Easy Southern Cornbread with Buttermilk is full of rich corn flavor and texture, with a deliciously crunchy crust. Made with stone-ground cornmeal, this moist, savory cornbread is a true reflection of southern goodness!
Baked in a ten-inch cast-iron skillet, this simple, homemade cornbread is versatile and easy to prepare. If you have been searching for the best southern cornbread recipe, this is it! I have made it so many times I can make it in my sleep. It is hands-down my favorite recipe, the epitome of southern comfort food, and exactly what a great cornbread should be.
This classic quickbread is amazing straight out of the oven, pairs beautifully with almost any entree, and in the South, is considered a delicacy when crumbled in a glass of ice-cold buttermilk.
Southern-style cornbread also makes the perfect base for my Traditional Southern Cornbread Dressing, Cornbread Dressing with Sausage and Pecans, and Cornbread Salad. It also can be made ahead of time and frozen until you are ready to use it.
If you need a gluten-free option, check out my recipe for the Best Old-Fashioned Cornbread, which is a tasty denser bread made without flour.
Ingredients – here’s what’s in it:
- Stone-ground cornmeal – is the guest of honor at this party and brings its signature sweet corn flavor and texture to the bread.
- All-purpose flour – lightens up the cornbread and keeps it from being too dense or crumbly.
- Baking powder and baking soda – are leavening agents, which work with the buttermilk and salt to lighten the cornbread’s texture and help it rise.
- Kosher salt – enhances the flavor of the other ingredients.
- Buttermilk – adds its characteristic tang and works with the baking powder and soda to lighten the texture of the bread.
- Eggs – add structure, moisture, and flavor.
- Peanut oil – adds moisture, texture, and flavor. If you have it, melted bacon grease may be substituted and, as you might imagine, adds wonderful flavor.
For the best results, you will also need a well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet.
Directions – here’s how to make it:
- Preheat your oven to 450 °F.
- Add one tablespoon of oil to a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or metal cake pan and place in the oven to heat for five to ten minutes.
- While the skillet is heating, add the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
- Mix the eggs, buttermilk, and peanut oil in a smaller bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon to combine. Only mix until the batter is moistened. It’s okay if there are a few dry spots or lumps. Do not overmix.
- Carefully remove the heated skillet from the oven. Tilt the pan slightly in a circle and swirl the oil around to ensure it coats the bottom and halfway up the sides of the skillet. Add the batter.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until the top of the cornbread is golden brown and the bread starts pulling away from the sides of the pan. The center should also spring back when pressed, and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Place the skillet on a baking rack for five minutes to cool.
- To remove the cornbread from the skillet, place a plate that is a few inches wider than the skillet over the top of the pan. Use hot pads and hold on to both the skillet and the plate; carefully flip the skillet and dish over at the same time and remove the skillet. If you prefer, you can cut the cornbread into wedges and serve straight from the skillet.
- Serve immediately while it’s still hot with plenty of butter.
Frequently asked questions:
The quick answer is yes, you do need baking powder for the cornbread to rise and have the proper consistency. Cornbread baked without baking powder is dense. However, in a pinch, if you don’t have baking powder and you are using buttermilk, you can increase the amount of baking soda called for by a quarter of a teaspoon.
No, they are not the same thing. They are both made from corn, but corn flour (two words) refers to finely ground corn that has more of a delicate texture, is more like flour, and is smooth. I use corn flour in the breading for my Fried Crab Claws.
Cornmeal, on the other hand, is made with a coarser grind and is gritty. It also has more texture and a stronger corn taste. Cornmeal is used in the breading for my Southern Fried Oysters and Fried Grouper.
In the UK, the term cornflour (one word) refers to cornstarch which is usually used as a thickening agent in gravies and sauces.
The simple answer here is sugar, it’s the great divider! Generally, although not always, what most folks consider Northern cornbread is a little cakier and is definitely sweeter.
Traditionally, most cooks in the South do not put sugar in their cornbread, including me. However, that said, I love any type of cornbread, and I will happily eat a slice of sweet cornbread any day.
There are no hard and fast rules, and the lines are blurred. No matter where you live, everyone has a favorite recipe or way they like their cornbread made, and it usually has to do with what kind you ate growing up.
Southern cornbread is frequently served as a side dish with Hoppin’ John, Black-Eyed Peas, Southern Peas, Barbecue, Fried Fish, and cooked greens such as Collards or turnip greens.
My favorite summer meal is a slice of hot baked cornbread with Purple Hull Peas or Field Peas, Creamed Corn, and fresh sliced tomatoes.
In cooler weather, it’s wonderful paired with Chicken Chili with a Twist or a soup such as Creamy Roasted Tomato Soup, Black-Eyed
Pea Soup, or Easy Creamy Southern Sweet Potato Soup.
Leftovers are delicious when split in half, topped with butter, and toasted under a broiler. They also make great cornbread croutons, simply cut into small cubes and toast on a baking sheet.
Cornbread should be covered and stored at room temperature. It will be good for up to four days. If you want to store it longer than that, wrap it securely and freeze it for up to 30 days. It can be reheated in the oven or in an air-fryer. I do not recommend heating it up in the microwave.
Sharon’s tips:
- This cornbread is best when served piping hot right out of the oven, topped with a pat of butter or melted butter.
- While it’s best not to make it ahead if you are eating it with a meal, you can prep the ingredients by getting everything ready and separately mixing the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients. Don’t mix the two together, however, until right before you are ready to pour the batter into the skillet.
- You can make this recipe ahead to use in dressing and stuffing. For best results, let it cool completely and wrap tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. You can freeze it for up to 30 days.
