Craig Claiborne's Hush Puppies

By The New York Times

Updated June 26, 2024

Total Time
10 minutes
Rating
4(142)
Notes
Read community notes

Hush puppies are found on menus throughout the South and in many homes as well, an ace accompaniment to most of the region's meals. They are fritters, essentially: sweet cornmeal dough that is fried until golden brown. The recipe here comes from Craig Claiborne, the longtime food editor at The New York Times who was from Mississippi.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 36
  • 1½cups white cornmeal
  • 4teaspoons flour
  • 2teaspoons baking powder
  • Salt to taste, if desired
  • 1tablespoon sugar
  • ¼cup grated onion
  • 1egg, lightly beaten
  • 1cup rapidly boiling water
  • Fresh corn oil to cover
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (36 servings)

31 calories; 0 grams fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 0 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 1 gram protein; 38 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, grated onion and egg and blend well. Add the water rapidly while stirring. The water must be boiling when added.

  2. Step 2

    Heat the oil to 370 degrees. Drop the mixture by rounded spoonfuls into the oil. Cook until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Ratings

4 out of 5
142 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Tori Stilwell

Hushpuppies -- one word

Alicia

Made these in an Aebleskiver pan as I don’t like to fry. Brushed each crevice with canola oil and added a tablespoon of Old Bay seasoning to the dry ingredients. Turned halfway through with wooden skewers. Delish!

Alicia

As I don’t like to fry I made these in an Aebleskiver pan. I lghtly brushed each crevice with canola oil and turned with wooden skewers till nicely browned. I also added a tablespoon of Old Bay seasoning since I’m serving these at a lobster fest! Absolutely delish!

Portlandnan

Fabulous. Just made a Mardi Gras dinner with these as the starter. The dough is very wet but the hush puppies came out perfectly. I used 3/4 c of water, not the full cup. I did a few batches on a pie plate using about 2 Tbs of veg oil, baked in a countertop oven on air fryer setting. Perfection.

Ek

These are delicious! I followed the recipe exactly. The batter is very wet and I thought it might break apart in the oil, but it held together and made lovely irregular, craggy hushpuppies with nice crunchy crusts. I was careful to bring the oil to the temp specified in the recipe, and to let it come back to temp between batches. I put about 1tsp of kosher salt in the batter.

Lori

This batter was far too wet to scoop and broke apart in the fryer.

brenda a galloway

2 TB of sugar Maybe add cayenne next time

Tori Stilwell

Hushpuppies -- one word

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