This homemade cornbread (no mixes here), is moist and full of great jalapeño cheddar flavor! Perfect on its own, drizzled with some honey, or alongside some spicy chili!
This is one of my Bread recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
Cornbread doesn’t seem controversial, but there’s a hot debate about it. Some people love it sweet and almost cake-like, and some people love it savory and more crumbly.
Being from the Midwest, but still a relatively northern state, cornbread around here is typically sweet and made with more flour than cornmeal.
So this version is true to my roots and is a perfect blend of sweet and savory, with a moist crumb, and a small kick of heat.
It’s great on its own, topped with butter, drizzled with honey, or alongside some rich chili!
How to make jalapeño cheddar cornbread?
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Mix wet ingredients. This is the eggs, butter, and sour cream. I find using a whisk works well, but you can also use a mixer if you’d like.
- Stir in corn and dry ingredients. Add the sugar, creamed corn, salt, and baking powder. Then stir in the flour and cornmeal.
- Stir in add-ins. This is the cheese and peppers.
- Transfer and bake. Make sure your baking dish or pan is greased, then add the batter. Top with cheese and bake.
- Cool. Let it cool 5-10 minutes before enjoying!
Helpful Tip!
For the best results, the cold ingredients (like the eggs and sour cream), should be set out for a little bit before mixing up the batter, so they’re not super cold. Warmer ingredients mix better together, so it’s a good practice to get into for baking.
Variations of this recipe
- Jarred peppers – if you’d prefer not to use fresh jalapeños, you can pick up some jarred or canned peppers. Just use about 2-3 heaping Tbsp of them.
- Different peppers – for a smokier flavor, try using one large poblano pepper in place of the two jalapeños. You could also try adding a can of well-drained diced green chiles.
- Spicier – for more heat, you can leave the seeds and ribs in the jalapeño, or use serrano peppers instead.
- Milder – for less heat, use less jalapeños or leave them out entirely for a cheddar cornbread recipe.
- Cheeses – try using some pepper jack cheese with the cheddar for a fun twist.
- Pre-shredded – to save yourself some time, this recipe works just as well with pre-shredded cheese, so feel free to use it if you’d like.
FAQ’s
It’s not really meant to be one or the other, although based on the flour to cornmeal ratio, I would classify it as a northern recipe (but with flair). Northern cornbreads have more flour than cornmeal, and tend to be sweeter. Conversely, Southern cornbreads tend to be less sweet, or not sweet at all, and have more cornmeal than flour.
While I haven’t tested it with this specific recipe, I’ve tested with other cornbread recipes of mine. I would try adding the batter to a greased muffin pan (or use liners), and baking them in a preheated 400°F oven for about 15 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs).
Making cornbread ahead of time
Like most baked goods, this recipe tastes best when made fresh. And since this recipe has a leavening agent (the baking powder), I don’t recommend making the batter ahead of time.
But you can work ahead in other ways.
How to prep ahead for this recipe:
- Jalapeños – the peppers can be deseeded and diced, and kept refrigerated.
- Cheese – the cheese can be shredded ahead of time (if not using pre-shredded), and kept refrigerated.
Freezing
This recipe freezes well! So the next time you’re making some cornbread, make a double batch and freeze one.
After baking, let the cornbread cool to room temperature, then wrap with plastic wrap (or whatever you use in place of plastic wrap) and transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 4 months.
Storage
Leftover cornbread should be kept in an airtight container and enjoyed within 2 days (kept at room temperature), or 4-5 days (refrigerated).
More Cornbread Recipes:
My Favorite Baking Dish!
You can use any 8×8 or 9×9 inch baking dish for this recipe, but I want be transparent and share that this is the exact dish used for this recipe.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup sour cream full fat is recommended
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled a bit
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 15 oz can creamed corn
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
- 2 fresh jalapeños seeded and diced
- 1 3/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese divided
Instructions
Prepare
- Preheat oven to 375°F and spray an 8×8 or 9×9 baking dish with nonstick spray (alternately, you can grease with butter or bacon grease).
- Melt butter, and set aside to cool for a few minutes before using.
Mix
- To a large mixing bowl, add the eggs, melted butter, and sour cream. Whisk (or use a mixer) until combined and smooth.
- Add sugar, creamed corn, salt, and baking powder. Whisk/stir to combine.
- Add cornmeal and flour, then stir (I find a rubber spatula is the best tool from this point on) until just combined and no flour streaks remain.
- Stir in jalapeños and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese, until well dispersed in the batter.
Bake
- Transfer batter to prepared baking dish, then top with the remaining 1/4 cup shredded cheese.
- Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Cool and serve
- Allow the cornbread to cool for 5-10 minutes, then slice and serve.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- I’ve estimated that this recipe will yield approximately 12 pieces, but feel free to slice the cornbread into as many pieces as you’d like.
- Adjust the number of jalapeños to your tastes.
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Jody Pyles says
This is my favorite cornbread recipe. I serve it with Mike’s Hot Honey! Yummy!
Deborah says
Made this this weekend in an 8 x 8. Turned out fantastic. I did use
jarred jalapenos and it worked well. Also used two different types
of cheeses. This is a keeper. Everyone loved it! Thank you.
Teresa says
Can the sugar be left out?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if that would work. If you do some experimenting, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Sandra says
This is so good and amazing! Everyone at my house really loved it!
Erin says
Looks incredibly delicious! Can’t wait to make this!
Rebecca Andrews says
Want to try this recipe but so much flour and only 1/4 cup of meal??? Do you think I could use all meal??
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if that would work. If you do some experimenting, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Beth says
I absolutely love jalapeno cornbread, and this variation is a total winner. Time to make this and some fried chicken!