I love me some good ‘ol Cornbread! There are varying different opinions on whether cornbread should be sweet or savory. Me personally, I can eat it both ways depending on the dish. Where I draw a hard line, though, is with using Jiffy mix! I get it, Jiffy (and other premade mixes) is very much convenient when you’re pressed for time and is much more foolproof for the novice cooks / bakers. But Cornbread is just not the same to me when is choke full of preservatives and not made entirely with fresh ingredients from scratch. I sought out to come up with the perfect recipe for a savory-type of cornbread, and I’m happy to share it with you all here.
Key Ingredients for Savory Cornbread
The cornbread is made from your standard ingredients: Cornmeal, Baking Powder, Flour, Butter, and Table Salt. That said, what makes this recipe stand out from the rest is the use of all Buttermilk and Bacon Fat.
- Bacon Fat: Since this cornbread recipe doesn’t include sugar, fat will give it much of its flavor. In the typical cornbread recipe, you’ll find the fat of choice that’s used is butter. Now butter by itself isn’t bad, but it doesn’t really give the cornbread that extra bit of *OOMPH* when you put it in your mouth, in part because butter is diluted somewhat by its water content. After testing this recipe, I found you get the most pronounced flavor when you replace half of the butter you’d normally use with pure bacon fat. You can buy bacon fat already cured in a container at your local grocery store too (without going through the trouble of making your own).
- Buttermilk: While there’s nothing wrong with using whole milk when making Cornbread, you’ll find that traditional southern cornbread calls for the use of buttermilk, and my recipe is no exception to this. The problem with whole milk is because it’s lacking the acidic component that is found in buttermilk, it doesn’t really give the cornbread that airy texture that you get when the buttermilk reacts with the baking soda in the cornbread batter. Ultimately, the whole milk ends up making for a much denser cornbread. Also for what little it’s worth, buttermilk is somewhat healthier than whole milk because of its lower fat content (after all of the bacon fat we’re using, any little bit we can reduce elsewhere counts!)
- 1 Egg vs. 2 Eggs vs. 3 Eggs: I tested out this recipe with 1 Extra Large Egg as well as 2 and 3 Extra Large Eggs. Ultimately, I found that adding 3 eggs gave the cornbread more of a spongy texture and the eggs were quite overpowering in the final product. Meanwhile, when trying out this recipe with 1 Extra Large Egg, while the Cornbread tasted fine, it came out too crumbly for my liking. Ultimately, I settled on using 2 Extra Large Eggs, as I found this struck the right balance of achieving cornbread that’s firm & moist without it being too cakey (thanks to both the added egg yolk and the added egg white).
- Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder: You’ll find that many recipes will only use baking powder for Cornbread, which can be perfectly fine. But I opted to use both for a few reasons. For one, the gas bubbles from when the baking soda dissolves help to keep the gluten in the flour from coagulating too soon, which will allow for more efficient heat transfer throughout the batter (this will help to give the cornbread a more picturesque brown color). Also, the baking soda will act to neutralize the strong tangy flavor in the buttermilk (which will be discussed below). Furthermore, using both baking and baking powder gives the Cornbread an extra bit of lift, so that it’s not as flat.
And lastly, there’s one more thing I can’t stress enough. Cornbread is highly sensitive to the proportion of fat vs protein (I.E. flour and egg whites) that is used. Even being off by a mere tablespoon can completely change the shape, texture and flavor. That said, I strongly advise that you use a spoon to gather your flour and even level off the top of the measuring cup with a knife. If you scoop out the flour with the cup itself, you risk packing way more flour into the cup (and eventually the dough) than what is required, thus your cornbread won’t bake properly. Weighing your flour with a bowl and kitchen scale is also a perfectly fine option.
Tips for Making this Recipe
Allow the cornbread to cool for a minimum of 15 minutes after removing from oven. The inside of the cornbread will continue to set and coagulate even after you remove them from the heat. If you attempt to cut into the cornbread too soon while it’s still hot, you risk having it fall apart.
For the best results, use a cast iron skillet. Besides the fact that cast iron skillet do an excellent job at heat retention, which ensures even cooking throughout the batter, the cast iron skillet will also give the cornbread a nice crispy crust. This same crispy crust also helps to seal off the interior of the cornbread as it bakes, ensuring that it stays soft an moist.
Allow the batter to rest before placing in the oven. Once all of the ingredients have been combined, I recommend allowing the batter to rest for at least 5-10 minutes. This will accomplish a couple things. One, this will give the flour & cornmeal time to absorb the moisture, which will contribute to a more tender and less gritty texture. Also, the baking powder will have more time to react with the added liquid, which will give the cornbread even greater lift while it’s baking. Be careful not to let it rest for too long though, because then you’ll end up with batter that is too thick and it won’t bake properly.
