Skillet Cornbread

This quick Skillet Cornbread recipe has been in my family for decades. A crisp golden crust, moist fluffy center, melt-in-your-mouth deliciousness. Made from scratch and ready in less than 30 minutes. Serve at your next barbeque, with chili, or simply dunk in a glass of buttermilk.

My dad moved from Pikeville, KY to Miami, FL when he was 18 years old. The pictures of him and his mom in front of their house when they bought it back in 1958. Pretty remarkable to see the house back then and now current day. Recent renovations of my own done in 2021 made me fall in love with the house/memories even more. I used to make sea grape leaf soup every Sunday when I was little. Clearly my love for cooking/baking started at a young age. Enter my grandma’s Skillet Cornbread recipe.

My grandma made cornbread. My dad makes cornbread. I eat cornbread, however, I’ve never made homemade cornbread. Figured it was time to give it a go and make sure the tradition carried on. Enter the skillet that is older than my dad and the one my grandma used. Seasoned, well used, and ready for more use. Dad finally wrote down the instructions and ingredients and I’m here to share with you a family recipe. Skillet cornbread in less than 30 minutes. Doesn’t get any simpler or more delicious than that. And please, don’t try to debate on this, there is no sugar in cornbread. The end.

Ingredients: Skillet Cornbread

• Cornmeal: Coarse. A must for cornbread! It gives the bread its beautiful golden-brown color and the grainy, delicious consistency.
• All-Purpose Flour: All purpose flour will allow the bread to rise a bit and give it the spongy consistency of bread. I haven’t tested this with a gluten-free alternative. If you do, let me know!
• Baking Powder: is going to help the dough rise and expand as it’s baking. To test and make sure your baking powder is fresh, the chemical leavener needs to be active, simply add add water to 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. If the baking powder fizzes, you’re good to go. You can read about it more here.
• Salt: Adding just a pinch as it will help to bring out the flavors. If you are watching your sodium, it could be left out.
• Milk: Will give a little bit of moistness, but also lends to a more tender rich texture. I used skim, 2% milk, and whole milk. I haven’t tested it with an alternative milk.
• Eggs: Are a binding agent and additionally will help the bread to rise as well.
• Oil: Opting for oil rather than butter here, the oil should be a neutral oil, so no taste to it. Canola, Grapeseed, both work well.

How To Make Skillet Cornbread

1. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan or cast iron skillet well and set aside. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place your skillet in the oven to warm as the oven warms. This will help get a crispy bottom and provide great texture!
2. In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Whisk to combine well.
3. In a small bowl (or measuring cup), whisk your eggs until slightly beaten. Add milk and whisk again. Slowly add the oil, whisking till it all comes together. You could warm the oil in the oven with the skillet, however, you’d have to add the oil quite slowly (or else the eggs will cook). Mixing all the liquid ingredients turned out great.
4. Make a well in the center of your dry ingredients and add your liquid ingredients. Stir with a spatula just until the mixture comes together and there are only a few lumps remaining.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is a deep golden brown. You could also use the broiler for just a few minutes to get it a little more brown. You’re going to want to remove the cornbread from the skillet. Otherwise the bread will get soft from the moisture in the pan. You can use a plate to flip the cornbread onto and/or let it cool on a wire rack.
6. As project manager instructs, have butter ready and cut a small piece for immediate consumption. That’s it. Enjoy!

Other Bread Recipes

• Beer Bread
• Johnnie Cakes
• Mashed Potato Waffles

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