The Ultimate Collection of Southern Comfort Food

Jenny deRemer

Apr 02, 2025

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Southern cooking isn’t just food—it’s a way of life, and these Southern recipes bring all the comfort, flavor, and downright deliciousness you could ask for. From crispy, golden Sweet Tea Fried Chicken to melt-in-your-mouth Beer Braised Beef Brisket, these dishes will have you reaching for seconds (or thirds). No Southern spread is complete without Sweet Southern Cornbread or the fluffiest Easy 3 Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits, and if you’re in the mood for something hearty, Southern Smothered Chicken and Southern Chili are here to do the job. And don’t even think about skipping dessert—Pineapple Cake is ready to sweeten things up. Pull up a chair, y’all—it’s time to eat!

Table of Contents

Beer Braised Beef Brisket

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A serving of tender beef slices, pickles, onion rings, and white bread in a rustic bowl lined with parchment paper.
Image Credit: Image credit goes to.

Beer-Braised Beef Brisket brings you melt-in-your-mouth beef, slow-cooked to perfection in a rich stout sauce with savory onions. Pure bliss!

To learn more: Beer Braised Beef Brisket

Sweet Southern Cornbread

Slices of cornbread rest on parchment paper, with honey being drizzled over them. A plate with butter sits in the background.
Photo credit: Not Entirely Average

Sweet Southern Cornbread is the kind of comfort that feels like home. With a golden crust and a soft, moist crumb, this buttermilk beauty is just the right balance of sweet and savory, perfect for pairing with stews or simply slathered in butter.
Get the Recipe: Sweet Southern Cornbread

Southern Oxtail Recipe (Authentic Soul Food)

a bowl of ox tails smothered in gravy and rice
Image credit: Cooks with Soul

Southern oxtails is a classic soul food dish featuring tender oxtail smothered in brown gravy with bell pepper and onion served over rice.
Get the Recipe: Southern Oxtail Recipe (Authentic Soul Food)

Southern Style Chicken and Waffles

Three plates of waffles with fried chicken and a small dish of maple syrup and hot sauce.
Image credit: Cooks with Soul

Southern style chicken and waffles are made with buttermilk fried chicken tenders and buttermilk waffles. It’s a simple and delicious recipe!
Get the Recipe: Southern Style Chicken and Waffles

Red Eye Gravy

A ham steak with red eye gravy on a white dinner plate.
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

Red Eye Gravy uses fatty country ham drippings, bold black coffee, and butter to create a simple, smooth gravy that pairs perfectly with biscuits or grits!
Get the Recipe: Red Eye Gravy

Pineapple Cake (Lighter and Full Fat Version)

An overhead shot of a large pineapple cake with cream cheese frosting and dried pineapple flowers ready to serve
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

Bursting with sweet pineapple, delicious molasses flavor, and warm spice, this moist and tender Easy Pineapple Sheet Cake is the perfect treat for potlucks, snacks and picnics.
Get the Recipe: Pineapple Cake (Lighter and Full Fat Version)

Jiffy Cornbread recipe

Copycat jiffy cornbread recipe as muffins stacked on a white plate with a honey dipper on the plate
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

This Jiffy Cornbread recipe copycat is the best one you will ever taste!  It is perfectly sweet, soft, tender and melt in your mouth with a moist texture. 
Get the Recipe: Jiffy Cornbread recipe

Sweet Tea Fried Chicken

Overhead shot of a pile of sweet tea fried chicken next to a pitcher and glass full of sweet tea and lemons
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

This Sweet tea fried chicken recipe is crunchy, incredibly flavorful and irresistible! Southern sweet tea becomes the perfect brine for a twist on classic fried chicken! 
Get the Recipe: Sweet Tea Fried Chicken

Baked Potato Salad

A baked potato salad being stirred together before serving
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

Baked Potato Salad is a creamy potato salad loaded with tender red potatoes, thick cut bacon, sharp cheddar cheese, and fresh chives!
Get the Recipe: Baked Potato Salad

Carolina-style Chicken and Waffles Eggs Benedict

A knife cuts into a runny egg yolk on a sandwich with fried chicken, cheese, and a waffle on a plate. The yolk drips over the sandwich, with a sprinkle of herbs on top.
Photo credit: Not Entirely Average

If a Benedict ever went full Southern, this Carolina-Style Chicken and Waffles Eggs Benedict would be it. Crispy fried chicken, cornmeal waffles, and a sunny egg—because runny yolks fix everything—meet tangy Havarti and hot honey for a true Carolina upgrade. Hollandaise who?
Get the Recipe: Carolina-style Chicken and Waffles Eggs Benedict

Easy 3 Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits

Three golden-brown, flaky biscuits stacked on a white plate, with a soft texture and slightly crisp tops, invitingly displayed.
Image Credit: Not Entirely Average

3-Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits are foolproof Southern magic—flaky, buttery, and so easy, you’ll look like a pro on your first try!

To learn more: Easy 3 Ingredient Buttermilk Biscuits

Southern Chili Recipe

A bowl of the best chili topped with sour cream, crushed tortilla chips and avocado.
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

This hearty soup is the BEST Chili recipe ever, and its loaded with meat, peppers, beans, spices and a melody of flavors to keep you warm all winter. #chili #chilirecipe
Get the Recipe: Southern Chili Recipe

Deviled Ham

Overhead shot of a bowl of deviled ham surrounded by buttery round crackers and fresh green celery sticks, with parsley garnish and a bowl with more ham to the side
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

This Deviled Ham recipe is what Southern sandwiches are made of! It’s just straight up bomb! Chopped up ham in a creamy mayo sauce packed with flavor!
Get the Recipe: Deviled Ham

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Streusel Topping

Presenting a delicious Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Streusel Topping
Image credit: Cooks with Soul

Southern sweet potato casserole with pecan topping is a classic holiday side dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter.
Get the Recipe: Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Streusel Topping

Southern Smothered Chicken

Southern smothered chicken with rice on a white plate with a fork to the side and a bowl of chopped parsley.
Image credit: Grandbaby Cakes

Fried chicken smothered in a traditional and delicious brown gravy with onions creates the perfect classic southern smothered chicken dish.
Get the Recipe: Southern Smothered Chicken

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About Jenny deRemer

I am a Charleston, South Carolina-based culinary novice, an ardent authority on all things travel, a designer by trade, and the creator of Not Entirely Average. I have a weakness for farmers' markets, delight in adventures way off the beaten path, enjoy documenting my many moods through photography, and have been known to conquer the occasional yard sale with gusto!

Read More About Me

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