Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough Discard Cornbread

Most cornbread goes one of two ways. It's either dry and crumbly, the kind that needs a glass of water on standby, or it's basically cake with delusions of savouriness. This one is neither. It's proper sourdough discard cornbread, cornmeal-forward, sharp with mature cheddar, and got a real kick from pickled jalapeño, moist enough that nobody's reaching for butter to rescue it.

It holds its shape when you slice it. It doesn't collapse into a gummy middle. And it disappears fast, which in our house is the only review that counts.

Jump to:

• Recipe Highlights
• Ingredient Notes
• Method
• Getting the Texture Right
• Serving Suggestions
• Storage & Make-Ahead
• FAQs
• More Sourdough Discard Breads
• Sourdough Discard Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread

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Ingredient Notes

• cornmeal: fine or medium-fine grind, keeps this properly cornbread-textured rather than gritty like polenta.
• plain flour (all-purpose flour): the ratio here is weighted toward cornmeal, which is what keeps this from drifting into cake territory.
• baking powder and bicarbonate of soda: together they do all the actual rising here.
• buttermilk: adds tang and helps activate the bicarbonate of soda.
• sourdough discard: unfed, 100% hydration. Its job is flavour and moisture, not leavening, that's down to the baking powder and soda above.
• cheddar: extra-mature, grated off a block. Pre-shredded is coated in anti-caking starch, which behaves differently under heat and won't melt as cleanly through the batter. Love a cheesy sourdough bake? Try our Zucchini, Cheddar and Spring Onion Sourdough Muffins.
• pickled jalapeños: give tang alongside the heat. Drain them properly and pat them bone dry, skip that step and you're adding a pool of vinegar brine straight into the batter, the fastest route to a gummy centre. Want more kick? Add a fresh diced jalapeño (seeds in) alongside the pickled ones, or a pinch of cayenne with the dry ingredients.

As always, find ingredient quantities, detailed instructions and nutritional information in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

Method

This cornbread comes together in two bowls plus a bit of whisking, no stand mixer required.

1. Whisk the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt together.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the melted butter with the brown sugar, then whisk in the egg and yolk, followed by the buttermilk and sourdough discard.
3. Pour the wet mixture into the dry and fold just until no dry streaks remain.

TIP: Stop mixing the second the streaks disappear; overmixing develops the flour's gluten and toughens the crumb.

4. Fold the cheddar and jalapeños through the batter, then scrape it into the 9x9 inch pan and scatter the reserved cheddar over the top.
5. Bake until deeply golden, with the edges pulling away from the tin and a skewer coming out with at most a few moist cheese strings, no wet batter.

TIP: Underbaking is the other cause of a gummy centre. If in doubt, give it another few minutes rather than pulling it early.

Full method and quantities are in the recipe card below.

Getting the Texture Right

Gummy cornbread almost always comes down to one of three things:

1. wet mix-ins,
2. overmixing, or
3. underbaking.

We've already covered the jalapeño moisture problem above, that's the ingredient side sorted.

Overmixing develops gluten in the flour, which turns what should be a tender crumb into something dense and slightly rubbery. And underbaking leaves too much raw starch in the centre, which reads as gumminess even when the edges look perfectly done.

Dry cornbread is the opposite failure, usually from too much flour relative to cornmeal, or simply leaving it in the oven a few minutes too long chasing that golden brown colour.

This recipe's ratio of buttermilk, melted butter, and discard is built to sit right in the middle: moist without tipping into cake, firm without turning dry. It's why an egg plus an extra yolk (rather than two whole eggs) shows up in the ingredient list.

The extra yolk adds richness without the additional water a second white would bring, which keeps the crumb from drifting cake-ward.

Serving Suggestions

This is built to sit next to a bowl of chilli or a thick soup, cut into squares while it's still faintly warm. It also holds its own as a snack on its own, cheese and all, no accompaniment required.

If you're after something in a similar cheesy-cornmeal register but with a different flavour direction, my Savoury Polenta Muffins (with Cheese & Sundried Tomatoes) is a close cousin worth a look.

Storage & Make-Ahead

Keep it wrapped at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 5. Reheat squares in a low oven or a dry pan rather than the microwave, which turns the cheddar rubbery instead of melty.

FAQs

More Sourdough Discard Breads

For more ways to put discard to work in savoury bakes, my sourdough discard recipes rounds up the full collection, including Sourdough Discard Cheese Straws if you're after another cheesy discard snack.