Hush Puppies or Corn Pones; Five Different Variations of a Southern Favorite

Hush Puppies

Hush Puppies or Corn Pones

Hush Puppies or corn pones as my mother called them, have long been a traditional Southern favorite. They are delicious plain (made with the basic recipe listed below) and the perfect bread to serve with many dishes including but not limited to fish, vegetarian dishes, beans, gumbo, stews and more.

Hush puppies have a long history of satisfying the appetite of both man and man's best friend. The name hush puppy was derived from just that; a way to hush the hungry puppies. In the evening, when men were having their supper around the campfire, the dogs would begin to yelp and howl because they were hungry and could smell the delicious aroma of the food being cooked on the open flame. In an effort to quiet them; cook would fry some corn concoction and pitch to the dogs. This would make them stop the yelping and be quiet. It hushed the puppies; hence the name "hush puppy".

Soon after men came to realize that this treat they created and used to quiet the dogs was delicious and satisfying for humans also. Since then, hush puppies, corn pones or spoon bread as they are sometimes called have evolved to a whole new level with many recipes and techniques for preparing and cooking this great American favorite.

There are a variety of recipes to make this popular fried bread; The basic or plain way or it can be made with a little meat surprise inside. It's also delicious made with cheese or your favorite vegetable(s). You will find a few of my favorites listed below. I hope you will enjoy this scrumptious little appetite pleaser.

Basic Ingredients

Mix to form firm ball

Cooking Time 3 minutes

OPTIONAL; Add cooked, crumbled bacon and mix

Variation

Are you a bacon lover? If so you'll love the corn pones with bacon bits. Just cook 4 strips of bacon until crispy. Let cool, then crumble. Simply add this to the basic recipe and mix to blend. Then cook according to directions above.

Basic Recipe Ingredients

• 1 cup Corn meal mix, yellow or white
• 1/2 cup flour, self rise
• 1/2 tsp. salt, table salt
• 3 tbsp. oil, corn or vegetable
• 2 eggs, large
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup milk, enough to moisten
• 1/2 tsp. sugar, optional

Mix it together

1. In medium size mixing bowl; Add milk, egg, sugar, salt and oil. Stir to mix. Add corn meal and flour and/or crumbled bacon) Mix to form soft ball.
2. Add cooking oil to skillet or deep fryer. Set heat setting to med-high. Allow oil to heat up before you drop the hush puppies in.
3. Take a tablespoon and scoop up some batter. Scrape the excess off on the side of the bowl to form a smooth oval shape.
4. Drop each one in the hot oil and cook on each side until golden brown. (about 1 - 1 1/2 minutes) on each side.
5. Drain the corn pones/ hush puppies in colander or place on paper towel to Drain off excess oil.
6. Allow to cool down a little before serving.

Cook Time

OPTIONAL; Add finely chopped onions

Optional - Onions

Another tasty way to enjoy these little breads is to add 3 tablespoons of finely chopped onions to the basic recipe. Then cook according to the same instructions listed.

Let Cool and Enjoy

Spicy Hush Puppies

When you're in the mood for something a little more spicy or need something that goes well with Spanish or Tex Mex; there's nothing like spicing this wonderful bread up.

Just follow the basic recipe above except that you omit the milk and use 1/4 cup of canned evaporated milk. Then add;

3 tablespoons of finely chopped onions

1/4 cup of chopped cilantro

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1 clove of minced garlic

2 tablespoons of taco seasoning mix

If you desire more heat, add 1/2 teaspoon of red pepper flakes

for even more spice and heat, add 1/2 jalapeno pepper- seeds removed, finely chopped

mix all these ingredients into the basic batter recipe, add a little more evaporated milk if needed.

Cheese Hush Puppies

Using the basic recipe above;

add your favorite cheese cut into 1/2" cubes ( My favorite is sharp Cheddar)

Press a cube of cheese into each spoonful of batter and drop into hot oil.

Cook until golden brown as described above.

Hush Puppies with Meat

For hush puppies with meat, you will need two small bowls. In one bowl, add 1 egg and 1/8 cup of water. Mix with a whisk until blended. This is called a light egg wash.

In the other bowl, add 1/2 cup of self rise flour

Using the basic recipe above, just add cooked ham, chicken or turkey breast cut into small 1/2" cubes, then press into each scoop. Dip or press the scooped batter into the egg wash mixture, then press gently into the the self rise flour. Next, fry until golden brown, according to the instructions above.

Another fun way is to cut franks or weenies into 1/2" slices and press into the batter of each scoop.

Dip scooped batter with meat inside into egg wash, then dip gently into the flour.

Drop into hot oil and cook until golden brown.

Corn Pone Pan

Bake it

If you like, you can bake the corn pones.

Using the basic recipe above,

Heat oven temp to 375 degrees

grease the pan well, get every crack and crevice.

Place batter into each shell and bake for about 8 - 10 minutes or until light golden brown.

Note: You can also add the variations listed above to this mixture.

Betty's Doggone Good Hush Puppies Recipe

© 2012 Becky