If you are looking for a delicious and truly Southern cornbread recipe, this is it! It is the best cornbread you’ll ever eat, because it’s my Dad’s recipe! With no wheat flour or sugar, baked in a sizzling hot cast iron skillet seasoned with a little bacon fat for that golden brown crust, it is truly a favorite, especially when served alongside a heaping plate of black-eyed peas and greens.
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Skillet-Cooked Southern Cornbread
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 6 1x
Description
For a twist, add chopped canned jalapeños, cheese or cracklin’s to the cornbread for something different depending on you main dish.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 to 2 tsp bacon grease
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups (480 ml) buttermilk at room temperature
- 1 3/4 cups (420 ml) cornmeal, preferably stone-ground
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
Instructions
- Add enough bacon grease to the skillet to coat the bottom of the pan, then put it in a cold oven and preheat to 450°. In the meantime, mix the egg into the buttermilk, then add the cornmeal and mix well.
- When the oven has reached 450°, after about 10 minutes, the grease should be just to the smoking point. Quickly stir the salt, baking powder, and soda into the batter and add the batter all at once to the hot pan. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top just begins to brown. Turn the bread out onto a platter and serve hot with lots of butter.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Appetiser
- Cuisine: Southern
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 160
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does this recipe start with a cold oven and bacon grease in the skillet?
The article says this is what creates the hallmark golden brown crust of true Southern cornbread. Putting the cast iron skillet with bacon grease into a cold oven and preheating together to 450°F means the fat is at just the smoking point when the batter goes in, delivering an immediate sizzle and a crispy bottom crust.
Why does this Southern cornbread have no sugar and no wheat flour?
The article presents this as the defining feature of Dad’s recipe. No wheat flour and no sugar results in a purely savoury, coarser-crumbed cornbread meant to accompany dishes like black-eyed peas and greens, rather than the sweeter, cake-like Northern style. 
Why do you stir in the leaveners right before pouring the batter into the pan?
Once the oven reaches 450°F and the grease is near smoking, the recipe says to quickly stir the salt, baking powder, and baking soda into the batter and pour it into the hot pan immediately. This ensures maximum lift from the leaveners and the hot-pan sizzle happens right at the moment of contact.
What add-ins can I mix into the batter?
The excerpt mentions chopped canned jalapeños, cheese, or cracklins as popular variations that change the flavour profile depending on your main dish. Fold any of these into the batter just before pouring it into the hot skillet.
Asia I tried this recipe and my cornbread was really crumbly. Do you have to a suggestion? It trastes good but del apart.
HI Phil!
I use two 8-inch cast iron skillets. Thank you!
What size cast iron skillet? Can you e-mail me the answer?
Phil