Buttermilk Cornbread Recipe

"You will notice a complete lack of sugar in this cornbread recipe. Sugar is more often found in what is referred to derisively as “Yankee cornbread.” Adherents of white versus yellow cornmeal are like Methodists and Baptists--some think you’re going to hell if you follow one path and not the other. I am of the white cornmeal sect. The theory is that white corn was less hybridized and is closer to the original grain than yellow. Plain white cornmeal can be surprisingly tricky to find, even in Atlanta; most of what lines the grocery store shelves is a mix or self-rising, which already contains the leavener that makes the cornmeal rise. Although yellow and white cornmeal are interchangeable, plain and self-rising cornmeal are not. Warming the skillet and bacon grease or butter in the oven prepares the skillet for baking and melts the fat. Most often, I use butter. I like to let it get just barely nutty brown on the edges. The brown flecks give the cornbread extra color and flavor. This cornbread is a great match up with Black-eye Pea and Ham Hock Soup."

Original is 10 servings

Metric US

I've Tried It

Ingredients

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2 tablespoons unsalted butter (or bacon grease)
2 cups cornmeal (white or yellow cornmeal, not cornmeal mix or self-rising cornmeal)
1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups buttermilk
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Nutritional

Serving Size: 1 (82.9 g)
Calories 147.1
Total Fat - 5.3 g
Saturated Fat - 2.7 g
Cholesterol - 32.3 mg
Sodium - 426.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate - 21.2 g
Dietary Fiber - 1.8 g
Sugars - 2.6 g
Protein - 4.3 g
Calcium - 61.8 mg
Iron - 1 mg
Vitamin C - 0 mg
Thiamin - 0.1 mg

Step by Step Method

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place the butter in a 10-1/2-inch cast-iron skillet or ovenproof baking dish and heat in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Step 2

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the cornmeal, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a large measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and egg. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir to combine.

Step 3

Remove the heated skillet from the oven and pour the melted butter into the batter. Stir to combine, then pour the batter back into the hot skillet. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.

Step 4

Variation: Instead of baking in a skillet, this batter may be prepared as muffins. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Melt the butter in a small pan over low heat or in the microwave. Prepare the batter as directed; after mixing with the melted butter, spoon the batter into a 12-cup standard muffin tin, filling each cup no more than two-thirds full. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.