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.
Family loved it. I did use a bit less sugar.
Wow, this is so easy and delicious. I do like your recipe as is; for my second batch, I made a few alterations. I used 1/2 the amount of sugar. I added 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar to soy milk, let it sit, then added the oil. The wet mixture was added to the dry. I chopped up a few small onions, added green Sriracha to the onions, and then stirred them into the mix. I used a 10 1/2″ iron skillet. I heated the oiled skillet before adding the cornbread mix. We ate Mexican Pinto beans with it, and it was a hit.
So good. I cut the sugar per the note and added my mix on top of a vegan tamale pie. It came out perfectly.
This cornbread was deliciously simple and adaptable. I used medium ground corn meal because that is what I had on hand. I used half the sugar and I added a jalapeño I needed to use.
I let the batter sit for ten minutes before baking in a muffin tin.
Can you use oat milk instead of almond milk?
Sure, you can use oat milk or another milk for this recipe.
Yes! I used oat milk & it was delicious!
Is it freezeable?
Yes, the cornbread freezes very well.
Delicious! Easy! I also halved the sugar as another comment suggested as I like it more savory.
Hi Ali. I’m so glad you loved the cornbread recipe! Thank you for sharing your awesome review! Happy cooking!
Hi Nora, we love your recipes. Do you think maple syrup would work instead of sugar? Thanks so much
Hi Sarah. Thank you for loving my recipes! I appreciate your support! I have never tested this with maple syrup, however, others have and indicated that it worked. I recommend using half the amount of syrup if you try it. Happy cooking!
Delicious cornbread! I halved the sugar for my preference and took to a potluck. Someone commented that it was just as good as the non-vegan cornbread.
I love a sweet cornbread and this delivered! I made mine in a cast iron skillet and oiled it with vegan butter. So delicious and wouldn’t even know it’s vegan
Thank you for sharing your recipe experience and stellar review, Angela! I am thrilled that you love the cornbread!
Thanks for the recipe! Subbed almond milk for soy (it’s all I had) and added in some chopped cashews, it turned out great!
This was one of the simplest recipes out there and came together really quickly :))
Hi Aditi. I love the idea of adding chopped cashews! That sounds delicious! I’m so glad that you loved the cornbread recipe and that it turned out wonderful for you! Thank you for sharing your glowing review and great ideas! By the way, any plant-based milk is great for this recipe! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!