This is seriously the Best Vegan Cornbread! It’s wonderfully moist, perfectly sweet, and easy to make in one bowl. Perfect for pairing with chili!
If you love serving bread with dinner, then you’ll also want to check out my Vegan Dinner Rolls, Vegan Cheddar Bay Biscuits, and Vegan Garlic Bread recipes!
“This! It’s better than non-vegan cornbread. I’m using it in a dressing for Thanksgiving and it’s the best cornbread recipe! So good!” – Susan
I simply cannot make a batch of my Ultimate Vegan Chili without a side of this Easy Vegan Cornbread. The whole family loves it, and it makes a pot of chili go a lot further!
I’ve tried a bunch of vegan cornbread recipes over the years, and none have made my kids smile quite as much as this one. It’s on the sweeter side, but if you’re a savory cornbread fan, feel free to reduce the sugar or fold corn kernels or vegan cheese into the batter. Most importantly, it’s very moist, as classic cornbread should be.
And the best part? It’s super easy to make with 7 ingredients in only 1 bowl! Just dump, mix, bake, and enjoy your perfect cornbread.
Why this is the best vegan cornbread
- Chili’s best friend – Sweet, fluffy, and soft, there’s nothing better than dunking a big slice of vegan cornbread into a steaming hot bowl of this Veggie Chili or this Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili.
- Better than boxed cornbread – This cornbread will remind you of the cornbread that comes from the boxed mix, except it tastes sooo much better! Plus, it’s easy to make with less than 10 ingredients and in one bowl.
- Over 600 reviews – Don’t just take my word for it. This recipe has over 600 reviews from happy readers! Give it a try yourself and you’ll understand why it’s the best.
If you end up loving this vegan cornbread as much as I do, then you’ll want to save my Vegan Cornbread Stuffing recipe for the holiday season. It’s a perfect Thanksgiving side dish!
How to make vegan cornbread
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Stir the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, and baking powder together in a large bowl. Pour in the almond milk and canola oil and stir until well combined.
Pour the smooth batter into your prepared pan. Bake the cornbread until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Set the bread aside to cool for a few minutes, then slice and serve with vegan butter, red pepper jelly, maple syrup, or vegan honey on top.
Frequently asked questions
You can fold up to 1/2 cup of corn kernels, canned green chilis, diced jalapenos, or shredded vegan cheddar cheese into the batter. I’ll even sprinkle extras over the top of the batter before baking the cornbread for extra pops of color and flavor.
After testing this recipe countless times, I found that using fine-ground cornmeal always gave me the best, never-gritty results. Medium and coarse cornmeal sometimes work, but they make the cornbread more grainy.
Absolutely! Make the batter as normal, pour it into a lined muffin tin (3/4 of the way full), and bake the muffins for 18 to 20 minutes at 350ºF.
Yes, a quality gluten-free flour mix will work as a replacement for the all-purpose flour here.
Yes, you can cut the sugar in half for less-sweet cornbread or use just a few tablespoons of sugar for a barely sweet cornbread.
The Best Vegan Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow corn meal
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/3 cup canola oil
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and lightly grease a 8 x 8 pan, or a 9 inch round cake pan.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder and stir.
- Now pour in the almond milk and canola oil. Stir until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Video
Notes
- Whole grain or gluten free – You may use white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour in place of all purpose flour if you wish. A quality gluten free flour mix works as well.
- For oil-free – replace the canola oil with applesauce.
- Make cornbread muffins – Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a muffin pan with oil (or use liners) and fill 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes.
- Less sweet – This a sweet cornbread, but feel free to make it less sweet if you want. You can cut the sugar in half, or even use just a few tablespoons of sugar for a barely sweet cornbread.
- Adapted from allrecipes.
I haven’t tried this yet but I’m leaving 5 stars in anticipation lol! Can I use vegan butter in place of the oil?
Yes, melted vegan butter/margarine will definitely work instead of the oil. Applesauce is the best oil-free substitute. Enjoy!
Hi Nora. We love this recipe and I have made it at least 20 times. Is the cooking temp and time different for muffins? How many should it yield?
You can definitely make the cornbread into muffins, I do it quite often. They will need about 15-20 minutes in the oven. Same temp. It will make about 12 muffins. Happy cooking!
I am new to baking and over the last 2 years I have been trying out vegan recipes. This was relatively simple and it came out amazing !!! I loved it. I used less sugar than the recipe and I left out the oil and it was still soooo goooddd !!! Thank you for sharing these amazing recipes Nora ! I will be making this again. Up next to try – the 1 Bowl blueberry muffins ! 😀 .
Hi Ashanna. Thanks for sharing your feedback! I’m so glad you loved the cornbread! I appreciate you using my recipes! Enjoy those muffins! Happy baking!
Excellent cornbread! Couldn’t tell the difference from my regular cornbread.
Thanks for sharing your great feedback! Glad you liked the cornbread!
I made this corn bread and it was delicious, just like you said. I had made some good chili and wow the cornbread was awesome with it. Thanks for letting us see this great recipe.
I’m so glad you loved the cornbread, and that you made it with chili! So delicious! Thanks for your wonderful feedback! Wishing you happy cooking!
