This cornbread recipe isn’t just the best Jiffy cornbread recipe – its the best cornbread recipe, period and perfect for those who enjoy a sweeter cornbread. Jiffy corn muffin mix and yellow cake mix come together easily with other simple ingredients including browned butter for a sweet, buttery and tender cornbread perfect as a side for Thanksgiving dinner, barbecues or for soaking up spicy chili!

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If you’ve been trying Jiffy cornbread hacks and doctoring up a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix for years without success, next time skip the guesswork and make this upgraded version. With the help of a handful of pantry staples this simple recipe tastes just like true homemade cornbread with almost zero effort. This one-bowl, easy recipe bakes up super moist, a little sweet, and perfectly golden brown! Plus everything gets mixed in one bowl, no separating dry and wet ingredients which means you can have soft, fluffy cornbread on the dinner table fast!

Trust me, this Jiffy cornbread recipe is so good it’ll give some of the best southern cornbread recipes a run for their money.

Key Ingredients

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Find the full recipe with measurements and instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of this post but be sure to read the blog post itself for extra tips, tricks and notes for success!

ingredients for Jiffy cornbread recipe - Jiffy corn muffin mix, yellow cake mix, butter, eggs, buttermilk, grapeseed oil.

Jiffy corn muffin mix. Has a lot of the basic ingredients for a cornbread (like cornmeal, flour & baking powder/soda) already included.

Yellow cake mix. Adds sweetness and additional flavoring to give the cornbread a richer taste. Use a boxed mix that makes 24 cupcakes. I prefer Duncan Hines brand but have had amazing results with Pillsbury and Betty Crocker!

Unsalted butter. Packs in more flavor and makes the cornbread extremely moist. For an extra boost of flavor, the butter is browned before being added to the batter.

Cultured buttermilk. Adds more fat to the cornbread which translates to a moist and tender cornbread. It also lends a slightly tangy flavor to complement the sweetness from the cake mix. If you don’t have cultured buttermilk you can substitute an equal amount of full-fat sour cream.

Vegetable Oil. Use a neutral-flavored oil like canola oil or grapeseed oil. It will make the cornbread softer and more moist to avoid a dry cornbread.

Eggs. Binds everything together to make sure the cornbread doesn’t crumble once it’s cut.

Tips for the Best Jiffy Cornbread Recipe

Cut the recipe in half easily. This recipe has a pretty high yield. For a smaller skillet (8-inch) simply weight out half of your cake mix and then cut the rest of the recipe in half!

Use browned butter! Browned butter a staple in my kitchen – especially when baking and even more so when it comes to the holidays! It adds a beautiful warm and caramelized flavor when used! Find out more about browned butter here and how to make and use it! This recipe will work with regular butter though if you’re really pinched on time!

Decide if you like more caramelized edges vs softer edges. Your choice of baking pan dictates how much the edges of your jiffy cornbread will caramelize. A darker pan, like a cast iron skillet, conducts heat faster and retains heat more efficiently, making it a perfect choice for anyone who prefers crisper edges. If you prefer lighter caramelization a light colored baking pan is a better choice.

Use full-fat cultured buttermilk! What we perceive as “moist” in baked goods typically comes from fat. Buttermilk has much more fat than whole milk so it will produce a softer and more moist cornbread. If you’re having a hard time getting your hands on cultured buttermilk, you can swap it out for an equal amount of full-fat sour cream.

How to Make the BEST Jiffy Cornbread

Step 1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

Step 2. Brown the butter. Melt the butter in a light-colored pan over medium to medium-high heat. Once all the butter has melted, stir continuously, scraping the bottom of the pan with a spatula to prevent the milk solids from sticking and burning (instead of browning). Continue stirring until the milk solids are medium brown then immediately remove from the heat and transfer to a heat-resistant, large mixing bowl.
The butter will continue to brown for a little while after it is removed from the heat due to the butter itself and the pan retaining some heat. Transferring it another bowl immediately helps to prevent the butter from going past “browned” to “burnt”.

Step 3. Add all the other ingredients to the mixing bowl (the Jiffy corn muffin mix, yellow cake mix, eggs, vegetable oil & buttermilk) and whisk until the mixture is smooth and everything is evenly incorporated.

Step 4. Grease a 9×13 inch cast iron pan (or 8-inch cast-iron skillet if halving the recipe) with a little butter. Transfer the cornbread batter to the greased dish and bake for 38-45 minutes or until a toothpick through the center comes out with just a few crumbs.

Serve warm and top as desired with extra melted butter and/or honey as desired! Store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Ainseanlea @ The Stush Kitchen