Pulled Pork Cornbread

This stuffed Pulled Pork Cornbread is loaded with down-home flavor. It’s the perfect hearty side dish to serve with a pot of soup, a slow-simmered stew, or a simple bowl of pinto beans.

Ingredients to Make Pulled Pork Cornbread Recipe

North Carolina is famous for smoked pulled pork cooked low and slow. This stuffed cornbread recipe is a fantastic way to use a small bit of leftover pulled pork that’s too little to make a full family meal but, too much to waste.  Utilizing leftovers in a different way is the sort of dish that’s better known as a “round two” meal option at our house. Ingredients to make Pulled Pork Stuffed Cornbread: (Scroll down for the full printable recipe card.)

• Pork – Fully cooked smoked pork, no sauce is best.
• Cornmeal – Plain yellow cornmeal. This is cornmeal with no added leavening ingredients.
• Flour – All purpose flour combines with the cornmeal for the batter.
• Leavening – Baking powder, salt and baking soda give lift to the cornbread.
• Seasonings – Granulated garlic or garlic powder and onion powder.
• Cheese – Shredded colby-jack cheese or cheddar cheese will give the cornbread a cheesy flavor.
• Mix-ins – Green onions and cream style corn amp up the flavor.
• Milk – Buttermilk, preferably not fat free, but low fat works.
• Whole Eggs – 3 large eggs stabilize the cornbread batter.
• Barbecue Sauce – A thicker bbq sauce works best.

How to Make the Best Stuffed Pulled Pork Cornbread Recipe

• Heat Oven and Prep the Skillet – Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush the sides and bottom of a 10-inch cast iron skillet or baking dish with melted butter.
• Sift the Dry Ingredients – Use a whisk to sift together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, garlic and onion powder. Add onion, mix well.
• Wet Ingredients – In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining melted butter, cream corn, buttermilk and eggs until fully blended.
• Combine – Add wet to dry ingredients stir until fully combined.
• Assemble – Pour 1/2 of the cornbread batter into skillet.
• Add the Pulled Pork and Cheese – Top with cheese and pulled pork. Leave a 1/2 inch border along the edge, to provide opportunity for the batter to seal the edges.
• Add Barbecue Sauce – Drizzle the pork mixture with barbecue sauce. You can eyeball the amount.
• Top with Remaining Batter – Sprinkle more cheese over the pulled pork, then spread remaining batter on top.
• Oven – Bake per the cooking time in the recipe or until a toothpick inserted into the cornbread portion shows moist crumbs.
• Stand Time – Let cool for 5 minutes, slice and serve.

Kitchen Equipment You’ll Need to Make Pulled Pork Cornbread

• 10-inch cast iron skillet or similar size baking dish.
• Two medium mixing bowls to make the dry mixture and the wet ingredients.
• A whisk for sifting and stirring.
• Measuring cups and spoons.
• Cheese grater for shredding the cheese.
• Knife and chopping board to prep the onions and chop the pork.
• Toothpick or skewer. When testing for doneness, test the cornbread portion only with a toothpick or skewer, looking for moist crumbs left behind.

Recipe Variations and Substitutions

• Cornbread: Don’t be intimidated by the ingredient list. This recipe begins with made-from-scratch cornbread batter and the ingredients are pantry staples. If you feel the need to adapt, you could use a boxed cornbread mix like Martha White. You’ll need a double batch, one packet won’t be enough.
• Protein: You could make this recipe using pulled chicken instead of pork.
• Cheese: You can use a different variety of cheese, utilizing cheddar, monterey jack, pepper jack cheese for spice or mild colby cheese. Use whatever flavor you like and have on hand.
• Spice: You could add a layer of pickled jalapeños to the pork layer, if you like spice.
• Barbecue Sauce: I highly recommend using a thicker bbq sauce for this recipe to prevent the filling from becoming too gooey. I never measure the BBQ sauce for this recipe, think drizzle, not over the top. Remember, you can always serve additional on the side, if you like.
• Leave a Border: It’s best to leave a 1/2-inch border around the edge when stuffing the center with the BBQ sauce drizzled pork. This will allow the top layer of batter to seal the edges while baking.
• Muffins: You could turn this into cornbread muffins baking them in a standard size cupcake pan.
• Serving Options: This cornbread goes particularly well with pinto beans and ham and bean soup. If you’d like to turn this cornbread into an entrée, homemade Southern Style Coleslaw is a tasty side dish to serve with it.

Storage and Leftovers

• Leftovers: Store leftover Pulled Pork Stuffed Cornbread wrapped in aluminum foil or in an airtight container chilled in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
• Reheating: Reheat gently in single servings in the microwave.
• Freezer: Freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge and reheat just before serving.

More Southern Cornbread Recipes to Make

Cornbread has many variations. Whether you enjoy a slightly sweet or full out savory. More cornbread recipes you may also like to try:

• Skillet Honey Cornbread or cornbread goes well with any meal,
• Sausage Cornbread Quiche is a breakfast or brunch rock star.
• For the Mexican food fans at your table, you can never go wrong with Stuffed Mexican Cornbread.
• Cheesy Crockpot Corn Casserole is a delicious side dish option.
• Easy Hot Water Cornbread is simple dish that’s been around for eons.
• Chili Chorizo Cornbread is packed with flavor.
• Cornbread Hoppin John from White Lily Flour.

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Helpful Kitchen Items:

• Cast Iron Skillet
• Mixing Bowls
• Measuring Set
• Kitchen Utensils