Mexican Cornbread Recipe by Mama
Most families I know make a version of this deliciously moist and decadent cornbread known to us as Mama’s Mexican Cornbread recipe. Studded with sweet corn, cheddar cheese, and spicy bits of jalapeño peppers it’s sure to be a favorite.
Whenever I make Mexican Cornbread, I can happily eat two pieces of it, hot from the oven, and nothing else . Even my husband, who really doesn’t care for cornbread unless it’s sweet, comes running whenever I make this. My son’s only complaint is that I don’t cut the pieces bigger so he doesn’t have to keep coming back. Needless to say, when I make this Mexican Cornbread recipe by Mama for supper, usually, there isn’t any left.
Recipe Ingredients:
- Cream style corn
- Vegetable oil
- Egg
- Self rising cornmeal flour
- Sugar
- Chopped onion
- Shredded cheese
- Diced jalapeno
- Milk (I buy organic milk because it stays good for twice as long as regular milk 🙂
- Salt
To everyone who wasn’t raised on sweet cornbread:
Oh I know putting sugar in there feels so wrong. Cornbread isn’t supposed to be sweet. T’ain’t fittin’ and I know that. But, this is my Mama’s Mexican Cornbread recipe and the sugar is just a scant amount and it really works well with the heat of the jalapeños. It won’t end up tasting sweet in this particular recipe so just bite the bullet and do what Mama tells you to do 🙂
In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients.
Stir all of that up pretty good with a spoon or whisk.
- Now this is a cast iron skillet that I’ve had heating in the oven while it preheats. Preheat the oven as well.
- Pour about a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil in it and swirl it around a good bit.
- Pour in your batter in the prepared pan and bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes, or until all golden and prettified 🙂
Here it is all baked up.
Turn that cornbread over onto a large plate.
Stand aside because when the family catches a whiff it might spark a stampede!Variations To Recipe
- diced green onions
- chopped green bell peppers
- green chilis
- pepper jack cheese in replace of other cheese
Here is another one with some variations
Recipe FAQs
How do I make my cornbread crust crispy?
How do I make my cornbread crust crispy?Get your pan nice and hot, this is going to be key, then pour the batter into the hot pan. This will help to create that crispy crust you are looking for.
The extra yolk in the egg helps to make it more moist. If you want to add another egg, I recommend doing yolk only for the second cornbread.
Overcooking cornbread can cause it to fall apart. Every oven cooks different, so keep an eye on it if you made it before and it fell apart. To tell if it’s done you it should be crispy brown on top and when you insert a toothpick it comes out clean.
Note about baking Mexican Cornbread in an alternative to Cast Iron:
You can make this in an 8 or 9 inch cake pan if you prefer. It’s traditionally made in cast iron but it will turn out just fine if you make it in a cake pan or even an 8×8 square baking dish. Just go with whatever cranks yer tractor 🙂
Ingredients
- 1 + 1/2 cups self rising corn meal mix white or yellow
- 1 + 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese mild, medium, or sharp
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon diced jalapeño seeds removed
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup canned cream style corn*
Instructions
- Place a seasoned cast iron skillet (or 8 inch round cake pan) in the oven and preheat to 350.
- In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients.
- Pour 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil into skillet and swirl a bit to cover the bottom (This skillet is hot so hold it with a potholder).
- Pour batter in skillet and bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown on top. Turn out onto a plate, cut, and serve.
*Mama and I take the remaining cream corn and put it in a zipper seal bag to freeze. Next time you make corn bread just lay it out for about half an hour before you need it to thaw.
Nutrition
Try serving this with:
And here are some other cornbread recipes you may enjoy:
- Keto Cornbread Recipe Southern Plate
- Grandmama’s Crock Pot Cornbread Dressing
- All Star Cornbread Recipe Potluck!
- 2 Ingredient Hot Water Cornbread
How to become a positive person in three easy steps:
1. Think about the next thing you say before you say it.
2. Make it positive.
3. Repeat. 🙂~Christy Jordan
Bought your cookbook yesterday,subscribe to your magazine and read all your post.
Question…back in 1972 a friend gave me a recipe for brownies,made with Nestles Quik,also for the icing. Lost mine,I have even contacted Nestle,s but they were at a loss. Ever run across one like that?…….God Bless you,
How funny! I learned how to make cornbread from scratch as a little girl. I have my perfect iron skillet that doesn’t get used for anything else! I haven’t made Mexican cornbread in years, and was looking for a reminder. He funny thing is that I also keep my salt (sea or kosher) In a little “pinch pot” on the back of the stove…for the same place! I have a little collection going from the old mill that I have been adding to for years 🙂
Ahem. I am not very good with autocorrect! Mine is *from the same place! I heathy skillet up with the oil in it while the oven is preheating. Then I pour a little of the hot oil in the mix before pouring into the hot pan. Gives a great crust! I am also a big fan of the “DG” as I call it!
No worries Christi, I seem to have issues with auto-correct fairly often myself!! 🙂
Just have to say that I’ve made this several times now and we just can’t seem to get enough of it! My sweetheart doesn’t care for cornbread either but he kept going back and going back until he pretty much ate the whole thing by himself…I think I got 1 piece! LOL Many thanks!
LOL, so glad to hear it is a hit!!
Love your soapbox talks.I feel like I am sitting around with family when I read your page. All my family come from North Alabama.I see so much similarity in your recipes to ours.I have been eating cornbread like this since I was a young girl,that is more years than I care to tell.My mom would make it and if we had leftovers ,I would have some for breakfast the next morning.I so enjoy seeing what you post everyday.
I don’t have self- rising corn meal, what do Add to regular corn meal. Actually, I’ve got those little boxes of Jiff corn muffin / bread mix, too. do I add baking powder, how much? Thanks, Christy,
P.s. Plan to leave out the chili , but will try the sugar.
can this recipe be cooked on top of stove or on a camp fire/I dont like baked corn bread or real thick corn bread. A lot of times when we cook corn bread we dont have a oven around,its a spare of the moment thing…..thank you.
I would assume you could use a Dutch Oven to make this over a camp fire.
Hello Christy, I am so proud of you! I was looking at my Taste of the South mag and there you were in the cast iron addition !! Kudos and congrats! I loved the recipes and always like to see you in my magazines. I love my old Wagner cast iron skillets. I could not make corn bread without them. Lord only knows how old they are. I have had them now for about the 4th or 5th generation. I will give mine to my daughter and so on. I love cornbread too, I always eat the first piece right out of the oven..lol..I can’t seem to help myself. When we grew up my Grandfather always had cornbread in a glass of milk before bed. I loved spending the summers with him. He would get up early to plow the fields with that old mule and it was so hot. Those were my most special memories.
Special and precious memories indeed!!!