Easy Crispy Hoe Cakes (Fried Cornbread Recipe)

ByWendie Williams Updated on
21 Comments

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This easy Hoe Cakes Recipe makes crispy, golden cornmeal cakes with a soft, tender center using simple pantry ingredients. Perfect for breakfast or served alongside your favorite Southern comfort foods, these old-fashioned hoe cakes are a timeless Southern classic. If you love traditional Southern recipes, be sure to try my Sweet Honey Cornbread or Buttermilk Biscuits.

Hoe cakes on a plate with syrup being poured on top.

These homemade hoe cakes come together in minutes and cook up perfectly golden in a hot skillet. They're budget-friendly, incredibly versatile, and delicious served sweet or savory, making them an easy side dish or hearty breakfast you'll want to make again and again.

Serve them alongside my Slow Cooker Green Beans, Shake and Bake Pork Chops, or my Cube Steak with Onion Gravy.

Quick Look: Hoe Cakes Recipe

  • ⏱️ Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • 🕒 Total Time: 25 minutes
  • 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Servings: 4
  • 📊 Calories: ~319 kcal per serving
  • 🥣 Ingredients: cornmeal,flour, sugar, eggs, buttermilk, water, butter, bacon grease, baking powder, baking soda, salt.
  • ⭐ Difficulty: Easy, great for potlucks and cookouts

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Why this Recipe Works

Simple pantry ingredients – Made with basic staples you probably already have on hand.

Budget-friendly – An inexpensive Southern classic that feeds the whole family.

Perfect any time of day – Enjoy them for breakfast, as a side dish, or with your favorite Southern meals.

For even more savory breakfast options, try my Breakfast Enchiladas, or my Breakfast Hot Pockets!

Ingredients Needed

All the ingredients needed for this recipe.
  • Flour: All-purpose flour works best.
  • Corn meal: Either yellow cornmeal or white cornmeal will work.
  • Sugar: You can leave it out if you prefer.
  • Buttermilk: You can use whole milk in a pinch or make your own buttermilk in the notes section
  • Bacon Grease: Or oil to fry the cornmeal hoe cakes.

How To Make Hoe Cakes

Dru ingredients mixed in a bowl then wet ingredients added in.
  • Step 1: In a large bowl, add the dry ingredients and whisk until combined.
  • Step 2: Make a little well in the center and add the wet ingredients, and mix until combined.
Batter being poured into a hot skillet then flipped.
  • Step 3: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the bacon grease or oil to the hot skillet, and drop the batter into small discs.
  • Step 4: Cook until golden brown, flip, finish cooking, and serve!
Hoe cakes stacked on top of a spatulawith a pat of butter on top.

Recipe Tips

  • Flip only once when bubbles form on top, and the edges begin to set.
  • These are best served hot off the pan when the edges are crispy.
  • I prefer to fry these in bacon grease. I just fry my bacon first, then use that grease to fry these Johnny cakes.
  • Keep cooked hoe cakes warm on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven while you finish the remaining batter.
Hoe cakes on a plate with a side of bacon.

Hoe Cakes Recipe Faq's

What is a Hoe cake or Johnny Cake?

They have a few different names, like Jonnycake, Hoe Cake, and Shawnee cake. They are little round cornmeal pancakes or fried cornbread made with a combination of cornmeal and self-rising flour. Fried in bacon grease to get those delicious crispy edges that are enjoyed smothered in syrup or as a side dish to my Poblano Beef Chili.

What is the difference between a Johnny cake and a pancake?

Even though they look similar to traditional pancakes, they are not the same. Pancakes are soft and fluffy and have a sweetness to the batter like my Copycat IHOP Pancakes Recipe. Johnny cakes are a form of cornbread made from a basic cornbread batter that's fried in bacon fat or oil to get those crispy edges.

What if I don't have buttermilk?

You can use whole milk, but I love the tanginess that buttermilk gives these southern hoecakes. You can make your own buttermilk with 1 cup of whole milk and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Let's sit for 5 minutes.

