Hush puppies, where have you been???
I used to make hush puppies quite often. I love hush puppies. But for some reason, I forgot about hush puppies. (How could that happen?) I haven’t made hush puppies in a long time. Then suddenly I woke up one day and hush puppies popped into my head and I haven’t been able to get them out. I’ve been eating hush puppies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I’m going to turn into a hush puppy at this rate.
I love my hush puppies recipe, so I want to share it with you. It’s a delicious basic recipe that can be changed up in so many ways.
The vegetables can be anything and in any combination adding up to 1 cup. Hot or sweet peppers, onions, zucchini, squash, whole corn, whatever you like or have on-hand or leftover! The cheese can be any kind of cheese. You can also leave out the minced veggies and/or cheese and the recipe will still work just fine if you want them plain. If I add herbs or other seasonings, I like about a teaspoon. (More can overpower the flavor.)
Note: The sugar, salt, and pepper are to taste. Adjust to suit yourself.
Some of my favorite combinations include onions and dried crushed red peppers, minced hot peppers, and zucchini and squash. Other great combos are diced (drained) tomatoes, garlic, and basil, Italian seasonings and mozzarella, whole corn and peppers. And on and on. Every time you make them, they can be different and geared to suit the meal. Remember that hush puppies aren’t just for seafood! You can serve them with anything. They even make great appetizers, which is a good time to mix in finely chopped shrimp or ham or crumbled sausage.
I made this batch with onions, dried crushed red peppers (1 teaspoon), and cheddar.
To lower the fat, you can use skim or non-fat milk and that works just fine. You can also bake hush puppies using a mini-muffin pan. Just know you aren’t really making hush puppies when you do that–you’re pretty much making cornbread mini-muffins. When I make hush puppies, I want hush puppies–and that means fried in hot oil.
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How to make Hush Puppies:
1 egg
1 cup vegetables, minced
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
1/2 cup cheese, shredded
3/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
other herbs and seasonings to taste
vegetable oil for frying
In a bowl, combine all ingredients and stir well. Drop batter by spoonfuls into deep hot fat).
I just use a big spoon and push off the dough with another spoon.
You don’t need a lot of oil–about three inches of oil will do.
Fry about 3 minutes (depending on size). They will sink to the bottom at first then pop up, fat and delicious. Get them out when they’re a nice golden color; drain.
Pop in your mouth. I like hush puppies dipped in ketchup, horseradish, Ranch dressing, melted butter, or nothing at all. Warning: These are really addictive. (Sorry!)
*Makes a dozen to a dozen and a half, depending on size. Double or triple the recipe if you’re having company.
See this recipe at Farm Bell Recipes and save it to your recipe box.
Shelly says:
This is great. I am going to make hush puppies tomorrow!! I forgot about them too. I will try your recipe, can’t wait!! yah! :snoopy:
On July 27, 2010 at 2:17 am
judydee says:
Love the idea of baking them in mini-muffin tins! We also love hush puppies–but they must (for us) be consumed in moderation; we have a really hard time doing that! Baking will be a little kinder to the bathroom scales–Maybe.
On July 27, 2010 at 5:35 am
JoLinda says:
I think I am your furthest away reader. I am in South Korea with my Army husband. He took me out on Saturday for the All-You-Can-Eat Crab Leg Night on Saturday. They always serve hush puppies and fries.
They were the most horrible little rocks I have ever been served. I wanted that stupid hush puppy and all I got was that nasty little rock.
That being said I have decided I will be eating YOUR hush puppies for my birthday on the 2nd.
On July 27, 2010 at 6:46 am
KentuckyFarmGirl says:
Yours look delicious but I have to put them second on my hush puppy list. My 88-year-old grandmother (in my opinion) makes the best hush puppies in the world! I’ve been known to call her and ask her to make some just so I can come over and eat them! I love hush puppies….maybe I need to give her a call!
On July 27, 2010 at 9:12 am
Deb says:
Ooooh, I love hush puppies! I’ve been looking for a good recipe forever…….can’t wait to try yours!
On July 27, 2010 at 9:47 am
Cathy the Hobby Farmer says:
I can’t wait to try these!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you!
On July 27, 2010 at 10:17 am
DebnFla3 says:
These would be sooooo good with a piece of fried catfish…YUM!!! I love hush puppies anyway you cook them.
On July 27, 2010 at 11:26 am
Linda says:
Yummy! Thanks for the recipe! :snoopy:
On July 27, 2010 at 11:29 am
Rose H says:
Wow, this post really freaked me out! I started to read the post before the pictures had downloaded…..in the UK hush puppies are a make of shoes 😆 😆
On July 27, 2010 at 12:47 pm
bonita says:
@ Rose: They are shoes here, too.
There are several theories about the term, but they all stem of the American South.
“Hush puppies seem to have originated in the day-long hunting and fishing expeditions popular among Southern men a few generations ago.Cooking their catch over an open fire was part of their enjoyment of the day…as a side dish they fried little cornmeal cakes in the pan they had used for the fish, and when the meal was over the leftovers went to the tied-up, yelping dogs, presumable with the cry “Hush, puppies.” The name first appears in print in 1918, but probably was
used much earlier.” —Rare Bits: Unusual Origins of Popular Recipes, Patricia Bunning
Stevens [Ohio University Press: Athens] 1998 (p. 139).
