This easy, hearty Chili Cornbread Pot Pie uses kitchen staples and is a dinner the whole family will love!
This Chili Cornbread Pot Pie was born out of necessity, but it turned out to be a real treat. I made it after a long day of taking my boys plus two other kids to a busy pumpkin patch, lunch, and a playground. We were out from morning until late afternoon, and by the time we got home the boys were filthy and tired. I bathed them and got them in PJs, then let them relax with a movie until dinner time. 
That plan sounds pretty great except, somewhere between the car and the bathtub, I realized that I had forgotten to pick up groceries for dinner. Not willing to drag us all shopping at that point, I decided to scavenge through our kitchen and come up with something. As it turns out, that something was meaty, cheesy, bready, and wonderful. If I had everything I needed on hand to make this dish, you might too! Even if you don’t, this Chili Cornbread Pot Pie is worth a trip to the grocery store! 
| Prep Time | 5 minutes |
| Cook Time | 45 minutes |
| Servings |
-8
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- 1 medium onion diced
- 1 lb. ground beef or turkey
- 1 tbsp. chili powder
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper optional
- 28 oz. can diced tomatoes drained
- 15 oz. can black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 1/4 c. buttermilk
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
- 1 1/4 c. cornmeal
- 1/2 c. flour
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 3/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1 c. shredded Mexican cheese
- 1 slices jalapeño thinly sliced, or 1/4 c. pickled jalapeno (optional)
Ingredients
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Rate this recipe!
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- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13" pan with cooking spray.
- Spray a large skillet with cooking spray, and heat over medium-high heat. Saute onion for 3-5 minutes, until translucent. Add meat, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Stir together, and brown and crumble meat until almost cooked through.
- Stir in tomatoes and beans, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer for about 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, egg, and vegetable oil. Add cornmeal, flour, salt, and baking soda, and stir together until combined.
- Transfer meat mixture to prepared baking dish. Sprinkle cheese over the top. Pour cornbread batter evenly over meat, and arrange jalapeno slices over the top (if desired).
- Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until cornbread topping is evenly browned.
Bree says
Would this work with any cornbread batter? We are gluten free, so I would have to modify your recipe.
Iqra says
Nice recipe I got here. Thanks for it!
Esteban says
Good Morning Andi, what kind of oregano did you use for this recipe? I usually purchasing my spices at a Penzey’s store in my area. Right now I have Turkish and Mexican oregano in my spice cabinet
Andi Gleeson says
Hi, Esteban :) I only have one kind of dried oregano, and I would assume it’s Mexican. I would choose that. Thank you!
Titan Tyler says
This was so good! I have to admit, I was a little worried about making it, cause I just didnt know how cornbread mixed with chili would be.(Iam one of those that doesnt like things touching each other on my plate), but i had made a batch of chili and we were tired of eating it plain. I did cheat and use a packet of cornbread mix, and I only made a small pan. HUGE MISTAKE! I now have another pan in the oven so we can finish dinner. Everyone loved it. Thanks for a great recipe
Andi Gleeson says
So glad you liked it, Titan! Maybe this will help you turn over a new leaf and start putting more foods together :) Have a good evening!
Jean says
Love this site
Andi Gleeson says
Thank you so much, Jean!!
Christie b. says
just curious if you still have to add the baking soda if you use self rising corn meal and self rising flour? I thought that may be something I could omit if using both of those. :)
Gonna try it tonight for supper! Can’t wait!!!
Andi Gleeson says
Hi, Christie! I’m sorry I didn’t see your question before you made this tonight. I hope you had a good result with omitting the baking soda. Generally, if you use self rising corn meal or flour, you can leave out the added baking soda, baking powder, and/or salt. Let me know how it turned out!
jOSIE says
This was fantastic, the whole family loved it! Thanks Andi
Andi Gleeson says
I’m so happy to hear it, Josie! Thank you!
Wanda Parker says
Do you think I could just use a box of jippy cornbread mix instead of making the topping? Thanks….I love recipes like this!