Do not overbake the cornbread. Unfortunately, cornbread is one of those baked goods that’s not very forgiving if you cook it for even slightly longer than directed in this recipe. If 30 minutes have passed since the cornbread was placed in the oven and you’re still uncertain about whether they’re done, you can always insert a toothpick inside of it to see if any wet batter comes out. If the toothpick comes out clean, it’s done.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you add Jalapenos or Corn Kernels to this recipe?
I’m personally not a fan of having these extra ingredients in my cornbread (personal preference), which is why I officially excluded them from my recipe. That being said, if you prefer having these items in your cornbread, you can certainly add them while combining the wet + dry ingredients.
Can I substitute the Yellow Cornmeal with White Cornmeal?
Absolutely! The main difference you’ll notice in the recipe, besides the color, is that the white cornmeal will have a milder and more subtle taste.
Can you substitute Oil for the Butter?
The answer to this question always gets tricky.
I do understand that not everyone is able to eat dairy products and that butter is simply not an option for such individuals. In such cases, you *COULD* replace the butter with a cooking oil, but with a couple of important caveats. For starters, while cooking oils and butter are both different types of fats that can be used in baked goods, their fat composition is not entirely equal. Cooking oils tend to have virtually no water in them (thus is 100% fat), whereas Butter typically has a water content of 20-25% (depending on the brand). So in the event you attempt to substitute the butter for cooking oils, I’d advise only using 75-80% of the amount of cooking oil.
The other caveat is that the use of cooking oils will change the flavor profile of the cookies. Seed oils (I.E. Vegetable Oil, Canola Oil, etc.), are known to be neutral-tasting, meaning they have no flavor. So you will be losing the subtle nuttiness / sweetness in your cornbread that Butter offers. But then you also have your non-seed oils such as Coconut, Avocado or Olive Oil. These oils are *NOT* neutral-tasting, which means if you use them, you may end up with cornbread that taste like Olives, Avocados or Coconuts, as the oils will overpower the other ingredients.
All of that said, the short and sweet answer I can give you is I *DON’T* recommend it. For a more detailed answer, see above.
Can you freeze the cornbread? And if so, for how long?
You can definitely freeze this Cornbread! Once the cornbread has cooled completely, you would simply wrap it tightly in both plastic wrap as well as alumninum foil and it should be good for at least 3 months. While they may still be safe to eat out of the freeze beyond 3 months, the cornbread will gradually lose their flavor and texture after 3 months have passed. For the best resuls, I would advise allowing it to thaw in the refrigerator overnight before you’re ready to consume and then warm in the oven for 10-15 minutes at 350*F.
How long can you store cornbread without freezing?
As long as the Cornbread is stored in an airtight container or bag, it should be safe to eat for up to 3 days at room temperature and up to 5 days in the refrigerator. Beyond 3-5 days, I would advise that you dispose of the cornbread as it may no longer be edible.
Try These Other Sides
-
Best Homemade Baked Beans (NO Canned Beans)
-
Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits (Copycat)
-
Better Than Church’s Honey Butter Biscuits Recipe
Best Southern Cornbread
Equipment
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Plastic Spatula
- 2 Large Mixing Bowls
- Oil / Cooking Spray (to grease pan / skillet)
- 1 10" Cast Iron Skillet
- Measuring Cups/Spoons
Ingredients
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1 Cup Yellow Cornmeal
- 1.5 Cup Buttermilk
- 1/4 Cup Bacon Fat (softened)
- 2 TSP Baking Powder
- 1 TSP Iodized Salt
- 1/2 TSP Baking Soda
- 1/4 Cup Melted Unsalted Butter
- 2 Extra Large Eggs
Instructions
- Generously grease skillet or dish then place in oven
- Preheat oven to 350*F and warm skillet while it preheats.
- In large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (Flour, Cornmeal Salt, Baking Powder and Baking Soda) and whisk until combined.
- Add wet ingredients (Buttermilk, Bacon Fact, Butter and Eggs) to bowl with dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Ensure you break the egg yolks with utensil before mixing and be careful not to overmix batter.
- Once oven has finished preheating, remove skillet or dish the mmediately add batter to hot skillet.
- Spread batter around in skillet or dish until it forms one even layer
- Place skillet or dish with Cornbread batter in oven for 30 minutes***
- Remove Cornbread from oven and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.