- A cast-iron skillet works best for baking traditional southern cornbread. Please don’t skip the step of preheating the skillet before you add the batter. Adding the batter to a hot skillet is what makes the crust crispy.
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own by mixing two cups of whole milk minus two tablespoons with either two tablespoons of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let this mixture sit for five minutes, and voila, buttermilk. It’s probably not something you would want to drink, but it works perfectly in this recipe.
- The type of cornmeal you use has a direct impact on your finished product. I like and use either locally grown and produced Bradley’s Stone Ground Cornmeal or Bumpy Road Farm Cornmeal. I don’t have any relationship with either one of these brands, but think they provide the best results.
- By the way, you should always store cornmeal in your refrigerator or freezer.
More recipes with cornmeal:
More Southern recipes:
If you are interested in other Southern recipes, you might want to check out these popular favorites:
Check out all of my Southern recipes and menu ideas here.
★★★★★ If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and give it a star rating. I would love to know how you liked it!
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📋 Recipe:
Southern Cornbread with Buttermilk
Equipment
- 10-inch well seasoned cast iron skillet
Ingredients
- 2 cups stone-ground cornmeal yellow or white
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup peanut oil plus one tablespoon to grease the skillet
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 450 °F.
- Add one tablespoon of oil to a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or metal cake pan and place in the oven to heat for five to ten minutes.
- While the skillet is heating, add the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a large bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
- Mix the eggs, buttermilk, and peanut oil in a smaller bowl.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir with a spoon to combine. Only mix until the batter is moistened. It's okay if there are a few dry spots or lumps. Do not overmix.
- Carefully remove the heated skillet from the oven. Tilt the pan slightly in a circle and swirl the oil around to ensure it coats the bottom and halfway up the sides of the skillet. Add the batter.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes or until the top of the cornbread is golden brown and the bread starts pulling away from the sides of the pan. The center should also spring back when pressed, and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
- Place the skillet on a baking rack for five minutes to cool.
- To remove the cornbread from the skillet, place a plate that is a few inches wider than the skillet over the top of the pan. Use hot pads and hold on to both the skillet and the plate; carefully flip the skillet and dish over at the same time and remove the skillet. If you prefer, you can cut the cornbread into wedges and serve straight from the skillet.
- Serve immediately while it's still hot with plenty of butter.
Notes
- This cornbread is best when served piping hot right out of the oven, topped with a pat of butter or melted butter.
- While it’s best not to make it ahead if you are eating it with a meal, you can prep the ingredients by getting everything ready and separately mixing the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients. Don’t mix the two together, however, until right before you are ready to pour the batter into the skillet.
- You can make this recipe ahead to use in dressing and stuffing. For best results, let it cool completely and wrap tightly in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. You can freeze it for up to 30 days.
- A cast-iron skillet works best for baking traditional southern cornbread. Please don’t skip the step of preheating the skillet before you add the batter. Adding the batter to a hot skillet is what makes the crust crispy.
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can make your own by mixing two cups of whole milk minus two tablespoons with either two tablespoons of lemon juice or white vinegar. Let this mixture sit for five minutes, and voila, buttermilk. It’s probably not something you would want to drink, but it works perfectly in this recipe.
- The type of cornmeal you use has a direct impact on your finished product. I like and use either locally grown and produced Bradley’s Stone Ground Cornmeal or Bumpy Road Farm Cornmeal. I don’t have any relationship with either one of these brands, but think they provide the best results.
- By the way, you should always store cornmeal in your refrigerator or freezer.
I do not prefer a very sweet cornbread, so I opted for this recipe because it called for buttermilk but no sugar. This is my new favorite cornbread recipe – it tastes just like what my grandmother in Tennessee would make! I also used it in a Thanksgiving dressing recipe and it worked great. Thanks for the good recipe!
This cornbread is SO AMAZING it was featured in the Southern Cast Iron magazine! Nice JOB!!
Being a dyed-in-the-wool Yankee, I added a 1/4 cup sugar AND substituted bacon grease for the peanut oil to grease the pan. WOW! This was the best cornbread ever. The outside came out crispy, deep-fried from the bacon grease, I suppose. Thanks for the recipe.
This my “Go to cornbread recipe, every time”, I have made it enough that I don’t even have to look at the recipe, almost. It is sooo good. There’s a pan in the oven right now!!!
Hey Keith, thanks so much for taking the time to let me know. I’m so happy you like this recipe. It’s my “go-to” as well! Sometime, try crumbling your hot cornbread in a cold glass of buttermilk and eat it with a spoon. A southern treat!
All the best,
Sharon
This came out so very good! Glad I found this! Thanks for sharing!!!
Tried this with some freshly ground dent corn using reconstituted buttermilk powder and flax eggs. It was my first try cooking cornbread in a cast iron skillet and the results were sensational, especially the tenderness and wonderful flavours. I thought of writing this because I am about to make it again. Thank you for your web site.
Dear Frances, thank you so much for your sweet comment. I am happy you enjoyed this recipe. It is one of my favorites!
Sharon
Somewhere in the annals of my life I made cornbread. Reading your blog about your cornbread has whetted my appetite for my Northern Cornbread. Though, I live in Ohio, I didn’t know how strong my taste is for sugary cornbread.
You have ignited the remembrance of my mother’s well seasoned cast-iron skillet.
I love cornbread. Thanks.
This was the perfect recipe for cornbread stuffing. The only change I made was olive oil instead of peanut.
Delicious, came out perfectly! I used bacon grease and followed the directions exactly, and it was just wonderful!
That is the most beautiful cornbread I have ever seen, Leave me with that and a stick of butter. Wait … and a bowl of your black eyed peas… The angels will start singing 🙂