The 3 Best Ways To Make Cornbread Without Any Eggs

The true charm of cornbread lies in its texture, which is a perfect balance of crunch and cushiony softness. However, the road to finding that equilibrium in this Southern favorite is not always smooth. The process might feel even more daunting if you're planning to make cornbread without eggs, but soaring prices have left us no choice but to seek egg substitutes. Daily Meal asked Nisha Vora, recipe developer behind the vegan cooking website Rainbow Plant Life and author of the NY Times best-selling cookbook "Big Vegan Flavor" for a few ways to make cornbread without eggs, without compromising on flavor or texture. Her insights came as a relief and inspired us to try an eggless cornbread recipe. 

"Cornbread is one of those baked goods that doesn't actually need an egg substitute to turn out delicious," says Vora. For those wondering whether they can achieve a similarly creamy texture without eggs, the expert said there are several ways around it. "Eggs typically provide richness, lift, and structure, but you can achieve all those things and get a moist, tender crumb with a few techniques."

When it comes to baking cornbread with a rich, luscious texture, Nisha Vora's number one golden rule is fat. While it's no secret that fats help make baked goods tender, it's important to remember that most recipes also rely on eggs, so when making eggless cornbread, fat becomes even more crucial. Fats also play a key role in texture by preventing excessive gluten development, which can make cornbread stretchy and elastic. Instead, they help break gluten into shorter strands, helping you create a more crumbly texture.

"Using a mixture of melted butter and oil yields a cornbread that's rich and moist without feeling greasy," says Vora. For those looking for a more budget-friendly alternative, lard is another option. Lard's high fat content can help bind ingredients together, giving the cornbread more structure. You can also look up a few other options, like vegetable shortening or margarine, though they are the least favored by experts.

Eggs play a defining role in giving your cornbread height, but who said the purpose is fulfilled by eggs and eggs only? Nisha Vora vouches for buttermilk as a great egg substitute for a similar effect. The expert with a large repertoire of vegan dishes even gave us a quick recipe for vegan buttermilk. "For lift, I like to use a combination of baking powder and vegan 'buttermilk,' which is just a simple combination of plant-based milk and an acid like apple cider vinegar," she says. If you don't have plant-based milk, or a vegan option is not a criterion, you can also create buttermilk with regular milk by adding lemon juice or distilled vinegar. Either way, you'll have to let it sit for a few minutes. 

According to Vora, the buttermilk not only aids in leavening the flour in your recipe, thanks to a chemical reaction with baking soda that results in the release of carbon dioxide, but its acidity also helps tenderize the cornmeal, which typically has a coarse texture. The combination results in a light and airy crumb. The wonder ingredient can also be a quick and simple way to add more complexity and flavor to your cornbread. If you don't want the added flavors of lemon and vinegar, cream of tartar can be another alternative to make homemade buttermilk.   

To add more structure to eggless cornbread, Nisha Vora recommends all-purpose flour. "Using a mixture of cornmeal plus all-purpose flour yields enough support with a bit of crumble, ideal for cornbread," she says. For fluffier and taller cornbread with a more even consistency, opt for bleached all-purpose flour instead of unbleached. This is because the bleaching process breaks down the proteins in the flour, resulting in a finer grain that makes your batter more voluminous.

Vora also suggests giving the batter a moment to form a more well-integrated mix. "Letting the batter rest for about 10 minutes before baking allows the cornmeal to absorb liquid, resulting in a more cohesive texture." It also gives the baking powder more time to react. Don't leave it sitting there for too long, though, or it can destroy the bubbles formed in the process. These bubbles are responsible for giving your cornbread a fluffier texture, so time it well to avoid your batter collapsing.

According to Nisha Vora, the key to eggless cornbread is to "focus on hydration and texture." Her combination of oil and butter, along with buttermilk, accomplishes exactly this. Though oil and butter are both fats, they bring different qualities to cornbread. Oil can lend a lighter texture to your cornbread, making it more tender. In contrast, butter's opulent quality adds richness to the dish. Vora suggests combining the two to bring in the best of both worlds. "You get the rich, buttery flavor, while the oil prevents the cornbread from drying out and helps it stay moist for longer," she says.

She also lets the finished batter rest before baking. "This gives the cornmeal time to fully absorb the liquid and the flour to get hydrated, yielding a better texture," she advises. As your batter rests, grease and preheat your skillet. "When you pour the batter into a well-greased, preheated skillet, it immediately starts to set at the edges, forming a crispy, golden crust," says Vora. "It's a small step, but it makes all the difference."

The expert also prefers using a cast-iron skillet to get the best results. Cast iron retains and distributes heat more effectively than other bakeware and helps in creating a more consistent bake. "A cast-iron skillet gives cornbread that signature crisp crust that's hard to achieve with a regular baking dish," she explains.

While certain elements can match or even surpass the qualities of eggs when creating the perfect texture, cornbread takes on a distinct character in terms of taste sans eggs. "Without eggs, cornbread has a more pronounced corn flavor because there's nothing to mute or dilute it," Nisha Vora says, though she doesn't see this as a negative. "In my opinion, that's a good thing!" 

Vora also notes that while some people may expect a fluffier, more structured texture to their cornbread, eggless cornbread yields a texture more akin to traditional Southern cornbread, which leans slightly crumbly rather than cake-like. "Texturewise, the cornbread stays soft and moist with a tender crumb that holds together, but still has that light crumble," she says.

The type of cornbread you prefer often depends on where in the country you live, but branching out can give you a new perspective on old favorites. Who knows, you might just find that eggless cornbread with a slightly crumbly texture is exactly what you've been searching for.