Buttermilk Cornbread
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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’s absolutely not. It’s the best kind of southern cornbread one can ask for.
It’s perfectly fluffy, moist, and slightly sweet, and IT IS DANGEROUSLY GOOD, particularly with extra butter on top, melting right into the warm bread with a drizzle of honey. It’s perfection to say the least.
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 just 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
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.
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Thank you for the delicious recipe. Made to compliment homemade tomato soup. Was devine!
CAN YOU USE BROWN SUGAR??
To make it just like my mama’s I left out the sugar. My part of West Virginia just didn’t abide sweet cornbread. But this is otherwise exactly like what I remember of mama and granny’s cornbread.
It really is damn delicious!
Best cornbread recipe ever. Just as I remember my grandmother’s!!!
Looks scrumptious! Can’t wait to take it to our Mother’s Day BBQ smorgasbord. Too bad I can’t paste my pic
First time I have ever made cornbread and this was so easy and tasted amazing!!
Best cornbread recipe you will find. It is so easy and so delicious. Once you make it, you will use this recipe all the time.
This is my favorite cornbread recipe. I’ve used it for years!
Fantastic. Followed the recipe to a t and came out delicious. Moist and flavorful with a good crust. Highly recommend
I’m born and raised in the south and have had so many different cornbreads I can’t even count, this is the best I’ve ever had. The baking powder makes it so light while still retaining the properties you associate with cornbread. Can’t recommend enough
Are you supposed to turn the heat down when you bake the bread? I kept it at 425 for 25 minutes and it is totally burned, especially the bottom. I baked it in a cast iron skillet. Made it to go with chili tonight but not sure nit is edible- so can’t comment on the taste
Any suggestions for flour substitutions
in this recipe. I am cooking for a gluten free celiac guest.
I always make this gluten free. I use Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 baking flour. It turns out great! It takes approximately the same time, but check.
That comment was meant for Claudia G., who said her cornbread came out burned. Just trying to help. I made it per the same temp, 425 degrees, and it came out great! And I had meant to type “before adding the batter”, not “butter”
Did you melt the 3 Tablespoons of butter into the hot skillet before adding the butter? 3 TBSP of butter go into the hot skillet and the other 3 TBSP if butter are put into the batter when preparing batter
Best cornbread I’ve had in my life! Not too sweet and very moist. Delicious
I am living in a country where it’s hard to find yellow corn meal. I am wondering if it’s possible to substitute Polenta and if so, what level of grain would you recommend? I am soooo missing cornbread!
I am so excited to see this recipe!!! What I look for is “slightly sweet” made in cast iron and moist! Can’t wait to try it. I have made many a recipe and been very unhappy so here’s hoping!
cl hill
This is the best cornbread recipe.Its name says it all,,,,,,Dam Delicious Cornbread.
This recipe never fails me
This is a winner! The folks I served said it’s great. A keeper recipe
I make this recipe often, and it is GREAT,
So I gotta leave a review finally! Some common substitutions I use when I want to customize (with no other changes) — about 50% more sugar when I want a “sweet” cornbread or the kernels from a leftover cob of corn in season.
I loved the consistency of this cornbread. Some are too grainy for me. I did leave out the sugar is the only reason for the 4/5 rating. I do not care for sugar in my cornbread.