Cornbread by Era and Region
From Native American Tradition to the Southern Skillet
Recipe Category: Documented historical recipes with historically inspired adaptations
A Bread Older Than the Nation
Cornbread is the oldest bread tradition in North America. Native peoples were grinding corn and cooking it into breads and cakes for thousands of years before European colonists arrived. When those settlers came, unprepared for the climate and unfamiliar with the land, it was corn, and the Native American methods for preparing it, that kept them alive.
The bread they learned to make evolved over centuries, shaped by region, necessity, and the cooks who made it. What we call "cornbread" today carries the fingerprints of Narragansett cooks, colonial kitchens, enslaved African Americans who stretched meager rations into sustenance, and generations of Southern families who served it at every meal.
This is not one recipe. It is a family of recipes, organized by era and tradition, each with its own story.
The Original Form: Johnnycake and Hoecake
The earliest American cornbreads were simple: ground corn, water, and salt, cooked on a flat surface over fire. The Narragansett and Pawtuxet peoples of New England taught colonists these methods, and the resulting bread went by many names: johnnycake, journey cake, hoecake, corn pone.
Amelia Simmons's Johnnycake (1796)
American Cookery, published in 1796, was the first cookbook written by an American for American kitchens. Amelia Simmons, who identified herself only as "an American Orphan," included the first printed recipe for johnnycake. Her recipe reflects both Native American origins and colonial adaptation:
"Johny Cake, or Hoe Cake. Scald 1 pint of milk and put to 3 pints of Indian meal, and half pint of flower - bake before the fire. Or scald with milk two thirds of the indian meal, or wet two thirds with boiling water, add salt, molasses and shortening, work up with cold water pretty stiff, and bake as above."
What This Recipe Tells Us
Simmons gives two methods in one recipe. The first is richer: scalded milk, some wheat flour. The second is plainer: boiling water, molasses, shortening. Both are "baked before the fire," meaning they were cooked on a board or bake-iron propped near an open hearth.
The ratio of cornmeal to liquid, the scalding technique to soften the meal, and the stiff working of the dough all remain fundamental to traditional cornbread.
The Sugar Question: North vs. South
No topic generates more heat in cornbread discussion than sugar. The regional divide is real, but the reasons are historical, not arbitrary.
Why Southern Cornbread Had No Sugar
Traditional Southern cornbread was made without sugar for practical reasons. First, sugar was expensive, a valuable commodity that only became widely affordable in the late 1800s. Enslaved people, who developed and preserved much of Southern cornbread tradition, were not given sugar in their rations. Cornmeal and water, with perhaps some pork fat, was what they had.
Second, and more importantly: they didn't need it. Before the twentieth century, most Southern cornmeal was stone-ground from white corn, which was naturally sweeter than yellow corn. The slower grinding process preserved the corn's natural oils and flavor. Modern steel-milled yellow cornmeal, which became dominant in the twentieth century, is finer and less naturally sweet, which is why Northern and commercial recipes began adding sugar to compensate.
The Regional Divide
• Southern style: White cornmeal, buttermilk, little or no flour, no sugar, baked in a preheated cast iron skillet with bacon grease or lard. Texture is coarse, crumbly, savory.
• Northern style: Yellow cornmeal, sweet milk, equal parts flour and cornmeal, sugar (sometimes honey or molasses), baked in a pan. Texture is cake-like, sweet, tender.
In 1909, Georgia Representative William Adamson took the debate to the floor of the House of Representatives, taunting Northern members about their "ignorance" of proper cornbread and suggesting schools should be established to teach them not to add sugar. The argument, clearly, runs deep.
Documented Historical Recipe: Owendaw Cornbread (1847)
Sarah Rutledge's The Carolina Housewife (1847) contains the first printed recipe for what would become known as spoonbread, though she called it by its Low Country name: Owendaw, after the Sewee tribe town near Charleston.
"Owendaw Corn Bread. Take about two teacups of hommony, and while hot mix with it a very large spoonful of butter (good lard will do); beat four eggs very light and stir them into the hommony; next add about a pint of milk, gradually stirred in; and lastly, half a pint of corn meal. The batter should be the consistency of a rich boiled custard; if thicker, add a little more milk. Bake with a good deal of heat at the bottom of the oven."
Rutledge notes that this bread "has almost the delicacy of a baked custard," a different creature entirely from the coarse johnnycakes of earlier eras. This recipe shows the evolution from simple survival bread to something more refined, while remaining rooted in corn and cast iron.
Recommended Cast Iron
Cornbread and cast iron are inseparable. The preheated skillet creates the crisp, golden crust that defines properly made Southern cornbread. The fat (lard, bacon grease, or butter) should be shimmering hot when the batter goes in. You should hear a sizzle.
Skillet Sizing
• #8 skillet (8-9 inches): Perfect for a small batch serving 4-6. The most common size in vintage collections and ideal for daily cornbread.
• #9 skillet (9-10 inches): Slightly larger, good for feeding 6-8. Excellent for when company's coming.
• #10 skillet (10-11 inches): Sunday dinner size. This is the workhorse for large families and church suppers.
• Corn stick pans and gem pans: Traditional shapes that create more crust surface area. Wagner and Griswold both made excellent examples.
Collector's Note
For period authenticity, look for gate-marked skillets (pre-1890s) or early pieces from the Ohio heritage foundries: Griswold, Wagner, and Lodge. A well-seasoned vintage skillet will outperform anything modern for cornbread. The decades of polymerized fat create a surface that releases the bread cleanly and contributes flavor no new pan can match.
Period-Authentic Recipes Adapted for Modern Use
The following recipes are historically inspired reconstructions, developed to match historically consistent methods and cast iron technique. Each has been tested for modern kitchens while preserving the character of the original methods.
