Chili Cornbread Casserole

5 from 4 votes

This chili cornbread casserole is a cozy delicious meal with a warm chili on the bottom that’s baked with cornbread on top. I love to serve this on a chilly night, for Game Day or a meal for a crowd.

Prep Time10

Cook Time35

Bake Time for Topping25

Total Time1 10

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Diet: Low Lactose

Servings:

Author: Adrianna Adarme

Cost: $12

Equipment

Ingredients

Chili:

1 yellow onion diced
1 red bell pepper diced
3 garlic cloves minced
Kosher salt
1 pound ground beef (I went 80/20)
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground paprika
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 (15-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
1 (4-ounce) can diced green chiles
1 (15-ounce) can can of kidney beans
1 ½ cups beef broth

Cornbread Topping:

2/3 cup cornmeal (fine or medium cornmeal)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup light or dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup shredded cheddar
2/3 cup buttermilk shaken
2 large eggs
¼ cup neutral oil

Instructions

To Make the Chili:

In a large Dutch oven, set over medium heat, add a few teaspoons of olive oil. Add in the onion, red bell pepper, garlic and a few pinches of salt.
Cook until the onions have softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ground beef and break it up. Pour in the spices, the tomato paste, canned tomatoes, diced green chiles, kidney beans and beef broth. Stir until all combined.
Bring the mixture to a simmer and lower the heat to low. Cover and cook for about 30 to 35 minutes, until all the flavors have married. Adjust salt to taste. I added an additional ¾ teaspoon of salt.

To Make the Cornbread Topping:

Preheat oven to 350F. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, all-purpose flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and cheddar. In a measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, eggs and oil. Pour the wet into the dry and mix until combined.
When the chili is done, transfer it to a casserole dish and smooth out the top. Add the cornbread batter in one even layer. Transfer to the oven to bake until the top is set, about 25 minutes and the chili is bubbling. Brush the top with butter and serve with sour cream and sliced green onion.

Notes

Tips and Tricks:

Add butter to the top. I like to rub a teaspoon of butter to the top of the cornbread right when it comes out of the oven. It adds some nice gloss and melts amazingly well.
Make this vegetarian. You can make this veggie-friendly by using meat substitute in place of the ground beef. Or you could add another can of beans and leave out the meat all together.
Give it fall vibes. If you want, you can whip up this pumpkin chili and use this cornbread recipe right on top!

Nutrition