Buttermilk Cornbread
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This buttermilk cornbread is amazingly moist and slightly sweet. A classic side dish loved by everyone. It’s also so easy. No mixer required!
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Why you’ll love this buttermilk cornbread
- Perfect textures. This cornbread is fluffy, moist, crumbly, and slightly sweet. It is dangerously good, particularly with extra butter on top melting right into the warm bread with a drizzle of honey (completely optional, of course). It’s simply perfection.
- Pairs well with anything and everything. Cornbread makes for an excellent side dish to so many meals – chili, pulled pork, pot roast, red beans and rice, and so much more. Not to mention, this is a quintessential side dish for all your holiday needs.
- Easiest recipe ever. This recipe does not require any special equipment or any kind of mixer. And with the use of baking powder, there is no yeast involved here. Simply mix and bake for 25-30 minutes, that’s it!
How to make buttermilk cornbread
- Prep the oven and skillet. Preheat the oven to 425°F and place a large cast iron skillet in the oven.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
- Mix the wet ingredients. Combine the buttermilk, egg, and butter.
- Mix the wet to dry. Pour the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring gently with a spatula just until moist, working carefully not to overwork the batter.
- Grease the skillet. Carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven and add the butter until it melts completely.
- Bake. Pour the batter in the greased hot skillet, baking until the top and edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes.
- Serve. Let cool for 5 minutes, then serve warm with butter and honey.
freezing and storage
Storage
Wrap the cornbread tightly in plastic wrap before storing in an airtight container, keeping at room temperature for 2 days or in the fridge for 3-5 days.
Reheating
Reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 5-10 minutes.
Freezing
Let the cornbread cool completely, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap first, then aluminum foil before transferring to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date, and freeze up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat in the oven at 350°F, covered in aluminum foil until warmed through, about 10-15 minutes.
what to serve with cornbread
Tools For This Recipe
Buttermilk Cornbread: Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Preheating the cast iron skillet beforehand will help yield a crispy, golden brown crust.
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.
Use enough fat (ex. butter) and mix the batter just until combined (avoid over-mixing).
Yes! 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.
Absolutely, cornbread can be kept in the freezer for at least 3 months.
You can make one of my 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
Notes
- 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.
Did you make this recipe?
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This is my second time making it. Both of us loved it. It is still i the oven. I added a little more sugar as my husband likes sweeter taste. I love the recipe as it is. Next time I will remember to keep buttermilk and egg in the room temperature, as the melted butter got hardened when mixed.
Your directions were unclear to me:
“Remove skillet from the oven and add remaining 3 tablespoons until heated through, about 1-2 minutes.”
Add remaining 3 teaspoons of melted butter to hot skillet or to batter?
The above comment is not mine! I read this before replying to someone else’s comment below. How is this happening?
She’s talking about taking the heated skillet from the oven and adding three tablespoons of butter to ensure that yummy crispy crust around the outside. Then adding the completed cornbread batter to the prepared skillet and baking.
I’m eating this right now with some chili I made. I loved how I put the chili together & made this while the chili was cooking. I cut the recipe in half & batter in 6″ cast iron pan. It came out perfect. Also I put corn in my chili so I folded 3/4 cup corn into the cornbread batter for a stronger corn flavor. Really great recipe, moist yet crisp.
EYYYY I DO THE SAME THING.. AND ADD A CAN OF CHOPPED CHILIS AND CHEDDAR CHEESE… WE CALL IT SASSY CORNBREAD… ITS SO GOOD WITH EVERYTHING AND ESPECAILLY CHILI!!!!
Have never reviewed a recipe before. But this was the best cornbread I’ve ever made. I added a few tblsp of canned corn and finely chopped jalapenos. Perhaps a little more salt (cook only with unsalted butter). Served it with pintos and pork. Very yum.
I do not have cast iron skillet – what’s the best alternative for that?
You can just use a cake pan or muffin tins if you want cornbread muffins.
Tasted just like Mom’s. I halved the recipe and omitted the sugar as Mom doesn’t out sugar in hers. I used an 8-inch skillet and cooked it in my toaster oven. Perfect size for a couple. Mom eyeballs he’s and doesn’t use a recipe. This is the closest I’ve found. Perfect!
I loved this recipe. I’ve been looking for the perfect recipe for my taste and this is it. I thought it would be too sweet but I decided to follow the recipe and I’m glad I did, not too sweet at all. The only change I made was using 1 cup of Bob’s Red Mill regular grind and 1/2 cup coarse grind. It turned out great. I will definitely make this again.
