There's nothing better than these hot buttered Easy Cornbread Hoecakes! They're made with a simple 4 ingredient batter and fried to perfection in oil, butter or bacon grease. My grandma has passed our traditional Southern recipe down through the generations, it's a tried-and-true family recipe we make dozens of times a year.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time20 minutesmins
Total Time30 minutesmins
Course: bread
Cuisine: American
Keyword: bread
Servings: 10servings
Calories: 189kcal
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Ingredients
2cupsself-rising flour white cornmeal mix
¼cupself-rising flour
1teaspoonbaking soda
2cupswhole buttermilk
¼cupbutter, bacon grease, or oil
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal mix, self-rising flour, and baking soda until well combined.
Pour buttermilk into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Be careful not to overmix, as this can make the hoecakes tough.
Heat a cast-iron skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add ¼ cup vegetable oil, butter, or bacon grease the surface.
Once the skillet is hot, drop spoonfuls of the cornbread batter onto the skillet or hot griddle, using about ⅓-1/2 cups of batter for each hoecake. Use the back of the spoon to spread the batter slightly into a round shape.
Cook the hoecakes for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crispy on the outside, and cooked through on the inside. Flip them carefully using a spatula to ensure they cook evenly.
Remove the cooked hoecakes from the skillet and transfer them to a plate.
Repeat the process with the remaining batter, adding more oil, butter, or bacon grease to the skillet as needed.
Serve the cornbread hoecakes warm, either plain or with your favorite toppings such as a pat of butter, drizzle of honey, cane syrup, or maple syrup, or a schmear of jam.
Video
Notes
Expert Tips from a Real Southern Cook
Preheat the skillet: Make sure your cast iron skillet or griddle is properly preheated before adding the hoecake batter. A hot surface helps to create a crispy exterior and prevents the batter from sticking. You can also use a non-stick skillet if you don't have a cast-iron skillet or griddle.
Use bacon grease: Traditional cornbread and hoecakes are often cooked in bacon drippings, which adds a rich and savory flavor. If you don't have bacon grease, you can use butter or vegetable oil instead.
Don't overmix the batter: Mix the batter just until the ingredients are combined. Overmixing can lead to tough and dense hoecakes.
Adjust the consistency: Depending on your preference, you can adjust the consistency of the batter by adding more or less liquid. A thicker batter will result in denser hoecakes, while a thinner batter will yield lighter and fluffier hoecakes.
Pan Size: The amount prepared from this recipe will make 1 9-inch cast iron pone of cornbread or 8-10 hoecakes. You can also bake this batter in a 9"x9" pan. It's also fun to make these into corn sticks.
Homemade Self-Rising Flour: To make your own self-rising flour at home, simply mix, 1 cup all-purpose flour with 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Cornmeal Mix Substitute: If you don't have a self-rising cornmeal mix in your grocery store, you can substitute those 2 cups with 1 ¾ cups corn meal (finely ground), 6 tablespoons all purpose flour, 2 tablespoons baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt. You can use white or yellow cornmeal.