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My Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread recipe produces a light, moist, cheesy, and slightly spicy treat. It's an excellent bread with several options. It's so good you can just eat it with butter by itself.
Here are some meals you can use the cornbread to sop up: New Orleans Red Beans and Rice, Pot Roast, Root Beer Braised Short Ribs, Jamaican Oxtails, Blackened Chicken Alfredo and Southern Fried Fish.
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Jalapeno cheddar cornbread is a special treat for me because I love heat and cheese. Normally, when I make my cornbread, I keep it true to my Southern roots. However, every now and then, I enjoy jazzing it up a bit.
If you're like me, you probably grew up with a busy mom who used Jiffy cornbread mix to get dinner on the table fast, and if you're also like me, you had an elder who refused to use it and would make it from scratch.
I'm of the latter opinion. There's no need to buy the box stuff when I always have the ingredients on hand. I just make my cornbread with a slight twist to maximize the corn flavor and a different cheese instead of sharp cheddar cheese.
For my moist jalapeño cheddar cornbread recipe at home, you'll need masa flour, all-purpose flour, jalapenos, Colby jack cheddar, buttermilk, melted butter, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and eggs.
Now, corn flour (masa) is not used in cornbread because we were all raised on cornmeal, but I always found the texture slightly gritty, while the masa flour provided a wonderful flavor to the overall dish.
Even though I use masa flour, I never add fresh or frozen sweet corn to my cornbread recipe. Personally, I believe it doesn't produce the best texture. However, if you're into it, do you!
Let's start with this fabulous jalapeno cornbread recipe! You'll soon be walking away from box cornbread.
Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Key Ingredients
If you're going to make crowd-pleasing corn bread, you'll need some everyday ingredients.
Masa flour
Masa flour is made from dried maize (corn) until it's finely ground into flour. It is usually used to make tortillas or tamales. You can use medium-grain cornmeal instead, but make sure you use the yellow kind, not the white kind.
Fresh Jalapeno
If you cannot handle heat, this is the wrong recipe for you. I will not recommend cutting out the seeds and white vain (where all the heat is). I want some heat to this cornbread.
Colby Jack Cheddar
Every recipe for jalapeno cheddar cornbread contains basic shredded cheddar cheese, which is why I decided to be different and use Colby jack cheddar cheese. It's the perfect blend of Monterey jack cheese and cheddar, which isn't as hot as pepper jack cheese but adds the perfect mild, mellow flavor to this recipe.
Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
Unbleached all-purpose flour is excellent for baking bread. It improves the texture of the bread while providing slight health benefits.
Leaving Ingredients
You'll need baking powder and baking soda. The baking powder will react with the buttermilk and eggs in the cornbread batter as soon as it is moistened, and it will continue to react during the baking portion. Meanwhile, the baking soda will help the cornbread rise to perfection!
Kosher Salt
This crushed medium flake salt is my go-to because you use less than traditional table salt. Plus, a little salt wakes up the flavor in the dish.
Granulated Sugar
I like sweet cornbread; however, I wanted the jalapeno and cheese to shine, so it's mildly sweet and plays very well with all the other ingredients.
Unsalted Butter
Remember, you use unsalted butter for cooking and baking and salted butter to spread on bread before serving.
Eggs
Eggs act as a binding agent, holding the ingredients together while also helping baked goods rise and achieve a light, airy texture.
Buttermilk
It's not cornbread to me unless it has that sour and tangy flavor that buttermilk adds to baked goods.
How to Make Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread
This jalapeńo cheddar cornbread should only take 10 - 12 minutes to prep and bake in the hot oven.
Preheat oven to 425°F/ 218°C. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or brush with 2 tablespoons of melted butter. In a large bowl, mix corn flour, flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, and salt together.
Stir in eggs, melted butter, buttermilk, diced jalapeno, and cheese (reserve 3 tablespoons).
Mix until cornbread batter is thick and smooth.
Fill muffin pan ⅔ full, then sprinkle remaining shredded cheese on top.
Bake for 20-22 minutes until golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before eating. Enjoy with chili, beans, pasta, or any braised meat.
