Vegan Cornbread

This Vegan Cornbread is fluffy, moist and southern-style! Vegan buttermilk gives it that incredible texture, and it’s so buttery with a hint of traditional sweetness. Serve with some vegan butter or as a side to some chili or soup.

Cornbread is a staple in Black American homes, and since my cornbread here is slightly sweet, I’m referring specifically to Southern cornbread. One of my favourite plate pairings for cornbread is: sautéed collard greens, vegan “fried chicken” (made from mushrooms or tofu), mashed potatoes and of course, a hefty slice of sweet cornbread with a pat of butter and maple syrup drizzled on top. I’ll be showing you how to get this quintessential moist and tender crumb without the dairy or eggs you may be used to in cornbread.

Notes on the Ingredients

• Vegan milk: any kind will do, but I do highly recommend soy milk or oat milk. The flavours are neutral and curdle beautifully for a great buttermilk for this.  
• Apple cider vinegar or white vinegar: necessary to curdle the milk, and gives this that incredible buttermilk flavour.
• Fine-grain cornmeal – most cornmeal you find will be fine-grain so no need to worry about this, just ensure it isn’t coarse essentially for the best texture.
• Flour – you can use all purpose or gluten free, I used all purpose flour here.
• Egg replacer (I use Bob’s Red Mill) – I highly recommend the Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer for this for the closest texture. Although flax egg also works perfectly – I’ve used both!
• Oil/vegan butter – the choice is yours. Vegan butter (homemade or storebought) will give you the perfect buttery flavour; oil will give you an incredible moistness (it’s also moist with butter) and is great if you can’t find vegan butter where you live. 
• Sugar and maple syrup – this adds a hint of sweetness I adore in cornbread. I don’t recommend leaving it out because it also adds to texture and moistness.

How to Make Vegan Cornbread

Mix the vegan milk and apple cider vinegar together. Let sit for at least 3 minutes to create a vegan buttermilk mix. 

In the same container as the milk mixture (just to avoid using extra containers), mix all the wet ingredients together slowly to incorporate, then a bit quicker to mix together properly. 

In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together. Set aside. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until fully combined & smooth. The batter should be thick but pourable. 

Pour the batter into the pan, and using a spatula, smooth down the top into an even layer. Bake for 23-25 minutes, until a toothpick, comes out clean. Move the pan to a wire rack and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes, preferably until cool. 

Slice into 9 or 12 slices, serve with vegan butter or maple syrup and enjoy! 

Tips for Success

• Don’t over mix the batter. You want to mix it until just combined, to ensure the fluffiest, most tender cornbread. Overmixing can make the dough tough.
• This isn’t the recipe to try and use less oil or flour or sugar in. That will affect the end texture!
• Can you make this vegan cornbread gluten-free? Yes! Just sub in gluten-free flour by the weight!
• You can dress up this cornbread in so many different ways! You can add cheese, jalapeños, vegan meat pieces, jam and so much more!

Related Recipes

• Vegan Buttermilk Biscuits
• Mashed Potatoes 

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5 from 7 votes

Vegan Cornbread

This Vegan Cornbread is fluffy, moist and southern-style! Vegan buttermilk gives it that incredible texture, and it's so buttery with a hint of traditional sweetness. Serve with some vegan butter or as a side to some chili or soup.

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 9 slices

Calories 221kcal

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ cups vegan milk I prefer a thicker vegan milk like soy milk
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
• 1 ¼ cups fine-grain cornmeal 150g
• 1 cup all-purpose flour 148g
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ¾ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 egg replacer I use Bob’s Red Mill or flax egg
• ¼ cup vegan butter (44g) melted or oil (highly recommend vegan butter for flavour)
• 3 tablespoons cane sugar or organic brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup 69g

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C. Lightly grease an 8×8 square baking pan with oil or spray with baking spray. Set aside.
• Mix the vegan milk and apple cider vinegar together. Let sit for at least 3 minutes to create a vegan buttermilk mix. In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together. Set aside.
• In the same container as the milk mixture (just to avoid using extra containers), mix all the wet ingredients together slowly to incorporate, then a bit quicker to mix together properly. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until fully combined & smooth. The batter should be thick but pourable.
• Pour the batter into the pan, and using a spatula, smooth down the top into an even layer.
• Bake for 23-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Move the pan to a wire rack and allow to cool for at least 10 minutes, preferably until cool. Slice into 9 or 12 slices, serve with vegan butter or maple syrup (or both) and enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 221kcal