Pimento cheese hush puppies for 12, about 40 bites: sharp Cheddar, pimientos and grated onion folded into a buttermilk cornmeal batter, fried at home and finished with a drizzle of hot honey. The honey needs no cooler and no dip bowl, so the whole thing travels as one foil pan and a squeeze bottle. Frying takes about 40 minutes at home.
Feeds: 12 (about 40 hush puppies) · Hands-on: about 40 min · Total: about 1 hour 5 min, including 15 minutes warming at the lot
Home gear: a heavy pot at least 4 inches deep, a frying thermometer, a 1-tbsp scoop, a wire rack, a foil pan with a lid
Pack for the lot
- Hush puppies, in the foil pan, in the cooler
- Hot honey, in a squeeze bottle (no cooler needed)
- Flaky salt, if using
- Tongs
- Instant-read thermometer
- Charcoal and a chimney starter, or propane where your lot allows it
- Paper boats or small plates
- Trash bags
Lot notes
- Why fry at home: a pot of 350°F oil is a burn and fire hazard on a crowded lot, and plenty of lots ban fryers. At home, you control it.
- Fuel: about 20 minutes of indirect heat. The pan stays uncovered so the outsides crisp back up.
- Holding: keep them at 140°F or above on the cool side of the grill while people graze. Toss anything out past 2 hours, or 1 hour over 90°F.
- Fridge life: fried hush puppies keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge. Hot honey keeps for weeks at room temperature.
- Oil cleanup: let the oil cool completely at home, strain it and reuse it or seal it for the trash. Never pour it on the ground.
- The Grove (Vaught-Hemingway Stadium): no grills of any kind are allowed on the Ole Miss campus, so skip steps 6 and 7 there. Reheat the hush puppies at home in a 400°F oven to 165°F and pack them hot in a foil-lined insulated bag with the lid cracked. Serve them within 2 hours with the hot honey. Grove tailgating guide.
- A cooler for the drinks: the Taiga 27 qt Hard Cooler has heavily insulated walls and a one-piece lid gasket, and Taiga says ice lasts 5 or more days in hot, real-world use.
Can you make hush puppies ahead for a tailgate?
Yes. Fry them the night before, cool them on a rack and refrigerate them in a foil pan. Warm them to 165°F at the lot, uncovered, on the cool side of the grill.
How do you keep hush puppies crisp at a tailgate?
Cool them completely before you cover them, then rewarm them uncovered with the grill lid down. Add the honey right before serving so it doesn't soak in.
How many hush puppies for 20 people?
Make it twice for about 80 hush puppies, 4 each: 4 cups of cornmeal, 2 cups of flour, 2 tbsp of sugar, 4 tsp of baking powder, 1 tsp of baking soda, 2 tsp of salt, ½ tsp of cayenne, 2 cups of buttermilk, 4 eggs, 12 oz of Cheddar, 2 jars of pimientos, ¼ cup of grated onion and 1 cup of honey. Mix 2 separate batters so the second one is fresh when it hits the oil.
Can you air-fry hush puppies instead?
You can, but they spread. Chill the batter 30 minutes, scoop it onto parchment in the air fryer basket, mist with oil and cook at 375°F for 8 to 10 minutes. They come out lighter in color and less crisp.
Can you cook at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium?
No. The Grove guide grill rule reads "None. Electric, gas, charcoal and wood grills are all banned on campus, and so are heaters." Fry and reheat them at home, carry them hot in an insulated bag and serve them within 2 hours.