Easy Southern Cornbread Without Buttermilk (Skillet Recipe)

Southern cornbread without buttermilk is an easy skillet recipe that only takes a few minutes to whip up and get into the oven.

The cornbread is a comforting and delicious side dish that is perfect any time of year and is made with simple ingredients.

Homemade Cornbread

We all love homemade cornbread, and it’s such a great recipe for any occasion.

But if you’re not a big buttermilk fan, you can switch it out for milk and still have a tasty dish.

Southern Cornbread Recipe

Southerners love their cornbread. It’s a part of a lot of meals and has been around for generations.

Southern cornbread can come in a lot of different forms. It’s typically made without sugar and is a little bit crumbly.

Traditional cornbread is also usually made with buttermilk but tastes wonderful with regular milk, as well.

And I think we would all agree that we all love some butter melting on top.

Should I Add Sugar?

There are lots of arguments for and against adding sugar to the recipe and making it a sweet cornbread recipe. But here’s the thing–it’s your cornbread, so if you want to add some, go right ahead.

For this recipe, I didn’t add it to the ingredients, but it is optional.

Some people love Jiffy Cornbread, which has a touch of sweetness to it. We eat a lot of Jiffy meals around here.

If you love Jiffy, head on over to my moist cornbread post to get the recipe.

What Ingredients Do I Need For Southern Cornbread?

Wet Ingredients

• Eggs
• Milk
• Sour cream
• Vegetable oil
• Butter (for spreading in the pan and topping your cornbread…mmm, yum)

Dry Ingredients

• Yellow cornmeal
• All-purpose flour
• Salt
• Baking powder
• Baking soda

Full printable recipe with measurements and instructions listed at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.

• Eggs – Eggs are going to help add some moisture to the recipe. They will also help bind the ingredients together.
• Milk – Cornbread is typically made with buttermilk, but a lot of people don’t like the flavor of buttermilk. So, you can use milk instead for this recipe.
• Sour cream – sour cream is going to add some of the acidity back into the dish since you are not using buttermilk. Sour cream will also add a touch more flavor.
• Vegetable Oil – vegetable oil is going to help add some moisture to the cornbread so it doesn’t fall apart on your fork.
• Yellow cornmeal – this is one of the staples of Southern cornbread. It gives it that “cornbread” taste.
• All-purpose flour – adding flour to your recipe is going to keep the cornbread from getting too crumbly. We all like a little bit of crumble, but we like to be able to keep it together on its way to our mouth.
• Baking soda and baking powder – these two ingredients will help the cornbread rise.
• Salt – this will add a lot of flavor to the dish.
• Butter – for spreading in the pan and melting on your slice of cornbread.

What Type Of Cooking Dish Should I Use?

For this recipe, I used a cast-iron skillet for a couple of reasons.

You can heat the skillet in the oven, slather some melted butter around the inside, and pour the cornbread mix into the pan.

Once you pour the cornbread into the piping hot skillet, it will begin to cook the side dish and make it crispy and buttery on the outside.

Cast-iron skillets are non-stick, so clean-up is a breeze, and it distributes the heat evenly as it cooks.

If you don’t have a skillet, never fear; you can use a square baking dish instead, and it will work just fine.

I used a 10-inch cast-iron pan for the recipe.

Here are some pans you can use:

• 8-inch by 8-inch square cake pan
• 9-inch by 9-inch square cake pan

Step-By-Step Instructions for Easy Southern Cornbread without Buttermilk

While you prepare the recipe, preheat the oven. Place your skillet into the oven and let it get hot.

Once you’re ready to pour the ingredients into the pan, take it out of the oven and spread the butter around the skillet. Be careful–it will be hot!

Start by adding some yellow cornmeal to a large bowl.

The great thing about this dish is that you only need to dirty one bowl. Just get a large enough bowl and you’re in business.

Next, add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the bowl.

Next, add the eggs to the bowl.

Pour the vegetable oil into the bowl.

This recipe calls for 1/2 cup of vegetable oil.

If it’s still a little more crumbly than you’d like it to be, add one more tablespoon of oil the next time you cook it, and that should help moisten it up a tad.

Next, add the sour cream and mix the ingredients.

Pour the milk into the bowl and mix well. Be sure to mix until the ingredients are incorporated, but don’t over-mix.

I used 2-percent milk for this recipe, but if you’d like to use whole milk or skim milk, you can do that, as well.

For best results, pour the cornbread batter into the hot skillet or prepared pan, and bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean and the top is golden brown.

Some people love to cook some bacon and use the bacon grease in this recipe. And let’s be real, you can’t go wrong with bacon or bacon grease.

Feel free to try it and crumble some bacon bits into the cornbread mixture. Talk about flavor.

