Sausage Stuffing Recipe
Nothing says holidays quite like a warm, golden-brown pan of sausage stuffing. It’s hearty, savory, and just indulgent enough to feel special without being fussy. Whether you’re prepping for a Thanksgiving feast or just need an easy comfort-food classic to anchor your weeknight dinner, this sausage stuffing is here to deliver all the cozy vibes.
Diane’s Sausage Stuffing
This recipe is from mother in law Diane who makes the best stuffing in the world! I kid you not. She makes the most amazing Thanksgiving feasts and now I’m happy to be able to recreate her famous stuffing recipe.
This is my go-to stuffing, with classic flavor and lots of texture. It’s full of Italian sausage, caramelized onions & celery, plenty of herbs. The toasted bread cubes soak up all the flavor, turning soft and fluffy on the inside while staying beautifully crispy on top.
Serve it with lots of gravy as the perfect addition to your Thanksgiving table.
🩷 xoxo, Ana
Recipe Notes
This stuffing starts off with the bread. I’m using a regular bread loaf (the cheap kind) for this that I just cut up into bite-sized pieces. Sourdough, ciabatta, or any other type of fresh, crusty bread would work. You can either cut your bread on the day you buy it and then let it dry out for a couple of days on it’s own.
Or, if it’s still pretty fresh & soft, I like to just toast it in the oven for about 20 minutes to crisp up. The goal is having bread that’s dry enough to not completely turn to mush when mixing with the stock and other ingredients, but fresh enough to still retain a slightly soft bite.
Make Ahead
I always find that stuffing/dressing tastes better a day or two after making—it gives enough time for the spices to more evenly distribute. You can make ahead and freeze if you’d prefer.
Another option is to saute everything the night before Thanksgiving and store in refrigerator for the night. When you’re ready to cook it before the big meal, just mix the bread cubes and transfer to baking dish.
I would not mind having this classic Thanksgiving Sausage Stuffing at almost any time of the year!
I hope you give it a try, XO, Ana
Sausage Stuffing Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 large loaves sandwich bread
- Poultry seasoning (Bell's Seasoning preferably)
- 8 ounces (2 sticks / 226 grams) unsalted butter
- 2 medium white or yellow onions - finely chopped
- 1 celery bunch - finely chopped
- 1 large bunch flat parsley - finely chopped
- kosher salt
- 28 ounces chicken stock (use homemade or from a box)
- 2 pounds Jimmy dean regular sausage or your preferred brand.
Instructions
Toast the bread the day before
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut bread into cube size pieces, place in large aluminum roasting pan or tray and spread the bread cubes out in a single layer. Sprinkle with poultry seasoning.
- Bake until golden, turning once halfway through cooking in order to brown all sides of the cubes. Cooking time will depend on the thickness of the cubes, so watch to be sure that they do not burn. (Mine generally take between 15-20 minutes.)
Prepare the stuffing/dressing
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions, celery, parsley, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until vegetables have softened, approximately 5 minutes.
- Add the other stick of butter then add the 2 lbs of sausage and start breaking it with a spoon to crumble and to cook evenly.
- Transfer mixture to a very large bowl or a large aluminum roasting pan. Then add the bread cubes and enough broth so the mixture is well moistened. Mix everything with hands. Check for seasoning. Diane's note: You can gauge moistness and add more broth as needed. You want the dressing to stick together nicely, evenly moist, but not too loose.
Bake it!
- Place the stuffing in a large baking dish (you may have to use two large baking dishes) and bake uncovered, for 30 minutes or until the top begins to brown.
Notes
- Less expensive sandwich bread works as well as expensive.
