you should use a 10-inch. It will still turn out in your 13-inch, but yes, it will be thinner, and you’ll likely need to cook it for less time. Start checking 5 to 10 minutes earlier than instructed.
Thank you for responding. I multiplied my ingredients by 1.26 and it came out okay. I think just a little tweak and it will be better. I made some cinnamon, honey butter to spread on it and everyone ate it up.
Does it make a difference if you use white or yellow cornmeal?
Hi Janet! White and yellow cornmeal get their hues from nothing more than the different colors of the kernels of corn from which they are ground. So in terms of recipes and cooking methods, the two can pretty much be used interchangeably.
This recipe is wonderful! It’s so simple and quick, it’s very forgiving of substitutions and always comes out great. Just be sure not to overbake it. It might just be my oven, but when I bake it for the recommended amount of time it tends to come out dry so I usually take it out a bit early and let it finish baking in the residual heat of the pan. Thank you thank you for this wonderfully simple, delicious recipe!
My daughter is allergic to honey. Could I sub something else? It looks really good.
Hi Susan – I would replace the honey with 2 tablespoons EACH granulated and brown sugar.
Do you have a vegan substitute recipe handy?
Hi! If I replace the buttermilk with yogurt, would it be 1 cup still or less? Thanks!
I’ve never made this with yogurt, so without further testing I couldn’t say for sure, sorry!
I just made it with yoghurt in lieu of buttermilk and it worked great! My yoghurt was on the more liquid side (made by a local farm so it had no thickeners or stabilizers) so I used a 1:1 ratio and it was fine. I would definitely add water if it’s strained/Greek yoghurt or has thickeners in it. This recipe seems very forgiving though. I’ve made it many times and usually have to sub at least one thing but it always turns out great! I subbed maple syrup for the honey this time and that was lovely too. :)
Delicious
After a few unsatisfactory attempts at other cornbread recipes, I thought it was my cornmeal. Wrong! I just needed to stumble across this recipe! Nothing stuck or fell apart. Moist with a hint of sweetness. Perfection! Bookmarked!
Is it ok to use regular butter if I don’t have unsalted.
Yep, totally ok. But I would cut back on the teaspoon of kosher salt to maybe 1/2-3/4 tsp.
I’ve made this recipe countless times. It’s our favorite! Cast iron is the only way to go and we love the little touch of honey.
Loved it. It was very tasty!!!