Southern cheesy corn casserole is a homemade, oven-baked classic that's simple to prepare-no Jiffy box mix needed! Made with shredded cheddar cheese, canned corn, and canned cream corn, it boasts a hint of sweetness from a touch of sugar. Baked at 350°F for an hour, this comforting dish is ideal for the holidays or any Southern-style dinner party. Yields enough for 8-10 people.

A plate of corn casserole with a gold spoon in it, with the casserole dish, a bowl of cheese, and butter in the background.

My sweet husband and his obsession with this dish

Fun fact - my husband LOVES corn. And I do not. He jokes it is his favorite veggie (knowing technically it's not a veggie....).

My father-in-law makes a cheesy cream corn casserole every year for Thanksgiving and Christmas. And my non-corn-loving heart admits that it is delicious and one of my favorite side dishes every year.

But here is my thing about homemade casserole recipes or casserole recipes in general: I love the idea of a casserole. I love the thought of basically dumpling everything into a 9x13 dish and tossing it in the oven to bake, yielding a comforting all-in-one dish without a ton of work and dishes-kind of like the crock pot.

But so many casserole recipes are full of can of this and cream of this and so many processed ingredients that I just cannot. No offense to casserole recipes in the wild but I want something that has no processed ingredients in it, and that you don't have 1 millions steps involved. Kinda like Southern cornbread and biscuit dressing, oven baked easy ground beef enchilada casserole, orbaked chicken pot pie casserole. So now you know my rules for casseroles.

So I took one of Justin's favorites and have been making corn casserole without jiffy for the past several years (at our house). And it's a huge hit! You mix everything together in one bowl - use simple ingredients like cornmeal, a combo of canned corn kernels and canned cream corn, sour cream, butter, nutmeg, and shredded cheese from a block of cheddar. Bake it in a 9x13 for an hour and the result is a corn casserole that is cheesy, comforting, and perfect for any holiday table.

Let me show you how easy it is!

Welcome to my real kitchen...lets cook!

A mixing bowl of dry ingredients like flour and cornmeal. — Mix your dry ingredients in a bowl (flour, cornmeal, and spices).

A whisk in a clear mixing bowl on a counter whisking ingredients together. — Whisk them all together.

a mixing bowl full of dry and wet ingredients for corn casserole. — Add all of the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in the big bowl (canned corns, milk, butter, sour cream, etc).

A spatula mixing together teh iflling for corn casserole in a bowl on a kitchen counter. — Stir with a spatula until all the dry mix is gone and everything is combined.

Adding shredded cheese to corn casserole filling in a mixig bowl. — Finally, add in half of the grated cheese.

Stirring together the filling for corn casserole in a mixing bowl. — Give one final mix together.

A 9x13 and a bowl of filling on a kitchen counter. — Grease a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.

Pouring corn casserole into a 9x13 baking dish. — Pour in the filling.

Corn casserole half way baked in a 9x13 baking dish. — Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Sprinkling on cheese on top of a casserole before baking again. — Remove from the oven, sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top, and then pop back into the oven....

cheesy corn casserole after coming out of the oven on a kitchen counter. — ...to finish baking for another 30 minutes.

southern cheesy corn casserole in a baking dish with a wooden spoon scooping it out. — Remove and serve immediately!

⭐️Pro Tip ⭐️ - I don't like using the bag of pre-shredded cheese for this. It is much better to just take the extra 2 minutes and grate your own from a cheddar block - IMO it results in a better melt and taste all around.

How to Prep Ahead of Time

Making as much as you can ahead of time is the name of the game around the holidays. Good thing this corn casserole can be made weeks or even months in advance and waiting for Thanksgiving to arrive.

How to Prep the Day Before:

Make the casserole completely up until baking. Wrap with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight or for 24 hours - leaving the cheese off the top until baked half way through.
Bake as directed.

How to Prep Ahead and Freeze:

Follow the directions all the way up until putting in the oven. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap 3 times making sure it is airtight (make sure to label what it is on the outside!) Place in the freezer for up to 6 months or until needed.
To cook from frozen you can either: Place in the fridge 24 hours before to begin to thaw and cook as directed below OR place straight into the oven from the freezer baking for 70-90 minutes. Add the cheese on top half way through like the recipe states.

Recipe