Southern-Style Cornbread

From box mix to homemade, sweet to savory, we’ve never met a cornbread we didn’t love. But for some people, there’s hot debate over which is the best way to make it.

In the North it’s super sweet, more like a squishy muffin than the crumbly, savory cornbread of the South. Northern cornbread is usually made with milk and butter, while Southern-style starts with bacon fat and is (almost) always baked in a cast-iron skillet. Don't be intimidated by baking in your cast iron— here's how we like to season ours to guarantee it won't stick. We usually prefer the Southern-style cornbread as a dinner side, and opt for Northern cornbread for breakfast in muffin form instead, but it's totally up to you!

You may have noticed, cornbread can have a bad tendency to go stale quickly. To avoid this when you’re not serving it immediately, make sure the cornbread has completely cooled, then tightly wrap it in plastic wrap before storing it. You can keep it at room temperature for up to 24 hours, and in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can even freeze it for up to 1 month— we like to use thawed leftovers to make recipes like cornbread stuffing or dressing.

Made this? Let us know how it went in the comments below.