Jalapeno Cornbread
This jalapeno cornbread recipe is incredibly moist with lots of spicy jalapeno peppers and cheddar cheese. Great for the holidays or an anytime side dish!
Raise your hand if you love jalapeño cornbread! You can’t see me, but my hand is nearly touching the ceiling right now. For me, there is nothing better than a moist, almost juicy piece of cornbread that is jammed full of chopped jalapeno peppers and a bit of wonderful melty cheese.
The only person I know who loves cornbread more than I do is my wife, Patty. She is CRAZY for cornbread and wants it even more than I do. That’s saying a lot!
What’s so GREAT about cornbread is its versatility.
What to Serve with Jalapeno Cornbread – It’s so Versatile!
Cornbread fits perfectly as a simple side dish to so many different meals, from big bowls of gumbo to chili to anything and everything BBQ. I can’t imagine BBQ pulled pork or BBQ ribs without my cornbread! You can also serve it as a meal starter, just a bit of jalapeno cornbread before the main course is served.
One of my favorite ways to serve it, though, is as dessert. Try drizzling a bit of honey over a slice of jalapeno cornbread. Guaranteed it will become one of your favorite desserts ever.
The only downside to cornbread I’ve ever seen is that it can be dry. Oh no! Nobody wants dry cornbread! I sure don’t. There is a secret, though, to making cornbread that is moist and not dry. You’ll find that secret in the recipe, and more on that below.
But first, let’s talk about how we make this awesome jalapeno cornbread, shall we?
Ingredients Needed for Jalapeno Cornbread
- 1 cup whole milk
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 14.5 ounces creamed corn (1 can)
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup chopped jalapeno peppers + sliced jalapenos for topping
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or use a spicy pepperjack for extra heat)
How to Make Jalapeno Cornbread – the Recipe Steps
- Heat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Whisk together the milk, melted butter, eggs and creamed corn together in a small bowl.
- Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and black pepper in a separate larger bowl.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir together.
- Stir in the chopped jalapenos and shredded cheese.
- Pour the batter mixture into a lightly oiled baking dish and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the cornbread sets and when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool slightly, slice and serve.
Makes 9 pieces of cornbread.
The Secret to Moist Cornbread
The secret ingredient to baking moist cornbread is creamed corn. Creamed corn is made from sweet corn and includes the milky residue from the corn cobs. The added moisture transfers to the cornbread to a practically fail-proof recipe. If you don’t want dry cornbread, get yourself a can of creamed corn. You’ll thank me for it.
Recipe Tips & Notes
- Make Double. This batch makes 9 good sized squares of moist and fluffy cornbread. You can easily double or even triple the batch and bake it in separate baking dishes.
- Spread it Out. If you use a wider pan, you can make the same batch of cornbread, but thinner, so the slices are only half the size of mine. This will yield you roughly 18 pieces of smaller cornbread. This is a good way to stretch the recipe for larger gatherings. Just don’t bake it for quite as long.
- Extra Jalapenos. If you’e like it extra spicy, you can easily include more jalapeno peppers into your batch.
- Make it Cheesy. Cheese is another ingredients here that’s easy to include. I’ve use a cup for my recipe, but you can pretty easily include another 1/2 or more. Give it a go!
- Jalapenos on Top. I like to add extra jalapeno slices to the tops of the batter before baking for an extra decorative touch. It looks great this way!
- Drizzle with Honey. One of my favorite ways to serve up jalapeno cornbread is with a nice drizzle of sweet honey. Such a wonderful flavor combination.
- Extra Corn. If you like your cornbread with lots of corn, add in a cup or 2 of extra corn kernels. The recipe will love you for it!
Patty’s Perspective
I will take Mike’s jalapeno cornbread any day of the week! I don’t care if he cooks it up in a baking dish, in a cast iron skillet, in big or little muffin tins, if he’s making cornbread, I’m eating cornbread! Mike likes to joke about how much I love it, but the truth is – it isn’t a joke. I love cornbread. Period.
Try Some of My Other Popular Recipes
- Skillet Jalapeno Cornbread
- Cheese Jalapeno Popper Cornbread Muffins
- Cornbread Dressing
- Hot Honey (drizzle it over your cornbread!)
- Honey Sriracha Chicken
- Mango-Habanero BBQ Chicken
- Grilled Pork Chops with Carolina Mustard BBQ Sauce
- Grilled Chicken Wings with Alabama White BBQ Sauce
- Red Eye Gravy
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Jalapeno Cornbread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 14.5 ounces creamed corn 1 can
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup chopped jalapeno peppers + sliced jalapenos for topping
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese or use a spicy pepperjack for extra heat
Instructions
- Heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Whisk together the milk, melted butter, eggs and creamed corn together in a small bowl.
- In a larger bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and black pepper.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir together.
- Stir in the chopped jalapenos and shredded cheese.
- Pour the batter mixture into a lightly oiled baking dish and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the cornbread sets and an inserted toothpick comes out dry in the center.
- Cool slightly, slice and serve.
Video
Notes
NOTE: I like to add extra jalapeno slices to the tops of the batter before baking for an extra decorative touch. I love to drizzle mine with honey!
Nutrition
NOTE: This post was updated on 10/18/19 to include new photo, video and information. It was originally published on 5/19/14.