If you love cornbread dressing, give this recipe for Jiffy Cornbread dressing a try.

Y’all will love this easy recipe. It’s a dense cornbread but a really good one.

More cornbread recipes:

• Jiffy cornbread hush puppies are not only easy to make but taste amazing. Y’all can add these to any fish dinner for a great side dish.
• Buttermilk cornbread is the classic cornbread recipe. It’s a tad more crumbly and features tons of flavor.
• Jiffy jalapeno cornbread is one spicy side dish. The kids love it around here and it’s incredibly easy to make.
• Jiffy cornbread with creamed corn has remained one of my most popular posts here on the blog. It’s super easy to make, stays moist, and has so much flavor.
• Jiffy cornbread tamale pie is a main dish that is perfect for dinner. It’s not too spicy, but it’s hearty, and the kids love it.
• Jiffy cornbread pancakes are a budget-friendly breakfast, and they taste pretty amazing. When we make pancakes, this is the way we do it.
• Jiffy cheeseburger casserole might be one of my favorite dinners. It is so cheesy, meaty, and filling.
• Homemade meatloaf with Jiffy is another meal that we eat quite often around here. It’s super simple to make and will feed quite a few people.

What is the Difference Between Northern and Southern Cornbread?

Most true Southerners will cook their cornbread in a cast-iron skillet. I can remember my grandmother cooking a lot of things in a cast iron skillet, including her cornbread.

Southern cornbread tends to be a little more dense and crumbly.

You will find plenty of Southerners who do like sugar in their cornbread, but if you go read some of my Facebook posts featuring cornbread, you will see it is hotly contested.

Northern cornbread is a little more fluffy, contains sugar, and is almost more like a slice of cake.

Northerners typically like their cornbread cooked in a baking dish, not cast iron, and they use milk instead of the traditional buttermilk.

How do you like your cornbread? Let me know in the comments below.

Extra Ingredients You Can Add to Cornbread

If you’re looking for some different ways to make your cornbread, here are a few ideas.

• Bacon drippings – use a few tablespoons of bacon drippings from breakfast, add it to the batter, and mix for a delicious cornbread recipe. (We love bacon around here). You can make the bacon in a cast iron pan and then bake the cornbread with the drippings.
• Bacon – crumble up about four pieces of cooked bacon and add it to the batter. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
• Shredded cheddar cheese – Add 1/2 a cup to a cup (depending on how much cheese you like) to the batter and mix. Sprinkle a small handful on top before baking. It is the perfect side dish.
• Green chile and cheddar cheese – Simply add 1/4 cup of green chile and 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese to the batter.
• Cooked and crumbled sausage – there’s not much better than cooked sausage mixed in with the easy cornbread recipe. Just add 1/3 cup of cooked sausage, and you’ve got some delicious comfort food.
• Jalapeno peppers – If you like things spicy and hot, add 1/3 cup of jalapeno peppers to your mix and sprinkle a few on top for good measure.
• Sweet cornbread – to get a hint of sweetness, add one tablespoon of sugar to the recipe. If you like it a little sweeter, you can vary the amount of sugar and add more.
• Brown sugar and pecans – this might be my favorite choice. Add 1/3 cup of chopped pecans and 3 tablespoons of brown sugar to the mix, and you’ve got one amazingly delicious sweet cornbread. Finish by topping with some butter while it’s hot.

Can You Use Muffin Tins?

Yes, you can grease a muffin tin or use cupcake liners and make corn muffins instead of cornbread. Bake the muffins for approximately 20 minutes.

You can test the cornbread muffins in the same way by using a cake tester or a toothpick, and if it comes out clean after baking, it is done.

Can You Freeze Cornbread?

Simply allow the cornbread to cool to room temperature after baking, store it in an airtight container, and freeze it for up to three months.

When you’re ready to eat the cornbread, leave it out on the counter for at least two to three hours to thaw out.

After thawing, you can reheat by placing the cornbread in a pan and covering it with aluminum foil. Heat up at 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes or until the cornbread is hot.

Top with some butter, and enjoy.

Meals to Eat with Cornbread:

• Homemade chili
• Crock Pot sausage and peppers
• Slow cooker BBQ beef
• Slow cooker pot roast
• Black-eyed pea soup with sausage
• Hamburger vegetable soup
• Cheesy slow cooker potato soup
• Debby, over at Southern Home Express, has a REALLY good homemade cream of tomato soup that we made for some of the seniors at our church, and they loved it! It’s also a great recipe because it’s SO easy to make.

Easy Southern Cornbread Without Buttermilk (Skillet Recipe)

Ditch the buttermilk and still nail that perfect skillet cornbread recipe! Get ready for some delicious, crispy crust Southern-style goodness.