The best cornbread recipe that is sweet, fluffy, and perfect every time – a recipe that I’ve had for years using no special ingredients.
The other day on Instagram a fellow blogger friend asked if anyone had a good cornbread recipe and I replied quickly that I had the BEST cornbread recipe. She asked me for a link to the recipe and I laughed because I didn’t have one to give her. I have been making this recipes for year – years! And I haven’t shared it with you. I’m here to remedy that problem and share with you the cornbread recipe that I make over and over again and that turns out great, every single time.
What I love about this recipe is that it doesn’t have any special ingredients. You don’t need to have buttermilk on hand or creamed corn and you can make it in whatever pan you have. You can make it in a 9-inch round cake pan, square baking dish, or 9-inch cast iron skillet. Bonus! You can also make these into muffins or double the recipe and toss it in a 9×13-inch baking pan.
I have made this recipe no less than 1,000 times, and I love it. It’s sweet but not too sweet, soft without being cakey, and crumbly without being a mess. Just an all around tried-and-true cornbread recipe that you are going to print off, make a million times, and pass it down to your grandchildren one day.
Last plug for this recipe – it only takes 5 minutes to stir together and another 20 minutes to bake. That means in less than a half hour you can have a hot bread side dish on the table. It’s so quick and easy! I love to have cornbread ready when I make things like soups and chilis. It rounds out the meal and it’s a good option for kids who don’t love what you made (tell me I’m not the only one who has a kid who doesn’t love chili as much as you do!?). I serve everyone up a piece of cornbread and a bowl of chili. If they eat the cornbread in a hurry and want more, I ask them to finish their chili before they can get more of the cornbread. It’s a good incentive for my little people to eat more of what they are served. I’ll take it.
Tips and Tricks to Making the Best Cornbread Recipe
- You can make it in a 9-inch round cake pan, square baking dish, or 9-inch cast iron skillet. Bonus! You can also make these into muffins or double the recipe and toss it in a 9×13-inch baking pan. You’ll just need to adjust the baking time if you are making muffins or doubling the batch. Muffins take around 15 minutes to bake and a doubled recipe takes 35-40 minutes to bake.
- Use yellow cornmeal in this recipe. White works fine, but it just doesn’t look the same. Golden yellow cornbread is a must. Also, don’t try to sub any of the cornmeals used for making tamales – they are a different grind and the texture doesn’t come out the same.
- This recipe is great with a drizzle of honey, butter, honey butter, or just as it is. I like to serve it with lentil chili, vegetarian chili (made in the Instant Pot!), or next to simple baked chicken legs with some roasted veggies or a salad on the side. It goes well with lots of things.
- How fun is it cooked in the cast iron pan? I just grease it and cook it in cast iron like you would any other pan. I think you need one.
- I have made this recipe gluten free by simple swapping out the all purpose flour for a gluten free baking blend and it worked perfectly.
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PrintThe Best Cornbread Recipe
The best cornbread recipe that is sweet, fluffy, and perfect every time – a recipe that I’ve had for years, using no special ingredients.
- Prep Time: 5 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: Serves 8-10
Ingredients
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/3 cup neutral oil or melted butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Grease a 9-inch round cake pan or cast iron skillet well and set aside. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Whisk to combine well.
- Make a well in the center of your dry ingredients and add your oil or butter, milk, and egg. Stir just until the mixture comes together and there are only a few lumps remaining.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is a deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Serve hot.
Notes
- You can make it it in a 9-inch round cake pan, square baking dish, or 9-inch cast iron skillet. Bonus! You can also make these into muffins or double the recipe and toss it in a 9×13-inch baking pan. You’ll just need to adjust the baking time if you are making muffins or doubling the batch. Muffins take around 15 minutes to bake and a doubled recipe takes 35-40 minutes to bake.
- Use yellow cornmeal in this recipe. White works fine, but it just doesn’t look the same. Golden yellow cornbread is a must. Also, don’t try to sub any of the cornmeals used for making tamales – they are a different grind and the texture doesn’t come out the same.
Seriously, your next bowl of chili needs this cornbread recipe. Your family will cheer your name.
If you love this easy cornbread recipe, you might also like these:
- Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins
- Cornbread Waffles with Chili: 15 Minute Dinner
- Whole Grain Cornbread
- Easy Turkey Pumpkin Chili
- Instant Pot Vegetarian Chili
Enjoy from my kitchen to yours, Friends; it’s a good one.
One egg is listed twice. But step #3 notes “egg.” Is it two eggs or perhaps a typo? Just trying to clarify before I make this recipe. Looks too good to pass up!
I’m so glad you asked, it wad a typo on my part. You just need one egg and I had written it twice in the instructions on accident, all fixed and THANK YOU!
What is a gluten free baking blend?
Do you use the coarse or fine ground cornmeal? Also, would skim milk be okay or should I use one with more fat?
Mine container just says cornmeal, I assume a more fine cornmeal would be better. And yes, I have made it with skim milk with great success.
Do you just mean gluten free flour?
I sent you an email. It’s a gluten free baking blend that has a few different things in it!
THIS IS THE BEST CORNBREAD EVER!!! Thank you! Easy enough for my 11 year old to make!
LOVE the comment! Thank you, I love this recipe with my whole heart too, super excited you agree 🙂
Hi! Your indredients say oil or butter, but your instructions imply both. Could you please clarify.
Thanks!
Just pick one and use that! Works great with either one 🙂