If you’ve never heard of Corn Dodgers, allow me to introduce you! This is a very old, rural Southern recipe served as an accompaniment to cooked greens. You could think of them as cornmeal dumplings!
Of all the recipes that I post here, the ones that I enjoy the most are the very old, very southern, very traditional ones. And this is one of the oldest I’ve ever done. This recipe for Corn Dodgers takes me right back to my rural southern roots.
Before I started writing this, I did some research on corn dodgers. At least I tried to. Would you believe there’s almost nothing on the internet about corn dodgers? Not this kind anyway.
If you do an internet search for corn dodgers you’ll come up with all kinds of recipes. The majority of them are fried or baked, but the corn dodgers I remember from my mama’s kitchen were boiled. You could really call them cornmeal dumplings. And they were always cooked and served with greens.
Recipe Snapshot
Cuisine: Southern, Vintage
Cooking Method: Stovetop
Total Time: 35 Minutes
Servings: 8
Primary Ingredient(s): White cornmeal, green onions, broth from turnip greens
Skill Level: Easy
What in the World is a Corn Dodger?
I only found two credible references online for boiled corn dodgers. One was from Dictionary.com:
1. South Midland and Southern U.S. a small, usually oval cake made of corn bread and baked or fried hard in a skillet.
2. Chiefly South Atlantic States and Eastern Virginia. a boiled dumpling made of cornmeal.
And the second was from thefreedictionary.com:
a small cornmeal cake either baked or fried or boiled as a dumpling.
I did also find one other reference to boiled corn dodgers in the Amazon preview of a book titled “Appalachian Folkways.”
It appears that the boiled variety is not so common, but it’s definitely what we were served as corn dodgers in our household.
These delicious little corn dumplings are a perfect accompaniment to a pot of greens. My favorite is turnip greens, but they’re just as good with mustard greens or collards.
I really hope you’ll try this recipe if for no other reason than curiosity. You just might find that you’ve discovered a new southern comfort food treasure to add to your recipe box :-)
What You’ll Like About This Recipe
- It’s a very old and unique part of our southern foodways.
- Very easy to make with common ingredients.
- So tasty! If you like dumplings, you’ll like corn dodgers.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING …
“This is almost identical to the way my beloved Aunt Gracie thought me almost 50 years ago!”
— Penny
Ingredient Notes
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- Cornmeal – I prefer finely ground white cornmeal for most recipes and it’s a must for this one. Coarser textured cornmeals won’t hold together when cooked in this way. My preferred brands include Arnett’s and Palmetto Farms.
- Green Onion – The green onion is totally optional. Indeed, old-fashioned southern cooks would not have included it in this recipe, but I like the little bit of additional flavoring it gives. Leave it out if you like.
- “Pot Likker“ – That’s simply the broth in the pot when you cook greens.
The complete ingredient list with detailed measurements is included in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Corn Dodgers
Cook the Greens
- Start by cooking turnip greens following your usual recipe. About 45 minutes before serving, make the corn dodgers.
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Mix the Dough
- Mix the cornmeal, salt, pepper, and onion in a medium bowl. Add pot likker, starting with about 3/4 cup to make a stiff dough.
What is Pot Likker?
Maybe I should explain what “pot likker” is? Well, it’s just the liquid that the turnip greens have been cooking in! And, trust me, it’s some delicious broth. Oh. My. Word. I could make a whole meal off a bowl of pot likker and crumbly cornbread. “Likker” is a corruption of the word liquor.
Form the Corn Dodgers
The dough should be stiff enough that it easily holds together. If you’re familiar with southern cornbreads, it’s a bit thicker than corn pone dough. I hope you can see from the photo how stiff that dough is. It’s moist throughout but not watery at all.
- Using about 2 tablespoons of dough for each dodger, shape the dough into rolls about twice as long as wide (see above).
Cook the Dumplings
- From the pot of turnip greens, remove 3 to 4 cups of pot likker (okay, broth) and place it in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Drop in the dodgers and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook slowly until the corn dodgers are done through, about 30 minutes, turning them over a few times.
