Hush puppies with small glass bowl of sauce, small white bowl of salt, and a spoon.

This Hush Puppies Recipe is one of our favorites! The first time I had Hush Puppies I was completely hooked. Crispy on the outside, soft and fluffy in the middle. They are seriously addicting and I dare anyone to eat just one.

We added some green onion to our hush puppies batter, for a boost of flavor, and finished ours off with a simple, spicy honey drizzle

What Are Hush Puppies?

Hush Puppies are southern, savory fried balls made from a cornmeal based batter. They’re usually eaten as an appetizer or snack.

History of Hush Puppies

There are a lot of varying stories about the origins, but most of them are myths. A popular story is that fishermen and hunters would fry up leftover batter (from frying fish for their own dinners). They would toss them at their dogs to eat to “hush the puppies” when they would get rowdy at night. This is something that I believed to be true for the longest time.

After doing a little digging, I found out that they used to be called ‘red horse bread’ in South Carolina. They were specifically coined by a man named Romeo Govans. He was famously known for his fish fries that included red horse bread.

Red Horse is actually a type of fish that Southerns would coat in a cornmeal based batter and fry up. They would then take the excess batter and fry up little balls to enjoy on the side or as a snack. The name ‘hush puppies’ is said to have started in Georgia. Newspapers began writing about a “cornbread concoction” by the name of Hush Puppies, although the exact origins of the name is up for debate.

How to Make Our Hush Puppies Recipe

Hush Puppies Ingredients

Ingredients for Hush Puppies shot overhead.

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Process

Place all ingredients into a mixing bowl.
Whisk together until a thick batter forms and no dry spots remain.

Hush Puppies batter ingredients in a glass bowl ready to be mixed together.

Hush Puppies batter in a glass bowl shot overhead with a whisk in the batter.

Preheat oil in a large pot.
Drop small balls of batter into oil, a few at a time and fry for a few minutes until golden brown.

Close up on a thermometer to show the correct oil temperature.

Gently flip hush puppies in oil to evenly fry.
Continue to fry until golden brown and fluffy on the inside.

Hush Puppies finishing up frying in a pot of hot oil.

Drain hush puppies onto a paper towel and lightly season with salt.

A close up of hush puppies on a wire rack.

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Spicy Honey Drizzle Ingredients

Process

Combine ingredients into a small bowl.
Whisk together until fully combined.

Spicy honey drizzle ingredients in a bowl ready to be mixed.

Drizzle spicy honey over hush puppies

A close up of hush puppies drizzled with spicy honey.

Useful Tools for Our Hush Puppies Recipe

An image of a thermometer on a tan background. — Oil Thermometer

A metal cookie scoop on a yellow background. — Two Tablespoon Cookie Scoop

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Tips and Tricks for Hush Puppies Success

We add sliced green onion to our puppies, which is not traditional. They can easily be omitted, although we love the little oniony bits of flavor dotted throughout each fried ball.
If you don’t have buttermilk, you can combine 2/3 cup milk with 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Allow the mixture to sit for a few minutes before whisking it into the batter.
We like to use a small ice cream scooper to easily drop balls of batter into the oil, but two spoons also work well.
It’s important to flip each hush puppy while they fry in the oil about halfway through to ensure even all sides get golden brown and that they’re completely cooked through the center.
We use an asian style chili sauce for out spicy honey drizzle, but you can use crushed red pepper flakes instead.

Storing Leftovers

To refrigerate: Once your Hush Puppies have cooled, place them in an airtight container lined with paper towels. Place a layer of the puppies in the container and layer another paper towel on top. Repeat.
To Freeze: Let Hush Puppies cool. Once they are cool transfer to a baking sheet and spread them out in one layer not touching. Place them in the freezer until they are completely frozen through. Transfer to an airtight tag and store in the freezer for up to three months.
To reheat: Place frozen or refrigerated hush puppies on a baking sheet spread in an even layer not touching. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and bake for about 5 minutes. Be sure to not burn the tops, so check halfway through. If they are getting a bit too toasty on top, you can flip them.

Is Our Hush Puppies Recipe Gluten-Free?

No, our hush puppies recipe is not gluten-free as we use a wheat-based flour. You can always try this recipe with a different kind of flour like almond, or cup 4 cup, to make these gluten-free (although we have no tested other versions)