Easy Southern Hush Puppies Recipe
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Homemade hush puppies are a classic Southern side dish. This easy hush puppies recipe takes just 15 minutes to make and is the perfect side dish for everything from Low Country Boil to fried chicken!
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Cornmeal hush puppies are one of my favorite sides, everyone loves them! Also sometimes called red horse bread, these hush puppies are perfect crisp on the outside with a tender, sweet middle.
They are very easy to make and fry up in just a few minutes in a deep fryer or on the stovetop in a cast iron pan (affiliate link) or dutch oven. You can eat them on their own or serve with melted butter or a dipping sauce like comeback sauce, tartar sauce, remoulade sauce, or copycat Zax sauce.
Need more ideas for how to serve them? See 15 best meals to eat with hush puppies!
Ingredients
You just need a few simple ingredients for this easy recipe.
- yellow cornmeal
- all-purpose flour
- sugar
- salt
- baking powder
- baking soda
- buttermilk (see note if you don’t have buttermilk!)
- egg
- oil for frying
No buttermilk? Make your own! If you do not have buttermilk on hand you can make your own by adding one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a glass measuring cup then add regular milk until it reaches the 1 cup line. Let sit for 5 minutes then use as directed.
Step by step
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a deep saucepan, cast iron pan (affiliate link), dutch oven, or deep fryer until the oil temperature reaches 350 degrees.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a separate medium bowl combine buttermilk and egg and whisk together.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and fold together to combine the cornmeal batter.
- Use a large spoon or small ice cream scoop to drop the hush puppy batter (about the size of a golf ball) into the hot oil and fry in batches until golden brown and crispy, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon and set on a plate lined with paper towels to drain any excess oil.
Tip: For best results, don’t crowd the hush puppies in the frying oil, work in small batches.
Flavor variations
Try any of these or combine them to make this recipe your own!
- Spice it up – add 1 tablespoon finely diced jalapeño pepper
- Cheesy – add 1/2 cup finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese or gouda cheese
- Maximize the flavor – add 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives or green onion or add 1/4 teaspoon onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, or Creole seasoning
FAQs
Use a cooking oil with a high smoke point such as peanut oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil.
The exact origin is a bit of a mystery, but one popular story goes like this: When people were cooking fish by the riverside, they would fry up some small balls of cornmeal dough and toss them to the barking dogs to keep them quiet (“hushing the puppies”) while they enjoyed their meal. Hence the name “hush puppies” stuck, and they became a beloved Southern side dish.
Serving suggestions
I like to serve hush puppies with other Southern favorites like chicken fried steak, fried chicken, fried catfish, or fried shrimp. If you want to limit the fried foods, try them with collard greens, pulled pork, cole slaw, or a classic shrimp boil.
Storage
Store leftover hush puppies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze in a freezer bag up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Reheat in the oven or air fryer to keep them crispy.
If you try this recipe please comment and rate it below, I love hearing from you!
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Easy Southern Hush Puppies Recipe
- Total Time: 13 minutes
- Yield: 20 1x
Description
Homemade hush puppies are a classic Southern side dish. This easy hush puppies recipe takes just 15 minutes to make and is the perfect side dish for everything from Low Country Boil to fried chicken!
Ingredients
- vegetable, canola, or peanut oil for frying
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Heat 2 inches of oil in a deep saucepan or deep fryer until it reaches 350 degrees.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a separate bowl combine buttermilk and egg and whisk together.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and fold together to combine.
- Use a large spoon or ice cream scoop to drop batter into the hot oil and fry in small batches until golden and crispy, about 2-3 minutes. Set on a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
Notes
If you do not have buttermilk on hand you can make your own by adding one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to a glass measuring cup then add regular milk until it reaches the 1 cup line. Let sit for 5 minutes then use as directed.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 3 minutes
- Category: side
- Method: frying
- Cuisine: Southern
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 hush puppy
- Calories: 108
- Sugar: 1.3 g
- Sodium: 405.5 mg
- Fat: 6.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 11.4 g
- Fiber: 0.7 g
- Protein: 1.9 g
- Cholesterol: 10.6 mg