- Serve with turnip greens and additional pot likker.
How to Store
Store along with leftover greens, completely cooled, in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in simmering leftover pot likker over low heat.
Serving Suggestion
Corn dodgers and greens make one of the most perfect of old-fashioned southern dinners when served with fried chicken or fried pork chops and perfectly seasoned black-eyed peas. Add a glass of sweet iced tea and a slice of chocolate little layer cake for dessert.
Questions About Corn Dodgers
It’s really hard to say without being in your kitchen with you, but you could have (1) used the wrong kind of cornmeal, (2) had your batter too thin, or (3) your cooking liquid could have been boiling too rapidly. Or all three.
The type of cornmeal for this recipe is very specific – plain, finely ground white cornmeal. You’ll need that type of cornmeal for the mixture to become firm and hold together during the boiling process. You will not get the same results with coarse (or even medium ground) cornmeal or yellow cornmeal, nor cornmeal “mix” or a boxed mix like Jiffy. They simply won’t work.
Have a question or thought to share?
If you have a question about the recipe or if you’ve made it and want to share how it turned out, I would truly enjoy hearing from you. Just scroll down to leave a comment or add your star rating.
Thank you for stopping by. It means a lot to have you here.
Recipe
Corn Dodgers
Ingredients
- 1 cup plain, finely ground white cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion
- 4 cups broth from turnip greens (may use more broth)
Instructions
- Cook turnip greens following your usual recipe or use mine (linked here). About 45 minutes before serving, make the corn dodgers.
- Mix the cornmeal, salt, pepper, and onion in a medium bowl. Add broth starting with about 3/4 cup to make a stiff dough.1 cup plain, finely ground white cornmeal, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion
- Shape the dough into rolls about twice as long as wide.
- From the turnips, remove 3 to 4 cups of broth and place in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat. Drop in the dodgers and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook slowly until done through, about 30 minutes, turning the dodgers over a few times.4 cups broth from turnip greens
- Serve with turnip greens and additional “pot likker.”
Notes
- Store along with leftover greens, completely cooled, in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in simmering leftover pot likker over low heat.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
— This post was originally published on November 1, 2013. It has been updated with additional information.
Here is an interesting excerpt from Hall’s Journal of Health back from around the late 1850s to 1860:
“A corn-dodger is not now what it used to be. Originally it was a corn-meal dumpling. In very early Kentucky times, the universal dinner, winter and spring, at every farm-house in the State, was a piece of middling bacon, boiled with cabbage, turnips, greens, collards or sprouts — cabbage-sprouts — according to the season. The pot, if the family was a large one, contained about ten gallons, and was nearly filled with clean pure water: the middling and the greens were put in at the proper time, to give them a sufficient cooking. Almost always the cook would make with water and corn-meal and a little salt, dough-balls, throw them into the pot, and boil them thoroughly with the rest. These were called dodgers from the motion giving them by the boiling water in the pot. They eat very well, and give a considerable variety to a dinner of bacon and collards.”
The author was lamenting that this practice was going away and dodgers became known mostly as a baked good. The baked one is his words “is not a veritable first-rate dodger, unless when on the table it bears the impress of the cook’s fingers on it, in placing it in the oven to bake.”
My Granny use to make these but she called them “po” souls or poor souls. I have thought about them so often and could never find a recipe. She said they were called that because many poor people in the South could afford the ingredients to make them. I am 67 years old and the last time I had these were about 50 years ago. Thanks so much for publishing this recipe.