34 comments
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Can you bake this in a cast iron skillet?
You certainly can, Celina. I have a recipe just for this – Skillet Cornbread: https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/chili-pepper-recipes/side-dishes/jalapeno-skillet-cornbread/. Enjoy!
Can you omit the jalapeños and cheese? I would like to do one with and without. Doing this for our New Year/Thanksgiving because of Covid.
Misty, yes, you surely can. Let me know how it goes for you.
Quick, easy and delicious! I prefer my cornbread on the sweeter side. Since this recipe leans more towards savory, the honey really made it! This one is a keeper!
Nice! Thanks Lisa!
I’m excited to try this recipe. The only variation I’m planning is to drizzle it with maple syrup rather than honey. 🙂
Sounds perfect, Amanda!
I’ve been on the hunt for an easy savoury cornbread recipe. Would it hurt to leave the sugar out? I’ve made a very sweet cornbread, it was a sumptuous yellow sponge. It features creamed corn, which I made myself. Leftovers made a lovely side. I tried Jamie Oliver’s recipe and it didn’t rise, 1 teaspoon of baking power didn’t cut it. 4 large eggs made it a brick like mess… very disappointing.
Sarah, yes, you can skip the sugar. You might try a touch of honey, but skip that, too. Shouldn’t have any issue. Take care.
This is the same recipe my mother used when i was growing up in the 1970s – don’t know where she got it from as we didn’t have the Internet then. I’ve cooked it numerous times over the years, though not in a very long time. I’d like to make it using my cast iron skillet – same method as above, substituting the baking dish with skillet? Will it cook faster in an iron skillet in the oven?
Great, Rob! Yes, you can use this exact same recipe to make it in a cast iron skillet. It might cook faster if the overall surface area is larger and the batter not as thick, so keep an eye on it and test it part way through, just to be sure. Let me know how it turns out for you! Enjoy!
Thank you for your fast response!I have not made this yet but plan to this week.It looks amazing!!
I hope you enjoy it! I love this one.
Hi, I haven’t made this yet but was planning to today. I have buttermilk and was wondering if that would be an ok substitute for the milk. (I have milk too). Thanks! Susan
Susan, yes, you can use buttermilk. Let me know how it turns out for you.
I’d love to try this recipe. It’s sounds delicious. There’s no mention of the baking dish size? Can you please let me know. It’s most likely a 9″ square but I hate to assume.
Hi, Craig. I used a deep 9×9 pan. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Hey there! Stumbled upon this recipe on Pinterest, planning on making this for my husband’s Birthday on Saturday to complement our Chili Bar we are serving. My question is what brand and type of cornmeal did you use?
Misty, for this one I used Quaker Yellow Corn Meal, but I’ve made this with many different brands and they all come out good. Use your favorite. Let me know how it turns out for you!
do you have a picture of the cornbread without the honey on it …I didn’t rate it cause I am fixing to make it now but it looks so good
Linda, no, but you can see it in the video without the honey at the beginning and then again at the very end, just before the honey drizzle. Let me know if this helps.
This is easily the most delicious cornbread that I’ve made. Just enough heat to keep it interesting. Awesome with the cranberry jalapeno jelly recipe that I made out of the same batch of jalapenos! Amazing recipe.
Awesome, Cody! I love the combination there, too!
To.Die.For! This it the most moist cornbread I have ever made. It’s dense yet melts in your mouth. (Holds it shape instead of crumbling when you pick up a piece.) The spice ratio was perfect. Enjoyed biting into bits of jalapeno. Also enjoyed your honey-topping suggestion. Perfection!
Awesome, Trish! I know, right? Took me a few times, but I got this recipe down! Super moist. I just love it. Thanks for commenting.
Hello Mr Mike, in your opinion how do you think the cornbread would be by adding 2 tablespoons of veg oil and some sour cream?
Jay, I think it would turn out nicely. No issues that I can see. Let me know how it turns out for you.
IMHO, as someone who has been making jalapeno cornbread for years, the secret to to a great jalapeno cornbread is to simmer the chopped jalapenos in a 1/4 cup of corn oil before adding it to the mix. If you can let it soak for a while before mixing it up, all the better. There’s something about the jalapeno oil infusion that helps permeate the pepper flavor throughout the cornbread. The cup of shredded cheddar cheese is another good call. It makes for a wonderfully brown crust. Finally, I like to put coarse diced onions, enough to cover the pan, with the oil before pouring in the batter. Yum!
I appreciate it, Kinney. I’ll bet your cornbread is outstanding.
Love it Mike, I use TendaBake Yellow Cornmeal (the texture is the best I’ve ever found) for mine, which is very similar to yours. I also toast whole cumin seeds in the cast iron pan I’m baking mine it, toss them in the mix with about 2 tablespoons of dried Epazote. My favorite way to eat Jalapeno Cornbread is with a big bowl of Pinto Beans with LOTS of pork and bacon in it.
Thanks, Robert. I love the addition of the toasted cumin. I’ll have to try that next time. Definitely delicious with pinto beans with lots of pork and bacon! Nice.
Mike this looks yummy! I love cornbread as much as Patty does! I am definitely going to try this. Love the creamed corn idea.
Erica
Yes! Thanks, Erica! I hope you enjoy it. Great stuff! Super moist.