Old Fashioned Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe

If you’re looking for a delicious, old fashioned Southern cornbread dressing recipe, look no further! Although we typically think of dressing as a holiday side dish, there’s no reason not to enjoy it all year long. There are many variations on cornbread dressing but this recipe is a traditional Southern recipe handed down from my grandmother. It’s easy to make and can be tailored to your own taste. If you’ve never made it before, don’t worry, I’ll show you how to make your own old-fashioned cornbread dressing from scratch. Let’s get cooking!

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This recipe is based on my Granny’s cornbread dressing recipe. The main difference is she put chicken in hers. She did that because she boiled a chicken for broth and just added it for good measure. My family prefers it without the chicken but you can add it if you want.

I freeze chicken broth throughout the year and can it when I have enough. You can use organic chicken broth instead.

You can save pieces of leftover cornbread throughout the year by freezing it or you can bake it when you need it or a combination of the two. I usually don’t have any cornbread in the freezer, so I make it a couple of days ahead of time.

Old-Fashioned Southern Cornbread Dressing Recipe

Ingredients for Cornbread

Makes a 10” pan of cornbread

• 1 ½ cups organic cornmeal
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (I use Einkorn Flour)
• 1 cup buttermilk
• Water to add for moisture, usually ½ cup
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tablespoon of baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda (Read more about baking soda)
• 1/2 teaspoon real salt (Read about real salt)

Directions For Cornbread

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a medium size bowl.
2. Add eggs and milk and combine. Add a little water if you need more liquid.
3. The trick to cornbread is to not over mix. Mix it just until it’s combined.
   • The other secret is to preheat 10″ skillet in the oven while your oven is preheating to 400.
4. Add oil to the hot skillet to cover the bottom then pour your cornbread batter into it.
5. Bake for 20-30 minutes until golden brown.

Ingredients for Dressing

These are a starting point. Adjust to your family’s taste.

• 8 cups organic chicken broth – be prepared to use it all but it probably won’t take that much
• 1 cup celery, chopped – have another ½ to 1 cup ready to go
• 1 cup chopped green onions – have another ½ cup ready to go
• 4-6  boiled eggs chopped – I boil 6 and start with 4 then add more as I mix it to get it where my family likes it.
• Salt to taste – start with 1/2 teaspoon then adjust to taste.
• Black Pepper – start with 2 teaspoons
• 1 Tbs Sage ground or fresh or a mixture to taste – add more or less to taste. Some people omit this altogether.

Directions for Dressing

1. Crumble the cornbread into the pan you’ll be using to bake the dressing in.
   • We like it finely crumbled but some people like chunky pieces so get it like your family wants it.
   • I use a 9x13x3 baking pan.
2. Add everything but the chicken broth to the crumbled cornbread in the pan. When it’s all combined, taste it to see if you need to add more of any of the ingredients.
3. When you’ve got it just right, add chicken broth to the pan so that it reaches the top of the pan.
   • Let it sit until the broth is absorbed (could take 30 mins or more) or mostly absorbed then add more until it reaches the top again.
   • Do this until the broth stops being absorbed and the broth level stays at the top.
   • I usually start this process as soon as the turkey goes into the oven. This allows me time to be sure it’s ready to bake.
4. Bake at 400 degrees for an hour to an hour and a half.
   • It’s done when the middle is firm and hot and the top is golden brown.
   • If you prefer a dryer dressing continue to bake until the broth is baked away.

I hope this old-fashioned Southern cornbread dressing recipe becomes a part of your family’s holiday traditions. Make it any time of year to create a special dinner for any gathering of family and friends.

As always, we’re here to help.

You might also enjoy other from-scratch recipes.

Recipes for the holidays.