Having developed a keen interest in Southern cooking/recipes especially older authentic, I was intrigued with your recipe as well as your mention of not having much luck finding much info about it online. I thought I’d let you know I was able to find quite a few links/references to Corn Dodgers by using the wording ‘pot likker corn dodgers & pot liquor corn dodgers in my search. Interesting to see most all recipes I found were quite identical to yours save for a few calling for the addition of 2 tablespoons melted butter or shortening. I also found a link to a cookbook preview that had a pot likker corn dodger recipe similar to yours. If you’re interested, the book title is THE SOUTHERN COOKBOOK OF FINE OLD RECIPES, by Lillie Lustig, S. Sondheim, & Sarah Rense. There’s quite a few editions of the cookbook available on amazon, different years printed etc., but the year of the book & recipe preview I found online was dated Dec. 15th. 2007 & published by Applewood books. The book is available new and used (paperback) and ranges in price approx. $5 – $9. I’d add the link but not sure if it would work here. If you’d like the link just let me know and I’ll email it to you.
OMG, I have thought of these ( we just called the cornbread dumplings) many times over the years. My “Nanny” used to put these in her collard greens and her cabbage. At first I hated them but as I got older I loved them. I think I will have to give them a try. Thank you so much.
These sound good, I might try them later. We used to have corn dodgers when I was young, but they were always fried. Thanks for the recipe.
How I love your Southron ways, Lana!
My grandparents were born in the late 1800’s and raised my brother and I
on their Mississippi farm. Mama (our grandmother) would fix boiled corn dodgers either with boiled pig feet smothered in simi-thick broth, or with turnip/muster greens boiled in the pot likker. These 1950’s meals were a favorite.
Thanks Lana
I read about pot dodgers in a book entitled Beulah Land.
Thanks for the info. My e-mail is broken. bev
great article. my mom and grandmother made these and they were always cooked in the broth of ham. however, diced turnips with the greens were very often the accompaniment. there were no onions in them but that is definitely something i am going to do next time. if anyone decides to boil their cornmeal dodgers in ham broth, back off on the salt or you’ll be guzzling water all night. many thanks, lana.
Hi,
This is the first time I have seen this old recipe in writing. I write “hubs” for hubpages, and as my grandmother’s recipe is similar to yours, I would like to write her recipe (she didn’t use onions in hers—but I like the onions) for my blog on hubpages. However, I would like to acknowledge the interesting research you have done on this recipe and link to your website because of the history and the similarity to my grandmother’s recipe. I am quite careful of copyright, so when I get my “hub” finished, I would like to send it to you for your approval of my referencing your work. I really enjoy your site. You can read my “hubs” at hubpages dot com . Then type in a search for simondixie. That’s my user name. I have about 30 articles so far on all subjects. Thanks!
nancy mclendon
Hi Nancy – feel free to reference the material but please do not reproduce the recipe in full on Hubpages. A link back is great, though.
Interesting… My Nana made the fried corn dodgers or as my Momma calls it ‘hot water cornbread’. It was a staple on our family meals at my grandparents. I usually ONLY make them on Thanksgiving. I might have to try this, however, as an accompaniment to greens– which my Yankee husband simply can not handle!
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! For this recipe. My 92 year old grandmother made these when I was younger. I didn’t think about them for years. When I asked her about the recipe she could not remember it. She didn’t write her down her recipes nor measure anything. I thankfully got some of them from her when I got married but some she never remembered. :(
You’re welcome, Sonya! I had never seen this recipe written down and could not find it on the internet, either. I love making these old recipes and putting them online so that they’re saved for future generations!
I make these like Mama did. She just laid hers ever so gently on top of the turnips while they were cooking. I do the same and they turn out great
My mama does them like that too, William. They’re so good, aren’t they?
I have eaten Mrs India’s cooking many times…as I am sure you ate Frances Lane’s cooking. Both were great cooks
Oooohhhhh….okay! So, that’s you Bill?!
Oooohhhhh….okay! So, that’s you Bill?! Wouldn’t have known just from your email address.
I recall Corn Dodgers my Mom made when she made Greens of ANY sort…she fried hers so of course those are the ones I’ll do when I make Greens, but you do have my curosity up…hafta try them…Thanks for all your postings!
My grandmother made these. She did not put the onion in hers, nor have I. Most do even know what you talking about..corn dodge. My girls love them. My dad only gets them, when I make them. Only made them with turnips or turnips and mustard greens mixed. This almost as southern as you can get…Enjoy