We know, we know: Southerners don’t like to mess with their cornbread. You eat it the way your grandmother did, and that’s that. But hear us out: Let’s flip the script and put onions on top for a one-of-a-kind cornbread that we think even the pickiest cornbread fans will appreciate.
This upside-down onion cornbread has a fine-textured crumb, sort of cakey in a good way—but cakey only in texture, not in flavor (no sugar here). It’s incredibly moist, and the bits of corn add little crunchy pops. The onion on top is a little awkward to cut and to eat, so think of this as a knife-and-fork cornbread. The onion flavor is lovely, rich, and sweet with a soft allium bite.
Recipe Tips For Upside-Down Onion Cornbread
Try to find an onion that’s more globe-shaped and not squat and flat so that you can slice more rings from it.Make sure to buy cornmeal, not cornmeal mix (which contains flour and leaveners).Buy a block of cheese and shred it yourself; pre-shredded cheese is coated with anti-caking agents that could affect the texture of the cornbread.Make sure to give the onion a stovetop head start on cooking so that by the time the cornbread is done, it’s nice and tender.Make sure to shake the buttermilk well before measuring, as it sometimes separates as it sits in the fridge.You can make the cornbread a day or two in advance. Store in the fridge (whole), and reheat on a wire rack (so the bottom remains crisp) at 300°F until warm, 15 to 20 minutes. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to five days; store in a zip-top plastic bag.This is not a great candidate for freezing, as the onion topping will be mushy when thawed.For the prettiest upside-down cornbread, pack the onion slices into the pan tightly. If they won’t all fit, remove the outer ring or two from some of the slices to get them to fit.You can use fresh, frozen, or canned corn. For the crunchiest texture, opt for either fresh or canned. Just be sure to drain the canned corn well and pat it dry.
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