Traditional Southern Skillet Cornbread
Category: Historically inspired reconstruction, based on pre-20th century Southern methods
This is the savory, crumbly, deeply-crusted cornbread of the rural South: no sugar, no wheat flour, built entirely on cornmeal and buttermilk with fat from the pig.
Ingredients
• 2 cups stone-ground white cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 tablespoons bacon drippings or lard, divided
Method
Place a #8 or #9 cast iron skillet with 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings in a cold oven. Heat the oven to 450 degrees F, allowing the skillet to heat along with it.
While the oven heats, stir together the cornmeal, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the buttermilk and egg together. Add the remaining tablespoon of bacon drippings (melted) to the wet ingredients.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir just until combined. Do not overmix.
When the oven reaches temperature, carefully remove the hot skillet. The fat should be shimmering but not smoking. Pour the batter into the hot skillet and it should sizzle immediately. Return to the oven.
Bake 20-25 minutes until the top is golden and the edges pull away from the skillet. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
Invert onto a plate to serve crust-side up, or cut into wedges directly from the skillet.
Cast Iron Notes
The preheating method (putting the cold skillet in a cold oven and heating them together) is gentler on vintage iron than putting cold iron into a hot oven. The fat protects the seasoning during the high-heat bake. After serving, clean with hot water and a brush while still warm, dry on the stovetop, and apply a light wipe of oil if needed.
Stovetop Hoecakes
Category: Historically inspired reconstruction, based on 18th-19th century methods
Hoecakes are the stovetop ancestor of skillet cornbread: flat cakes cooked on a griddle or in a skillet, rather than baked. George Washington ate them every morning with butter and honey. They should be crisp on the outside, tender within.
Ingredients
• 1 cup stone-ground cornmeal (white or yellow)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup boiling water
• Bacon drippings or lard for the skillet
Method
Combine the cornmeal and salt in a bowl. Pour the boiling water over the cornmeal, stirring to form a thick mush. Let stand 5 minutes. If the batter is too thick to spread, add a tablespoon of cool water.
Heat a cast iron skillet or griddle over medium heat. Add enough bacon drippings to coat the bottom generously, about 2 tablespoons.
Drop the batter by spoonfuls (about 1/4 cup each) into the hot fat. Flatten slightly with the back of the spoon. Cook until the edges are set and the bottom is golden brown, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and cook another 2-3 minutes.
Serve hot with butter, honey, or sorghum molasses.
Cast Iron Notes
A griddle or shallow skillet works best since you want even contact with the cooking surface. Keep the heat at medium; too high and the outside burns before the inside cooks through. The fat should sizzle gently when the batter hits it.
Virginia Spoonbread
Category: Historically inspired reconstruction, based on 19th century Virginia methods
Spoonbread is cornbread's elegant cousin: soft enough to serve with a spoon, with a custardy interior and golden top. Virginia claims it as their own, and the best versions use beaten egg whites folded in like a souffle. It should be served immediately; like all souffles, it waits for no one.
Ingredients
• 1 cup stone-ground white cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar (optional, traditional versions often omit)
• 2 cups whole milk
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 eggs, separated
Method
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 2-quart baking dish or place 1 tablespoon of butter in an 8-inch cast iron skillet and set it in the oven while it heats.
In a heavy saucepan, heat the milk until bubbles form around the edges. Slowly whisk in the cornmeal, salt, and sugar (if using). Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring constantly, until very thick, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the butter until melted. Let cool slightly.
Beat the egg yolks lightly and stir a spoonful of the warm cornmeal mixture into them to temper. Then stir the yolk mixture back into the cornmeal.
Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Fold gently into the cornmeal mixture. Do not deflate the whites.
Pour into the prepared dish or skillet. Bake 35-45 minutes until puffed and golden brown. The center should be just set but still slightly jiggly.
Serve immediately with butter.
Cast Iron Notes
A preheated cast iron skillet gives spoonbread a beautiful crust on the bottom and sides. The straight sides of a souffle dish make for better rise, but the skillet version has more character. Either way, have your serving spoon ready since this dish doesn't hold.
Tips from the Old Ways
On Cornmeal
Stone-ground cornmeal has more flavor and texture than steel-milled. White cornmeal is traditional in the Deep South; yellow is more common elsewhere. Either works. What matters is freshness since cornmeal contains oils that go rancid. Store it in the refrigerator or freezer if you won't use it within a few weeks.
On Fat
Bacon drippings and lard are traditional. They contribute flavor and create the crispest crust. Butter works but browns faster. Vegetable oil is neutral but historically inauthentic. If you're maintaining a jar of bacon drippings (you should be), cornbread is one of its highest purposes.
On the Skillet
The skillet must be hot when the batter goes in. Not warm, but hot. The sizzle when the batter hits the fat is what creates the crust. Preheating the skillet in the oven ensures even heat throughout the iron and protects the seasoning better than stovetop preheating.
On Serving
Cornbread is best within an hour of baking. It doesn't improve with age. Leftovers can be crumbled into buttermilk for a traditional Southern supper, cubed for dressing, or split and toasted the next morning. Eat it with beans, greens, pot likker, fried fish, barbecue, anything that needs sopping up.
Historical Sources
• American Cookery by Amelia Simmons (Hartford, 1796): First American cookbook, contains first printed johnnycake recipe
• The Virginia House-Wife by Mary Randolph (1824): First Southern cookbook, includes early batter bread recipes
• The Carolina Housewife by Sarah Rutledge (Charleston, 1847): First printed Owendaw/spoonbread recipe
• The Blue Grass Cookbook (1904): First known recipe using the term "spoon bread"
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Steve's Seasoned Classics
Preservation through use.