Buttermilk Cornbread
by Chungah
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
So easy! No mixer needed here! Amazingly moist and slightly sweet. A classic side dish loved by EVERYONE. Serve with butter. SO GOOD.
Featured Comment
This side dish is such an underrated side. It’s sometimes overlooked – kind of seen as just a filler perhaps?
Except it’s not. It is absolutely not. Instead, it’s the best kind of southern cornbread one can ask for – perfectly fluffy, moist and slightly sweet. IT IS DANGEROUSLY GOOD, particularly with extra butter on top melting right into the warm bread with a drizzle of honey. It’s just perfection.
tips and tricks for success
- Preheat the cast iron skillet first. Using a preheated cast iron skillet is key here. This allows for even cooking, achieving everyone’s favorited golden brown crispy edges. You can also serve the cornbread warm right in the skillet.
- Use buttermilk. While adding a slightly tangy flavor, buttermilk is a key ingredient here yielding light, moist and fluffier cornbread. Using milk will lead to more neutral flavors and a drier consistency. You can also make a buttermilk substitute using milk, adding 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar to 1 cup milk.
- Use fine or medium-ground cornmeal. Dependent on personal preference, fine or medium-ground cornmeal are typically the most popular options for cornbread. For a more smooth consistency, fine-ground cornmeal is ideal, but for more texture and grittiness, medium-ground is the way to go.
- Do not use cornbread mix. Cornbread mix is not the same as cornmeal. Cornbread mix comes pre-mixed with leavening agents.
- Avoid overmixing. Using a rubber spatula, stir the batter until everything is just combined and moistened with a few lumps here and there. Overmixing will lead to dense, tough cornbread.
- Freeze as needed. Cornbread freezes very well and can typically last up to 3 months in the freezer.
what to serve with cornbread
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Buttermilk Cornbread: Frequently Asked Questions
A quick and easy buttermilk substitute is creating your own buttermilk with whole milk and something acidic such as lemon juice or distilled white vinegar.
You can add 1 tablespoon acid (lemon juice or vinegar) to 1 cup milk, letting it stand for 5-10 minutes.
Cornbread can be made 1-2 days in advance, reheating in the oven at 350 degrees F, covered, for about 5-10 minutes, or until warmed.
Yes! Once cooled completely, portion into plastic freezer bags in individual servings, squeezing out any excess air before sealing. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge, reheating at 350°F (covered in foil) until heated through.
You can make one of our favorite cornbread stuffings, a holiday staple.
Buttermilk Cornbread
Video
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups cornmeal
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups reduced fat buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Place a large cast iron skillet in the oven.
- In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
- In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg and 3 tablespoons butter. Pour mixture over dry ingredients and stir using a rubber spatula just until moist.
- Remove skillet from the oven and add remaining 3 tablespoons until heated through, about 1-2 minutes.
- Working carefully, immediately scoop the batter into the hot skillet. Place into oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool 5 minutes.
- Serve warm.
Equipment
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Could you use buttermilk powder (with water, as the product specifies)? I use it in other recipes, as it’s handy. You add the powder to dry ingredients and the water to the wet.
All of your recipes turn out so good. Made the best damn chili using ground turkey and this cornbread for dinner tonight. Family loved it!
Made this last night. FABULOUS ! Followed recipe exactly as a first timer.
Very moist. Don’t need to change a thing. My husband is having the one left
over piece with his coffee this morning!
One thing I would add, just for FYI. The larger the skillet the thinner the
thickness of the cornbread. I actually liked it on the thinner side for a change.
Very Delicious!
Do you think this would be good for a cornbread stuffing? And, can I freeze and defrost for the stuffing? Thank you!!
Absolutely! This is the cornbread recipe we use for cornbread stuffing every Thanksgiving. 🙂
Our favorite cornbread recipe of all time. [And] We love the crunchy crust!!!
This is hands down the best cornbread I’ve ever eaten! Love this!
This is the best cornbread I have ever made!
The texture and flavor are perfect! Thank you!
“Remove skillet from the oven and add remaining 3 tablespoons until heated through, about 1-2 minutes”
This step is unclear – I assume the remaining 3 tablespoons is referring to the butter, but are we adding it to the bottom of the heated skillet, almost as a way to prevent sticking? Or are we adding it to the batter?
This cornbread is delicious.
25-30 minutes is very optimistic. It always takes me 45 minutes or so. This is a great recipe. Please allow enough time so it doesn’t come out late.
This recipe is delicious just as it is written! You will not be disappointed making this exactly as written.
Delicious! I amended based on what I had on hand:
– Used dark brown sugar, only 1/4 c
– Instead of buttermilk, did the vinegar to milk substitute.
– used enamel cover clay baking dish. Put it into oven to heat as directed for cast iron. Once batter was into pan, used tablespoon to take puddles of butter from corners & drizzled it on surface of batter.
The edges of the cornbread had a fantastic, crunchy texture and the taste of the cornbread was (for me), just perfect!
Thank you for this recipe!
That corn bread had a good taste but it was the most crumbly cornbread I have ever seen
This is the best cornbread I’ve ever made, and I’ve tried a lot! I used a little less sugar and the texture and moisture were still perfect! This is my new favorite!
Give this recipe seven stars!!! Excellent crumb, bit of sweetness, and the browned crust on the outside is exquisite.
This is so fluffy and not dense. I made it gluten free using the brand Cup4Cup flour and you would never know. Best GF cornbread so have ever had and I have tried all of the mixes and recipes.
This was so tasty! I will make this again for sure! How would you transport cornbread when taking a meal to someone? This stuck. to my cast iron skillet which was fine for us because I just served out of the skillet. But, if I am trying to take it to someone, how would you do that?
When I make it for someone I bake it in a disposable aluminum foil meal prep pan (deeper than the cake size) and it works great still andis easy because they don’t have to return the dish to me. I’ve done it several times and they always love it!
The very best cornbread ever!!! Wow! Crunchy crust and moist, tender interior. Loved it! Looked exactly like the photo when it came out of the oven.
Not gonna lie. Don’t have to. This here is some marry me cornbread
I wish sites like this had a Q&A section because I don’t like taking up questions and the review section.
I forgot to mention I do have a 10 inch cast-iron, but not a 12 inch. Is there a way to manipulate the recipe in order to get it to work in a 10 inch cast-iron?
I still would prefer to do muffins and hoping you can add that to your current recipe, the adjustments and modifications in temperature and time when using a muffin tin.