How to Store Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread
After the cornbread cools, keep it in an airtight container in the fridge for seven days.
If you plan on making a large batch and freezing it for later, store it in a freezer storage bag and freeze it for 1 month. Thaw for 8 hours before using.
Reheat cornbread in a 350°F/ 176°C oven for 5-8 minutes.
Pro Recipe Substitutions, Tips & Tricks
Here are a few notes to keep in mind when you make my jalapeño cheddar cornbread recipe.
- You can find masa corn flour in the grocery store's baking aisle. Feel free to swap corn flour for corn meal as a swap for corn flour.
- You don't have to make cornbread muffins. You can bake this recipe in an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 baking dish or a small cast iron skillet for the same amount of time.
- Remember, a thick batter equals tender and fluffy cornbread.
- Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour is the best gluten-free flour for this recipe.
- I don't recommend pickled jalapenos for this recipe; the vinegar could cause the buttermilk to curdle.
- While pre-shredded cheese is great, I highly recommend grating your own. You can also use cheddar cheese instead of Colby jack cheese.
- Feel free to swap buttermilk with any milk you have at home. However, do know that you'll be sacrificing flavor.
- If you need a larger serving size, double the recipe, but you must bake it in two skillets or baking pans.
- You can use softened butter to grease the muffin tin, but I used cooking spray. It's faster and less messy.
- The acid in the buttermilk tames the heat of the diced jalapeños, so don't worry about it being too spicy. If you love heat, swap the jalapeno for a serrano.
FAQs
Here are the top questions readers have about making homemade jalapeno cheddar cornbread.
What is the difference between cornbread and Southern cornbread?
While they may seem similar, the ingredients, texture, and flavor differences make each one uniquely delicious. Southern cornbread is more savory and doesn't have much sugar, if any sugar, and has a crumbly texture from the cornmeal. While cornbread is sweeter and slightly reminiscent of a cakey texture and flavor.
What to eat with jalapeno cheddar cornbread?
Jalapeno cheddar cornbread is a great bread to serve with a variety of meals; here are some of my favorites: smothered cabbage, crawfish etouffee, fried chicken, mac and cheese, smoked chicken wings, salisbury steak, trout meuniere, collard and turnip greens.
More Cornbread Recipes
Now you have the best cornbread recipe, here are some other cornbread recipes to try
Before You Begin
Before getting started, here are the steps I use to get organized.
Step 1: Read the recipe once, and preheat oven to 425°F before pulling the ingredients out.
Step 2: Measure everything out into individual bowls.
Step 3: Follow the recipe and get ready for the best jalapeno cheddar cornbread you've ever made.
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📖 Recipe
Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 cup corn flour
- 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs
- 4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 jalapeno chopped small
- ½ cup shredded Colby jack cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F/ 218°C. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or brush with 2 tablespoons of melted butter. In a large bowl, mix corn flour, flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, and salt together.
- Stir in eggs, melted butter, buttermilk, diced jalapeno, and cheese (reserve 3 tablespoons).
- Fill muffin pan ⅔ full, then sprinkle remaining shredded cheese on top.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes until golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before eating.
Notes
- You can find masa corn flour in the grocery store's baking aisle. Feel free to swap corn flour for corn meal as a swap for corn flour.
- You don't have to make cornbread muffins. You can bake this recipe in an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 baking dish or a small cast iron skillet for the same amount of time.
- Remember, a thick batter equals tender and fluffy cornbread.
- Bob's Red Mill gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour is the best gluten-free flour for this recipe.
- I don't recommend pickled jalapenos for this recipe; the vinegar could cause the buttermilk to curdle.
- While pre-shredded cheese is great, I highly recommend grating your own. You can also use cheddar cheese instead of Colby jack cheese.
- Feel free to swap buttermilk with any milk you have at home. However, do know that you'll be sacrificing flavor.
- If you need a larger serving size, double the recipe, but you must bake it in two skillets or baking pans.
- You can use softened butter to grease the muffin tin, but I used cooking spray. It's faster and less messy.
- The acid in the buttermilk tames the heat of the diced jalapeños, so don't worry about it being too spicy. If you love heat, swap the jalapeno for a serrano.
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