Hush Puppies
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With a fluffy center and crisp, golden shell, these hush puppies are hard to resist. Serve them up with your favorite meal or enjoy them straight from the basket. Bet you can’t eat just one!
Hush puppies are a beloved Southern dish that pair perfectly with seafood recipes or BBQ. These crispy, bite-sized fritters are made from a cornmeal-based batter, similar to cornbread, that’s deep-fried until perfectly crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. There are many theories about how they got their adorable name, but one popular story suggests that hunters and fishermen would fry up cornmeal batter to “hush the puppies” during cookouts and fish-fries.
For a hush puppy recipe, the right ratio of cornmeal to flour is essential to achieve a light and crispy texture. Too much cornmeal can result in gritty and heavy fritters. I also like to add melted butter for richness, buttermilk for tang, and a hint of Cajun spice to kick up the flavor. Of all the variations I’ve tried and tested, these hush puppies stand out as the absolute best.
“They were perfect!!! Crispy on the outside, fluffy inside. Huge hit at dinner.”
What You’ll Need To Make Hush Puppies
- Cornmeal: The base of hush puppies, providing a slightly gritty texture and subtle corn flavor.
- All-Purpose Flour: Helps bind the ingredients, softening the cornmeal’s grittiness and giving the hush puppies a lighter, fluffier texture.
- Baking Powder And Baking Soda: Leavening agents that help the hush puppies puff up when fried, giving them a light and airy texture. (Curious why you need both? See my post on baking soda vs. baking powder.)
- Cajun Spice And Cayenne Pepper: Add a kick of heat and flavor.
- Buttermilk: Adds moisture and a slight tanginess. If you don’t want to buy a whole carton of buttermilk for this recipe, see my instructions for how to make buttermilk using milk and lemon juice or vinegar.
- Eggs: Act as a binder and also contribute richness and structure.
- Butter: Adds fat for moisture and richness.
- Grated Onion: Adds depth of flavor, a hint of sweetness, and moisture to the batter.
- Oil: Used for deep-frying, it’s the key to getting that crisp, golden-brown outside while keeping the inside soft and fluffy. Go with a neutral oil that can handle high heat, like canola, vegetable, or peanut oil. These work best because they fry evenly without adding any extra flavor.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Key Equipment
- A Dutch oven, or enameled cast iron pot, is ideal for frying because it conducts heat evenly and keeps the oil temperature even and consistent. In addition, its high sides prevent splatters, and its light-colored interior allows you to clearly see the color changes when frying.
- A deep-fry/candy thermometer takes all the guesswork out of frying and enables you to maintain the perfect oil temperature throughout the cooking process. (If the oil gets too hot, the outside of the hush puppies will burn before the interior is cooked. Conversely, if the oil gets too cool, the hush puppies will take longer to cook and be greasy.)
- 1-tablespoon scooper makes for evenly sized hush puppies, and the wire scraper makes quick work of dropping the batter into the oil. (You can also use this scooper for scooping cookie batter.)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Make the hush puppy batter: Whisk the dry ingredients together first so the leaveners and spices get evenly distributed. Add the wet ingredients and grated onion and whisk just until combined; you don’t need to overwork it. Then let the batter sit for about 10 minutes. This resting time allows the cornmeal to hydrate and the batter to thicken, which helps the hush puppies hold together once they hit the oil instead of scattering apart.
Fry the hush puppies: Heat about 2 inches of oil to 350°F to 375°F in a Dutch oven or heavy pot — a thermometer helps, but you can also test with a drop of batter; it should sizzle and float right away. Working in batches, drop heaping tablespoons of batter into the oil, leaving space between each so the temperature doesn’t drop. Fry 2 to 3 minutes, flipping halfway, until deep golden brown, then lift out with a slotted spoon onto paper towels. Let the oil come back up to temperature between batches.
Serve: Hush puppies are best served right away, but leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up 2 days, or frozen for up to 3 months.
Common Questions
What should I serve with hush puppies?
They’re a classic side for fried fish, Maryland crab cakes, or peel-and-eat boiled shrimp, and are traditionally served plain, straight from the fryer.
Can I bake these instead of frying?
I don’t recommend it. The texture really depends on the quick, hot fry to get that crisp shell and fluffy center. Baking will give you something closer to cornbread.
Can I make the batter ahead of time?
No, the leavening starts working as soon as it hits the wet ingredients, so for the best rise and texture, mix it and fry right away.
More Southern Recipes You May Like
Hush Puppies
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1½ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon Cajun spice
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ¾ cup buttermilk (see note)
- 2 large eggs
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly
- ¼ cup grated yellow onion, from 1 small onion
- About 2 qts peanut or vegetable oil, for frying
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt, Cajun spice, and cayenne pepper. Add the buttermilk, eggs, melted butter, and onion and whisk until evenly combined. Let the batter rest for about 10 minutes to thicken.
- Heat about 2 in (4 cm) of oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat to 350°F (175°C). (It's very helpful to attach a deep-fry/candy thermometer to the pot to monitor the temperature throughout the cooking process, but if you don't have one, if a cube of bread sizzles when you drop it in the oil, it's the right temperature.) Line a baking sheet with paper towels and set next to the stove.
- When the oil is ready, drop heaping tablespoons of batter into the oil, without crowding, and fry until deep golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, turning halfway through cooking. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the hush puppies to the paper towel-lined baking sheet and repeat with the remaining batter. If the hush puppies are browning too quickly, lower the heat; it's important that the oil maintains a temperature of around 350°F (175°C) for even cooking. Serve warm. Leftover hush puppies can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 2 days.
Notes
- If you’d like to make your own buttermilk, check out my easy method for how to make buttermilk. (Keep in mind that homemade buttermilk is not as thick as real buttermilk, so I'd suggest using just ⅔ cup to start and adding the remaining 2 tablespoons only if the batter seems too stiff.)
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: While hush puppies are best enjoyed fresh, leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze, start by letting the cooked hush puppies cool completely at room temperature. Once cool, arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet, ensuring they don't touch, and then place the sheet in the freezer for a few hours until solid. After they're frozen, transfer the hush puppies to a freezer-safe bag or container, squeezing out as much air as possible, and freeze for up to 3 months. When you're ready to enjoy them, reheat the hush puppies directly from the freezer in 300°F-oven.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Made these for the super bowl today and they were so good! Followed the recipe exactly and they turned out like they were from a restaurant!
I have yet to make these but am so excited you have a recipe! I had hush puppies years ago with corn in them. Do you think that would be a possibility here? If so, how much and what kind of corn would you suggest. I also wasn’t sure if you would also add onions if you add corn. Any help would be appreciated.
Hi Staci, I do think you could get away with adding some corn here; for ease, you can just go with frozen (unless you’d prefer to use fresh) and I’d add up to 3/4 cup. If you’re adding the corn, I wouldn’t add onions too as I think that will add too much moisture to the batter. You could go with onion powder, though, just for the flavor. I’d love to hear how they turn out with your tweaks!