Andi says
Yes for sure! The Jiffy mix will work fine. It will just be sweeter than this version. Hope you like it!
Erien says
My husband won 2nd place in a chili cookoff with this recipe! I modified it to what we had around the house. Intead of Cayenne powder I used Chipotle powder. And instead of home made cornbread on top I used a box of jiffy and added a can of corn to it. Great recipe. I don’t like chili usually but this is something I would eat again and again. And super easy! It took less than 20 mins to prep then threw it in the oven.
Andi says
Oh wow! Congratulations on the win! Most of my recipes are easy to modify with what you have on hand. I’m a very “throw in what you’ve got” kind of cook ;) Thanks, Erien!
Mindi says
HI!! Ok, so I’ve made this twice now. First, exactly how the recipe states. Second, with some changes to suit our family’s likes. I used a can of chili beans instead of black beans, made sure to drain the canned tomatoes (forgot the first time so it was a little runny), and I doubled the cornmeal topping because we like it a little thicker (omitting the added flour). The first time I added the flour and it was much too thick. Second time it turned out perfect!! Thanks for the recipe!!
Andi says
Hi, Mindi! I’m so happy to hear that you like this recipe. We really enjoyed it too! Thanks so much for taking the time to come back and let me know. I’ll have to try chili beans next time too. Have a good weekend!
Lawren says
Is there any way to make this with just the boxed cornbread mix? Like Jiffy??
Andi says
Yes for sure! Just mix it up with the box instructions and spread it on top. It will be a sweeter crust than my recipe but still good! Thanks, Lawren :)
Liz says
Another nice recipe, Andi. Thank you.
Andi says
Thank you, Liz!
Lana Hamilton says
Use a bit less milk and the batter will not be so runny. I reduced the amount because my cornbread recipe has a ratio of less milk/flour for the amount of milk in this recipe. Mine turned out GREAT and my teenage grandchildren loved it!!
Andi says
I’m so glad you liked it, Lana! I was happy with my original version of this recipe because the thinner batter was easy to pour and baked up fine. I did add 1/2 c. flour to the recipe since the other commenter said she thought it was too thin. Like you said, you can just add a little more cornmeal or flour to taste if you like. Have a great Sunday!
nicolthepickle says
Thanks for sharing. Hoping to have this for supper tonight.
Andi says
I hope you enjoy it! Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment :)
nicolthepickle says
I did make it and my husband ate 3 servings!
I was a little surprised that the cornbread had no flour in it, but I don’t make cornbread often so I went ahead. It ended up being very thin, both before baking (soupy) and the baked layer too. I think I’d prefer it a little thicker. But I’d still make it again.
Ps. I googled it and “people” said that some types of cornmeal work less well than others.
Andi says
I’m sorry it didn’t turn out quite right for you! I did notice that the batter was thin before baking, but it baked up fine for me (as pictured). Even so, I value your feedback and am going to change the recipe to add 1/2 c. flour. That might give more predictable results. Thanks again, and I hope that works out better for you next time! I’m glad your husband liked it so much :)
zsofia says
I wish they gave the nutrition info. Mainly because I am lazy and don’t want to figure it out. It looks dalish so I may have to tell myself that’s it is totally within my diabetic diet LOL
Andi says
Sorry I don’t have nutritional info, but I just found this site where you can enter a recipe’s ingredients and get that info: http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php. According to that site, the recipe (when serving six) has 488 calories and 21 g fat per serving. It gives other details too. Thanks so much for your comment, and I hope that helps!
Teresa says
Looks marvelous. I can’t wait to try it!
Andi says
Thank you, Teresa! Someone on Pinterest said she was going to make it with leftover chili she had in the fridge, which is a great idea too!
Sara says
That’s my plan for tomorrow night :) Thanks for the recipe! It looks delicious!
Andi says
Please let me know you like it, Sara! I did extensive taste testing since I ate it for dinner and then lunch the next two days, so I feel pretty sure you will enjoy it :) Thank you for coming by and leaving me a note!