The fried cornmeal balls traditionally served with Southern seafood are hushpuppies. They are small, savory pieces of cornmeal-based batter dropped into hot oil and fried until crisp outside and tender inside.
Typical batter includes cornmeal, flour, eggs, milk or buttermilk, salt, and a leavening agent. Onion, scallion, garlic, peppers, or whole-kernel corn may be added, so hushpuppies vary from one cook or restaurant to another. They are especially associated with fried fish, shrimp, and other seafood, though they are also served with barbecue.
The dish belongs to a broader Southern tradition of cooking with ground corn, an ingredient whose importance predates European settlement through Native American foodways. The name’s origin is uncertain. A popular story says cooks fed fried batter to dogs to quiet them, but the word was not recorded until 1899, and several competing explanations exist. Hushpuppies are distinct from cornbread muffins because they are deep-fried rather than baked.