Are Hoe cakes the same as cornbread?

No. While both are made with cornmeal, hoe cakes are cooked in a skillet like pancakes, while cornbread is baked in the oven.

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Hoe cakes stacked on top of a spatulawith a pat of butter on top.

Southern Hoe Cakes (Johnny Cakes)

4.20 from 20 votes
Written By: Wendie Williams
Hoe cakes also known as Johnny cakes are essentially a cornmeal flatbread made out of cornmeal and fried in bacon grease or oil and smothered in maple syrup or used to soak up savory sauces or gravy.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 4 -6
Calories 319
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Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 1/3 cup melted butter slightly cooled
  • Vegetable oil or bacon grease for frying

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Instructions
 

  • In a large mixing bowl add the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt and whisk together.
  • Make a well in the center and add in the egg, buttermilk, water, and melted butter and mix until combined.
  • Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil (I use bacon grease) in a 12-inch cast iron skillet or frying pan on medium-high heat.
  • Scoop about 3 tablespoons of batter and drop into the frying pan, (I usually do 4 corncakes at a time)
  • Fry each Hoe cake until the edges start to bubble, flip and fry for another couple minutes until golden brown.
  • Remove and serve immediately with butter, and or syrup.

Video

Notes

These are best served hot out of the pan when the edges are crispy. But you can keep them warm in a 375-degree oven for 10-15 minutes.
The batter is supposed to be thick, but if you prefer it a bit thinner add 1 tablespoon of water to thin it.
I prefer to fry these in bacon grease, I just fry my bacon first then use that grease to fry these Johhny cakes.
I love to use a cast-iron skillet for these but another heavy skillet or griddle will work just fine.
Buttermilk: Make your own buttermilk with 1 cup of whole milk and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 319kcalCarbohydrates: 38gProtein: 7gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 8gPolyunsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 91mgSodium: 727mgFiber: 2gSugar: 6g
Did You Make This Recipe?Please leave a comment below or pin it to your Pinterest account!
Course Breakfast
Cuisine Southern
4.20 from 20 votes (14 ratings without comment)

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Recipe Rating




21 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    These are delicious. I saw a woman's comment down below and I want to add that what she is describing is a whole cake while these are HOE cakes. They are two different things so she definitely missed the whole point of this being HOE cakes. I made these and had them with honey buttered fried chicken with honey butter drizzled on them and they blessed my soul! Great recipe! I am from rural Georgia and these just scream down home!!

  3. 5 stars
    These were terrific! The batter is very thick so I smoothed the pancakes with the back of a spoon, and they were a little rough around the edges. I used a low medium heat (6 on my induction cooktop) and cooked them about 4 minutes on the first side until brown and crispy and turned them over and gave them another 3 minutes. The batter is so heavy the bubbles don’t break the surface but they were baked through. I might try these with grated cheese next time and serve them with scrambled eggs, or chilli for dinner. I think they’d reheat well in a toaster as they’re pretty sturdy.
    Thanks so much for posting!

  5. 5 stars
    Made these for breakfast this morning... smothered with butter and a little maple syrup over them... OMG..... amazing ... making another batch for dinner to go with pinto beans and ham I have been cooking all day.... Thank You for this recipe ....

  6. So because that is the way YOU make it means my recipe is wrong? This is the way I've always made HOE cakes, it's just a recipe make it the way you like it.

  7. I’m very sorry to tell you where I am from down on the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, a whole cake is made like biscuit dough. It is padded out very large and put into the bottom of a cast-iron skillet. Once it’s brown on one side you flip it over and brown it on the other side then you take it out of the pan cut it in quarters Slice it down the middle and put whatever you want on it. There’s no cornmeal there’s no buttermilk. it’s just not what you were talking about now might be just a language thing but whole cake where I am from is nothing like this recipe and I’m sorry. Don’t mean to be rude. Been in my family for over 150 years.