The very best one bowl vegan cornbread recipe! The perfect balance of savory and sweet, this mixes up so quickly and is made with simple ingredients. Soft, buttery, moist, and crisp edges makes for the perfect cornbread!

A single slice of cornbread is on a tiny blue and white plate. More slices are next to and behind the slice on a plate. A pat of butter is on top of the one on the plate.

This vegan recipe has all the best parts of cornbread: Super soft, super moist, a little bit sweet, and flavorful. But it has none of the dairy or eggs! AND it can be made gluten free!

You’ll love how easy it is to mix together in one bowl and requires only simple, easy to find ingredients – nothing weird or hard to find!

This is the perfect base that I use in my cornbread stuffing, is great for Thanksgiving dinner, alongside soups and chili, or any other cozy comfort food.

Ingredients

For the full list of ingredients, complete with recipe amounts, please see the recipe box below.

Cornmeal: I like to use a medium grind cornmeal so that it has a bit of texture but isn’t overly grainy. A fine grain or a coarse grain will also work. Just make sure you don’t use cornstarch, corn flour, or polenta.
Vegan buttermilk: Baking with vegan buttermilk helps the cornbread to rise up in the oven and gives it a little flavor boost as well.
Brown Sugar & Maple Syrup: Traditionally, cornbread is made with honey, which isn’t vegan. For this, simply swap it out for maple syrup for an equally delicious addition! I also like to use brown sugar over granulated sugar because it adds that depth of flavor.

Substitutions & Variations

Need to make this gluten free? No worries! Simply swap out the all purpose flour with your favorite gluten free flour brand. I always test and get great results with King Arthur Measure for Measure.

Want to lower the fat in this recipe? You can replace the oil with your favorite plant based yogurt for a lower fat version that is just as tasty!

Let’s jazz up this cornbread!

Add cheese and jalapenos! Add a half cup of vegan cheddar cheese and a quarter cup of chopped jalapenos to the batter before baking. Bake as directed and enjoy!
Add extra corn. Add a half cup of frozen corn to the batter and bake as directed.
Add some blueberries! For something sweet for breakfast, add in a half cup of frozen blueberries and bake as directed. This is so unexpected and delicious!

Instructions

Make sure to check out the recipe card below for the full recipe and ingredient list.

Making this is pretty simple. Let’s walk through it.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all the wet ingredients: Plant based milk, apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice), brown sugar, oil, applesauce, and the maple syrup. Mix until it’s all combined.
Now add all the dry ingredients: One cup of all purpose flour, one cup of cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. If you’re adding any extra ingredients, now is the time to add them.
Pour the batter into a parchment paper lined 8×8-inch baking tray and let it rest while the oven heats up.
Bake the cornbread uncovered at 350F/180C for 35 minutes. Remove it from the oven and let it rest for about 5 to 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!!

A glass bowl is filled with the whisked together wet ingredients for the vegan cornbread. A silver whisk is still in the bowl. The bowl rests on a wood table.

A glass bowl is filled with the finished cornbread batter. A pink spatula is in the batter. The bowl rests on a wood table.

A silver baking tray is lined with parchment paper on all four sides. Tiny clips hold the paper in place. Cornbread batter has filled the tray. The tray rests on a wood table.

A silver square baking dish is lined with parchment paper on all four sides and a baked vegan cornbread is inside. The tray rests on a wood table.

Top Tips

If you have the time, let the cornbread sit in the baking dish for 30 minutes before baking. This helps the cornmeal hydrate so it isn’t as grainy. If you are making gluten free cornbread, it is especially important that you do this step!
As with most baking, it’s really important that you don’t open the oven door for the first 25 minutes of baking. This is a mission critical time for the bread to rise in the oven that is dependent on the heat in the oven. Opening the door even just a peak can let out all the hot air and cause the bread to sink in the middle.

Slices of vegan cornbread on a wood table. Layers of parchment paper and a wood cutting board are under the slices. Pats of butter and kernels of corn surround the slices of cornbread.

How to Store

Countertop: Store leftover cornbread in an airtight container on the countertop for 4 to 5 days.

Fridge: Store leftover cornbread in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

Freezer: Wrap leftover cornbread that has been baked and fully cooled and keep in a freezer safe container for up to 2 months. Allow to thaw in the fridge overnight before serving after freezing.

Side view of slices of vegan cornbread on a wood table. Pats of butter and kernels of corn are next to the cornbread.

What to Serve with Cornbread

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