Your cornbread is delicious I tried it and it is so good thank you for making this recipe
You are a good cook
You are welcome, Sasha! I’m glad you enjoyed the cornbread! Thank you for sharing your kind words and feedback!
We have made this recipe so many times and it has become a favorite! We are going camping and I was wondering if this can be made ahead and frozen? Thanks!
Hi Sarah. Yes, cool and then freeze the cornbread. It freezes well! Have fun camping!
I have homemilled white wheat flour and dent corn that I will mill in flour… can I use this? Should I add more like 1/4 cup per 1 cup of AP flour? I love all your recipes too… making it tomorrow. Thanks in advance! I usually read all comments before asking a question, but there are quite a few. I read many but could not see any about home milled flours.
Sorry I don’t have any experience using home milled flour so I really can’t say. If that’s what you normally do then sure! Hope it works out for you. Thanks!
Just to let you know, we made this with King Arthur gluten free measure-for-measure flour instead of AP flour and subbed avocado oil for the canola oil, and it turned out perfectly! Just delicious! We run a bed and breakfast hotel and this will be a great side to serve our vegan/gluten free guests. Thanks for the recipe!
That’s great to know, Sydney! Thank you so much for sharing the adjustments you made and for your wonderful feedback!
Whole family loved these! We made two batches in muffin tins and they all got eaten in one night!
That is so fun! I’m so glad the cornbread was a hit! Thanks for your wonderful feedback!
I have made this recipe probably a dozen times now and it always turns out well although I cut the sugar in half to 1/3 Cup and use soy rather than almond milk. (Although I guess I’m one of “those people” who alters the recipe then rates it haha)
Hi Elizabeth. Thank you for your feedback and substitution ideas! I’m glad you are enjoying the cornbread!
BEST cornbread ever!!! This is amazingly delicious!
Thank you for sharing your positive feedback and review! I’m glad you loved the cornbread!
I am loving how simple this recipe is and the ratings made it sound even more convincing to try. That being said, could I add a can of corn or jalapeños? Just want something to add to it.
Hi Sam. I have not tried adding corn or jalapeños, however, others have commented they have and that it turned out delicious! You may have to adjust the cooking time a bit. Let me know how it goes for you!
I have family members who won’t eat any other cornbread. It’s the best cornbread. Non-vegans can’t tell that there’s no eggs nor milk.
Thank you, Karen, for your wonderful feedback! I’m so glad your family is loving the cornbread!
Tried it and added more sugar cause I like sweet cornbread I think I needed to add more oil as my cornbread fell apart just crumbed. But will for sure keep using this one good flavor
It sounds like the added sugar caused the cornbread to crumble. A little more oil or milk should help hold it together next time!
My family and I love this recipe, we all have dairy,egg ect food allergies and finding the right recipe that tastes good as well is hard to find. Even our extended family who scoffs at most vegan food, love this. Thank you!
You are welcome, Sierra! I’m so glad you family is able to enjoy the cornbread! Thank you for your wonderful feedback and review!
Could you use soy milk? I’ve got someone with almond allergies.
Yes, you can use soy milk!
Any way you could adapt this recipe for instant pot? Thanks!
I haven’t tried making it in the Instant Pot, so I’m not sure it will work. Sorry!
I made soup and decided to make some cornbread. This way the first recipe to pop up on google and I had all the ingredients for it. I used organic cornmeal and followed the rest of the recipe. I am so glad I decided to go with this recipe so delicious and very moist ! I plan to share this cornbread with my family !!!! After sharing this, my family will not joke about my cornbread anymore lol. Thank you!!!
This is so great to hear! Thanks for using my recipe and for leaving such a wonderful review!
This the second time trying this recipe n it still comes out dry, am I supposed to grease the pan
I’m so glad you are offering oil and nut free options and suggestions. This is such a huge issue with the variety of health issues in my little family, now we can often eat together! Greatly appreciated!
These turned out really well. All my baking dishes were being used for other things when I made them so I used my muffin tins. I think next time I’d add a can of creamed corn for extra moisture but otherwise awesome.
Thanks for sharing your feedback!
Tried the cornbread, it was good but breaks apart easily .
Another gold recipe. I tried 1 other cornbread recipe before this, I should always just start with Nora’s stuff. Made exactly as described baked for 27 minutes and wallah, delivious! Thanks for another winner ?
Hi Marina. I’m so glad you loved the cornbread! Thank you for your wonderful feedback and review!
I made this with the applesauce substitution for the oil and reduced the sugar as suggested in a few other comments. Delicious!! This will be my go to recipe for vegan cornbread. Thank you!
So glad you loved the cornbread, Debbie! Thank you for leaving such a wonderful review!
Loved it. Used 1/3 C sugar as suggested as well. Family loved cornbread as a side as well as topped w/a burger casserole type topping I tried as well.
Hi Carol. The casserole topping sounds so good! Thank you for sharing your great feedback and ideas! I’m glad your family love the cornbread!
Really excellent recipe. I agree, I used 1/3 C sugar as well. Family especially enjoyed the cornbread w/a ground beef recipe I found and put it on top and to the side!