Great easy cornbread recipe for a bread that really tastes like corn, not cake but here’s a way to make it twice as good. Soak the cornmeal in the buttermilk, sugar and salt overnight or at least for a few hours. You want the cornmeal to plump up and get soft and moist instead of gritty. Everyone will remark on how moist the cornbread is. Then add the eggs, butter, flour and NON- ALUMINUM baking powder to avoid that metallic baking powder taste.
I read your comment with a ‘twice as good, yeah right’ attitude. But oh boy you weren’t kidding. Best cornbread I ever made. Including the fact that I had no wheat flour in the house and used all brown rice flour. With that I’m generally ready to accept a crumbly, less slice-able thing, but this holds together beautifully. A scootch too sweet to be strictly southern, will probably reduce to 2T sugar (and I used 1/2 erythritol, it was fine).
So thank you to Chungah for the delicious recipe and to Marie for the preparation tip. I’ll never make cornbread again without soaking the cornmeal!!
Your idea of soaking the cornmeal in the buttermilk the night before made my try at this recipe the fluffiest, most delightful cornbread ever!! Thank you so much for suggesting that!!
Fantastic recipe! This is my second time making it. Got a pan in the oven right now. It is so moist and flavorful and I love the crispy edges. Absolutely delicious!
Me too, lol! 2nd time making it and pan is in the oven!
EVERYTHING I’ve made from your site is amazeballs!! During these strange times where I’m not able to cook at work and happen to find myself staying with my mother, experimenting in the kitchen is keeping me sane. Made this cornbread tonight alongside bison and 3 bean chili and it was a big hit. So moist, so fall apart buttery, perfect. Gonna try your jalapeno cheddar corn muffins tomorrow as the 3 of us nearly polished off the pan of cornbread tonight! Thanks!
I am using the butter milk left over from mixing heavy cream into butter. Two questions, can I use the fresh butter milk without adding vinegar or lemon juice and do you soak the cornmeal in the two cups of milk and then combine everything?
I don’t use GF mixes as they are all very sweet ‘corn muffin’ style mixes. This recipe turned out the best of the ones I’ve converted to GF.
I made this recipe tonight…it was so good!! We are gluten free so instead of regular flour…I used Bob’s Red Mill GF 1 to 1 all purpose flour, added 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, increased the salt to 1&1/4 tsp & decreased the sugar to 3 Tablespoons. I used canola oil in the batter & in the skillet as I am short on butter. I also used regular milk with vinegar for buttermilk. It was really, really good. I’ll keep this one!
Notes: I’m also out of bacon drippings which is what I typically use in the skillet along with a little canola oil. If I was making sweet cornbread…I would use butter, for sure. We have a few “sweet cornbread only” in our family that a make a second skillet for. Always use iron skillets to bake in & serve from but remember not to store it in the skillet. That creates moisture which can start a little rust & the cornbread takes on a metallic taste.
#damndelicious
This cornbread recipe was fantastic! I also used the chili recipe that is given from damndelicious and it was just as great. The two were absolutely terrific together! The family loved both!
OH MY GOODNESS!! Make this NOW! JUST DO IT! ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!
Thank You Damn Delicious, you ROCK!
I’ve made this several times, substuting 1/2 the buttermilk with whole milk, or plain Greek yogurt and whole milk when I didn’t have buttermilk. Every single time it turned out delicious! Using melted butter in the hot cast iron skillet gives it the most crispy, buttery crust. I’ll never make boxed cornbread again!
Great suggestion of the yogurt and milk instead of buttermilk. Perfect!
Just made it. Delicious!
This is a great recipe that does exactly what it says: fluffy interior, crunchy brown exterior. Easy and quick to do. It is too sweet for my tastes, so I halved the sugar and it was a nice amount. I would definitely consider swapping for honey or not using any sweetener at all if you want a more traditional/savoury cornbread. I tried two recipes from other sites before this and the texture was never right, so this one is a blessing.
This is a delicious recipe. I did not have quite enough cornmeal so substituted 1/4 cup masa. It worked fine!
Thanks so much,
Carolyn
Wonderful recipe but not Southern. Southern cornbread is made with white cornmeal and not sweet…then they put sweet stuff on it. This is more like Yankee cornbread where I come from.
Perfect. Will try with jalapeño and cheddar next time.
So delicious! Thank you!
I really loved this recipe. I also added a can of sweet corn to the recipe, and it was really moist! I will certainly make this again, and would like grind up some of the corn before adding it next time.