This Southern Skillet Cornbread with crisp edges is a Southern comfort food staple. This delicious cornbread uses simple ingredients and results in a savory, rustic, truly Southern textured cornbread.
“Truly Southern” – meaning that this recipe does not include flour or sugar. Traditional Southern cornbread is typically made primarily with cornmeal and doesn’t include flour or sugar. This results in a bread that’s denser and has a stronger corn flavor than versions that call for flour in the recipe.
Adding flour and sugar makes the cornbread lighter, sweeter, and more cake-like, which is a characteristic of Northern-style cornbread (although I love both versions!).
Skillet Cornbread Ingredients
- Cornmeal – I use stone-ground cornmeal in this recipe because it results in the best texture.
- Buttermilk
- Butter – Unsalted butter that has been melted and cooled. You’ll also need a pat of butter (about a teaspoon) for greasing the skillet.
- Eggs
- Baking Powder
- Baking Soda
- Salt
How to Prepare
- Preheat the oven and prepare the skillet. Grease the bottom and sides of a 10-inch cast iron skillet with butter. Place the skillet in the oven as it preheats.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk together cornmeal, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.
- Prepare the wet mixture. In a separate medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, eggs and melted butter until combined.
- Combine the mixtures. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir until just combined.
- Pour the batter into the hot skillet. Using oven mitts, carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven. Pour the batter into the skillet (you should hear it sizzle).
- Bake the cornbread. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the edges are browned and a toothpick inserted in the center is removed clean.
If additional browning is desired on the top of your cornbread, broil on high for 1 to 2 minutes, watching carefully so that it does not over-brown.
Helpful Tips
- Don’t skip preheating the skillet. This is a key step to create a crispy and deep golden crust.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Stir until the ingredients are just moistened and combined.
- Use fresh ingredients. Ensure that your baking powder and baking soda are fresh – these ingredients can lose their potency over time.
- Use stone-ground cornmeal. Using stone-ground cornmeal will result in a more textured cornbread.
- Use room temperature ingredients. If you have the time, remove the buttermilk and eggs from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before preparing. Using room temp ingredients help the batter to blend thoroughly. Also allow the melted butter to cool about 5 minutes before adding to the wet ingredients.
Serving Suggestions
Serve warm with a pat of butter and/or drizzled with honey with the following main courses:
Storing Leftovers
- Room temperature: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.
- Refrigerator: Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- Freezer: Wrap the cornbread in plastic wrap, then place in a zip-top freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
Southern Skillet Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon unsalted butter for greasing skillet
- 2 cups yellow stone-ground cornmeal
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 cups buttermilk room temperature
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter melted and cooled
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of a 10-inch cast iron skillet with 1 teaspoon butter (use more if needed).
- Place the skillet in the oven as it preheats while you're preparing the batter.
- Whisk together cornmeal, baking soda, salt, and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk buttermilk, eggs and melted butter until combined.
- Pour the wet mixture into dry mixture and stir until just combined (do not over-mix).
- Using oven mitts, carefully remove the hot skillet from the oven. Pour the batter into the skillet (you should hear it sizzle).
- Using oven mitts, carefully return the hot skillet to the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until edges are browned, and a toothpick inserted in the center is removed clean.
- If additional browning is desired on top, broil on high for 1 to 2 minutes, watching carefully.
- Cool 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- If you don’t have buttermilk, you can substitute it by pouring 2 tablespoons of white vinegar OR 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in a large liquid measuring cup with at least a 2-cup capacity. Add enough milk to fill to the 2-cup mark. Stir and allow to stand for 5 minutes before using.
- Bacon drippings can be used in place of butter.
Nutrition
If provided, nutritional info is a courtesy, is not guaranteed and should only be considered as a guideline.
Thank you, this has become my go-to recipe. Love good southern cornbread, and was happy with a recipe from ATK, but it was overly complicated and seemed to violate the original idea behind cornbread – an easy bread to bake while cooking other things on the stove top. (Growing up, we always had biscuits or cornbread at supper.) Your recipe is much easier to do and tastes great. Thanks.
My friend really wanted a cast iron skillet so I surprised her with one this past Christmas. I also bought her a lid and special gloves to handle the heat. She was thrilled.
Now, every time I see a yummy recipe, I forward it to her – she loves cornbread so this will be perfect! Thanks very much.
Can I make this in a glass casserole dish?
Love this recipe! The texture is light but not crumbly. Can hold some butter and not flake everywhere. GREAT taste. Now my “go to” recipe for cornbread!
Thank you so much, Al…..glad you enjoyed it! You describing it makes me hungry! 🙂