This meaty Stuffed Mexican Cornbread is filled with taco seasoned ground beef and plenty of shredded cheese. It’s great alongside a bowl of soup, a taco salad or to dress-up a bowl of plain pinto beans. It’s packed with flavor and the level of heat is completely up to you. The spice in this cornbread is in the taco sauce so, if you prefer a milder version, use a mild taco sauce. If you’re feeling a little sassy and want it spicy, go for it!

Cornbread is a hot favorite at our house and is widely considered to be one of the two house breads of the South only to be rivaled by buttermilk biscuits. I have many variations in the recipe index here on MSSK. Some variations have vegetables in the batter such as my skillet zucchini bacon cornbread and broccoli cheese cornbread. If you’re looking for a sweet skillet honey corn bread well, I have that, too. I even have a cornbread and sausage quiche that’s ideal for any meal of the day.

This meaty Mexican cornbread comes together easily and it’s a great side to dress up a quick simple meal. This is not my Daddy’s cornbread, that he lovingly enjoyed with a glass of buttermilk. This is for those who want their cornbread to have full throttle, stand alone flavor.

Stuffed Mexican Cornbread

Servings 8

Author Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

For the cornbread you'll need:
1 1/4 cup self-rising cornmeal
1 [14.75 oz] can cream style corn
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp chopped chives
1/2 tsp salt
For the filling:
1 medium sweet onion
vegetable oil
1 lb extra lean ground beef
seasoned salt & black pepper to taste
1/2 cup taco sauce
1 [4 oz] can diced green chilies
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp minced garlic
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese divided

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Spray an 8 x 12 inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside. In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the corn meal, creamed corn, buttermilk, eggs, 1/3 cup of vegetable oil, sugar, chopped chives and salt.
In a stove top pan, saute the chopped onion in a couple of tablespoons of vegetable oil until translucent, then add the ground beef. Season with seasoned salt and pepper to taste.
Cook until no pink remains in the beef, then drain any excess fat from the pan.
Stir in the taco sauce, green chilies, cumin, minced garlic and cilantro.
Simmer for 3-5 minutes, adjust the salt and pepper if needed, then remove from the heat.
To assemble: Pour 1/2 of the cornbread batter into the baking dish.
Using a tablespoon, drop the ground beef evenly over the corn bread batter.
Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheese over the ground beef.
Pour the remaining cornbread batter on top.
Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove from the oven, and sprinkle the last 1/2 cup of cheese on top.
Return to the oven for another 5-10 minutes to allow the cheese to melt and brown.

Recipe Notes

To heat things up, chop a small jalapeno and saute along with the onions for the filling. You can also substitute pepper-jack cheese for the milder Mexican cheese blend.

Stuffed Mexican Cornbread