On July 27, 2010 at 1:10 pm
Willie Loudermilk says:
:fairy: Love Hushpuppies.When our children were young and we didn`t have alot of money.We would go camping and cooked the fish they caught and hushpippies cooked outside on the green Coleman stove.Brings back wonderful memories.
On July 27, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Shirley Makekau says:
This is a different hush puppy recipe than what I make! I never thought of adding cheese and those red pepper flakes.. They look sooo good. I wanted to pop my hand in there and take a few! LOL
Your pictures of your recipes are so wonderful. Thanks for all you do to make this site so much fun to be on and for all the wonderful recipes you as well as other submit!!
On July 27, 2010 at 2:20 pm
Kelley says:
Oh lordy! I have been *trying* to not think about hush puppies, and now that’s been blown all to heck! These look so good! I like to add chopped jalepeno peppers to mine; not fresh, the pickled ones in the jar. Now I know what I’ll be thinking about all afternoon!
On July 27, 2010 at 2:57 pm
rileysmom says:
Another wonderful item that you can only find in the South!
Looks like I’ll be making up a mess of hush puppies!!
On July 27, 2010 at 4:25 pm
Sue says:
Oh, the joy of a good hush puppy!!! Or a dozen. Now, if only we fried foods in our house — got a hubby with health issues. Bummer.
Maybe I’ll pass along this recipe to somebody else and get them to cook them when I’m there visiting. Yeah, that’s the idea!!!!!
On July 27, 2010 at 11:32 pm
CindyP says:
I’ve never had hush puppies…..hmmm, but they sure do look like something we’d love!
On July 28, 2010 at 7:47 am
Evelina says:
Made these today. Thank you for posting them. I lost my hush puppy recipe that I had since I was 15 when I left the x in the mid 90’s, and never found a recipe that worked for me. I couldn’t get the recipe back since the man dead soon after giving it to me, (a friend of my Dad’s. He thought it was cute I wanted his recipe, yum!) This one is so like it! YES! :snoopy:
I got to eat F O U R. Big hit. Told Charlie they were veggie fritters – he hates hush puppies. But, he found the recipe sitting there on my browser after he ate them…and we found out I forgot to put in the egg. Oh well. They were still yummy! (Caught RED HANDED FEEDING HIM SOMETHING HE DOESN’T LIKE! Whew! They were so good, he ignored that…**laughter* I think I’ve been forgiven. :hug: )
Made them with some steamed brocolli that I chopped, shredded Mexican 4 cheese blend, then some spices (dab of sage and thyme, 1/4 garlic powder, sprinkle of onion powder and ginger powder, and the remainder 1/2 teaspoon of hot chipotle flakes. YUMMY! I would never have thought to add those hot pepper flakes.
So glad you mentioned to keep the spices down to one tsp, I would have overdone it for sure! Needless to say, they made a perfectly balanced little meal for Ethan, (19 month old grandson), today. Grandpa, and Mommy – when she came to pick him up after work, helped him eat them…with Ethan eating the most, it seemed, (or was it Mommy? Or Grandpa? **laughter**)
I had trouble frying them. I don’t know how to fry stuff – my new thermometer has 370 marked off as the deep fry point – didn’t work – they were a deep brown in a minute! Raw inside. I settled for 350, about 3 minutes to 3.5 minutes for the whole thing. I used a very small ice cream scooper, 1 tablespoon capacity. Perfect size for Ethan – but since he stuffs things in his mouth till he gags, we cut them in half for him. He held and stared at a complete round one for about a minute till he decided to take a wee bite out of it, (brocolli is his favorite veggie). And yes, he does handle hot pepper flakes quite well…they don’t bother him. We found out when he insisted on eating the adults’ version of spicy collard greens instead of his without the hot pepper flakes. He couldn’t get enough of the spicy greens. Odd, but well, he’s a chip off the old block…takes after Mom’s side of the family! : )
Thanks again, finally, after all these years, a keeper! : )
On July 28, 2010 at 8:45 pm
Suzanne McMinn says:
Evelina, I’m so glad to hear it! Adjust the frying temp to whatever works for you–I like them best a nice golden. Though warm out of the fry pan, they are so good no matter what!
On July 28, 2010 at 9:10 pm
Stacy says:
These look wonderful. I have never made hush puppies before and I can not wait to try your recipe out.
On July 28, 2010 at 11:18 pm
bsue54 says:
Am I dreaming or did there used to be a blog post about a version of these that you made for you and Morgan that had chicken added to them? I was trying to double check the recipe and make sure I don’t need to pick up anything special on the way home to go in them…Have made them before…. or was kidnapped by aliens into a parallel universe where that recipe does exist…SIGH… :shocked:
On February 27, 2015 at 11:45 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
I don’t remember, but you can add ANYTHING to them!! Go ahead!
On February 27, 2015 at 4:36 pm
Bobby Hill says:
This is an excellent recipe, and I made these this evening. Its not mentioned here explicitly, but I heated my oil to about 325 deg F before adding the hush puppies. I then fried them about 2 minutes before flipping them over for another 2 minutes until they were a proper brown color. The crispiness of these hush puppies are unmatched and I would recommend this recipe to anyone.
On November 18, 2018 at 12:53 am