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.
Great taste and recipe. Nora, what brand of yellow corn meal do you use? I could only find a medium grind type and naturally, it came out gritty. Other than that it was delicious. It was just the kind of corn meal I chose that made it not as good as it could be. I will make again if I can find a finer grind version of the corn meal
I use a variety of brands that I can find at my local stores. Always fine grind though. I find it’s too gritty for me otherwise.
This was the easiest cornbread recipe ever. One bowl, no mess, no waiting for chia or flax to thicken, and it came out delicious.
I did reduce the sugar a bit, and will probably reduce it a bit more next time (just based on preference), especially if I make a jalapeno or other savoury cornbread, but your recipes never fail.
I now have to make your lemon bars once a week or I hear nonstop complaining. I hope you’re happy. ?
Hahaha sorry? ? I’m so glad you enjoyed the cornbread as well. Yes, it may be too sweet for some and it’s not a problem to reduce the sugar. Thank you!
Amazing!!! Can’t stop making it !!!!!
I can’t wait to make this cornbread. I just today bought a set of cute cornbread molds on Etsy, and was looking for the perfect sweet cornbread recipe to use with them. This sounds like the one for me!
Recently made this and it is the only Vegan Cornbread recipe I’ll use as do not need another one. It is so delicious and tender. Used homemade corn butter with it one day; and then I also made and used your Vegan Butter recipe which is WONDERFUL!
It also freezes well (I place frozen cornbread squares in vacuum channel bag and seal using manual seal button on my old with vacuum sealer machine.)
Thanks for your great tasting recipes, Nora!
Blessings,
You’re so welcome!!
Do you have any thoughts on adding a can of cream style corn and vegan sour cream or greek yogurt? If so how would you adjust the ingredients? Thank you! Sorry for asking about altering the recipe, but i used to make it that way before going vegan, and you are the best vegan baker I have come across. I would love your advice!
Aw thank you! I would have to test it out to know for sure, but it might work. I think you would need to reduce the liquid somewhere else though, so maybe omit the oil or some of the milk.
Everyone in my family loved this and I will definitely make it again. I added whole corn kernels to the batter before baking. I served it with my spicy vegan chili, and my father in law (88yo omni) wants more! He gifted me his old beautiful cast iron cornbread baking pan that has indentations shaped like whole ears of corn, so when I popped them out, they were not only delicious, but lovely too! Thanks for this recipe, will save and use again for sure.
This is seriously some of the best cornbread I’ve ever had. SOOO easy to make and so delicious. Omnivores and vegan will not miss the eggs or dairy. This recipe was how I discovered Nora Cooks, and now I use her recipes multiple times per week. 😀
That’s so great to hear!! Thanks for the comment!
This came out so well ! My husband did not believe it was vegan , it was so moist and soft Came out like Jiffy but better. I will use a little less sugar next time as it was a little sweet esp for the chili but you definitely have the best recipe and 25 minutes was perfect !
I want you to know that I absolutely LOVE your recipes! I use them for inspiration, and your recipes always work out amazingly! Thank you for sharing them with the world! Being vegan has it’s challenges, but you have the answers??
You’re so welcome!! Thanks for the great comment!
So good!
Thanks!!
Just made this for my son who is a very picky vegan. He’s eaten almost the entire pan in one day. Thank you for a quick one bowl yummy recipe!
You’re so welcome! So glad he liked the recipe!
These are excellent. Sometimes I double the recipe and make muffins. Some we eat with dinners/lunches, others I put into a large baggie in the fridge so that my vegan husband can eat them as a snack. When I double the batch I use 1/3 cup oil and 1/3 unsweetened applesauce. Thanks for the recipe!
The cornbread was amazing!! My son has been asking me to make it every day since I did!
Wow, that’s so great!
My 4 year old grandson made this with me. Turned out perfect. He sat in front of the oven waiting for it to bake and immediately ate a peice as soon as we took it out of the oven. We substituted brown sugar and soy milk. It was deliciousand held together perfectly.
That’s so wonderful to hear! Thanks for the comment!
Super easy and delicious! Made it to go with a black bean and sweet potato chili, yummy! Thanks for a great recipe!
You’re so welcome!!
Dear Nora,
I have masa harina and corn grits. Which would you use in this recipe, and should I make any adjustments in light of the substitution? Your recipes are always a success and a hit with my whole family!
Thank you!!
I believe that masa harina will work better than corn grits, and I think you could just replace the cornmeal with it. Hope you enjoy!
SO easy and SO delicious! I can’t recommend this recipe enough – I’m from the U.K. and was craving some cornbread and this is better than some I’ve had in the US.
Thanks so much!!
Giving this a go with the corn meal mix I have in the cabinet. Also adding in sliced jalapeños and a can of can. So excited because I’ve been craving red beans and rice lately & what’s red beans and rice with no cornbread? Thanks so much for this. Can’t wait until it’s done.
SOOO GOOD. I only had corn grits instead of cornmeal, so I blended them up a bit for a finer texture. I put the batter into a muffin tin to make cornbread muffins – worked perfectly. So pleased. Served them with vegan chili!
Just made this delicious cornbread recipe and it is so tender and moist! Goes great with McDougall’s simple corn butter recipe (using cornmeal).
Wonderful recipe, Nora, and will be the only cornbread recipe I’ll use.
Thanks & Blessings
Thanks so much!!
Great recipe can you post more please.
Hi, the corn bread was amazing! I am excited to try your other recipes!
Amazing cornbread! I had served it at a party and nobody knew it was vegan. It is so fluffy and moist. Perfect.
That’s so great to hear! Thanks for the comment!
best cornbread recipe on the internet.
Been making this for about 6 months now. I bought a box of jiffy one time, just for shits and gigs, and omg, it was disgusting compared to this homemade cornbread recipe i’ve been making. thank you thank you thank you!! <3
You’re so welcome!! Thanks for the great comment!
I made a gluten free version of it and it came out great, just had to add a lite extra oat milk because the mix looked a little dry…. Thank you for this recipe!!! I am wondering if I can add maple syrup instead if sugar?
I’m glad it came out great, gluten free flours can vary but I’m happy it turned out fine for you! You might be able to sub maple syrup, I haven’t tested it though. I would add maybe half as much though.
This was a delicious sweet cornbread. I made 2 modifications though: I used vegan butter (Earth balance) instead of the oil and I used whole wheat pastry flour instead of all purpose. Still turned out great and is definitely a cornbread cake! Amazing! No one knew it was vegan ?
I’m so glad it turned out amazing!
I only have regular Almond Milk. Can I still use and maybe decrease the amount of sugar?
Yes, sometimes I use regular and don’t lower the sugar, but you could slightly if you want.
My son is allergic to all nuts, egg, dairy, and gluten so i did this recipe with a 1 to 1 gluten free flour and extra creamy oatmilk and it was DELICIOUS! Thank you so much!