Name: Easy Skillet Cornbread
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 1½ cups white or yellow cornmeal (preferably stone-ground); 1 Tbsp. sugar; ¾ tsp. baking soda; ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton’s kosher salt; 2 large eggs; 1¾ cups well-shaken buttermilk; ¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter; Equipment: a well-seasoned 10-inch cast-iron skillet

Corn bread being served from a cast iron skillet.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich

Whether you’re a seasoned cook or new to the kitchen, this easy cornbread recipe is the answer to most questions. Need a side dish for a hearty stew or new chili recipe? Bake cornbread. Hungry for world-class stuffing that bakes up crispy and golden brown? Cornbread takes you there. Packaged cornbread mixes abound, but skillet cornbread is nearly as easy to make and similarly ready in, well, a jiffy. At any given moment you’re 30 minutes away from your very own piping hot, perfectly moist cornbread with a tender crumb.

Because there’s only 1 Tbsp. of sugar in the batter, this recipe is incredibly versatile. Sweet cornbread stans can increase the amount up to ¼ cup, sprinkle the top with brown sugar before baking, or slather on honey butter at the table; those who prefer to keep things savory might stir in a handful of chopped jalapeños and shredded cheddar cheese or top with a dollop of sour cream. There’s no all-purpose flour in the dry ingredients here, so depending on the type of cornmeal you use, this quick bread is even gluten-free without any fuss.

This recipe for homemade cornbread can be baked up to two days in advance. Store at room temperature tightly wrapped or in an airtight container. Reheat in the same cast-iron skillet you used to bake, or just pop a slice in your toaster oven. Life is complicated; cornbread doesn’t have to be.

Cooks’ Note

If you don’t have a cast-iron skillet, use a 9-inch-square or 11x7-inch baking dish. To make cornbread muffins, grease muffin tin with butter or vegetable oil and fill muffin cups ¾ of the way with cornbread batter. Bake at 425°F for 15–20 minutes.