Thanksgiving Sausage Stuffing
This is the big day! The one time in the year we eat turkey. Also likely the one time of the year we make homemade stuffing. We all know the star of Thanksgiving dinner is the stuffing. So since it is the star lets make it one.
Since we likely make stuffing once a year I take the time to use fresh ingredients, no dried herbs and no rushing through the recipe. I like to build the broth and stuffing mix so it comes out perfect!
I make the stuffing the day before, well actually, I make almost everything the day before, even the turkey. I use a trick for serving the turkey that leaves you with almost nothing to do on Thanksgiving day except warm the food. (see the bonus tip in the recipe)
Come the next day, my wife and I have a nice morning. We get in the holiday mood and put on the Macy’s parade, make a nice brunch, then we get everything out and warming, get ourselves ready and just wait for everyone to show up.
About this Recipe
The secret to making great sausage stuffing is how you build the vegetable mixture and broth. Stuffing is really a simple recipe. It’s bread, broth and vegetables. What we add to it or how we develop each step is what makes the difference.
In this recipe I will show you how I build flavor in those three basic components for making delicious Thanksgiving sausage stuffing. It is a recipe I have had no reason to change in years and each year I love to hear “Dad, are you making your stuffing? Make double!”
Build the vegetable mixture, saute the sausage and make a great broth then simply add it to the bread. Place the whole mix in a 9 x 13” casserole dish or aluminum pan. Bake it and serve. It's that simple.
Follow this recipe and you will have a fairly simple path to a holiday classic that everyone will be looking forward to every year.
About the Ingredients
Sausage: I use either regular sausage or sage sausage in the tube. I find the sage sausage is subtle enough to add also using the fresh sage. If you wish to have traditional stuffing you can omit the sausage.
Bread: I simply use a whole loaf of white bread. I've tried different bread over the years and I find what matters is how the bread is prepared, not what it is. You can use any bread you like as long as it is stale and dry. Dryness is the key. As a reference, one whole loaf of packaged white bread will yield a 9 x 13” aluminum pan of stuffing. So if you're making a full tray or two pans like I usually need to, you will have to simply double the recipe.
Fresh Sage,Thyme, Rosemary and Bay leaf: When it comes to my Thanksgiving stuffing I go the extra mile and opt for fresh ingredients over dried. Of course you can use dried ingredients if you wish. Go easy on the rosemary as we don't want a woodsy taste to the stuffing. Use the bay leaf in the Broth.
Poultry seasoning: I like to add this seasoning not traditionally found in stuffing recipes. I feel that the seasoning helps bring all the flavors of the stuffing together and gives your house that Thanksgiving day aroma.
Celery and Onions: Sauteed in butter until soft and sweet providing that classic flavor foundation to the stuffing. I always use yellow onions. I do not like the sweetness of sweet onions for stuffing.
Chicken broth: Moistens and brings together all the ingredients. This is one of the few recipes I will use low-sodium chicken broth, not unsalted. As the broth is absorbed into the bread it will carry the salt with it enabling seasoning of the bread you can't do by hand. I find that low-sodium chicken broth does not oversalt the dish so don’t be afraid to use it. I like to add in the discarded tops of the celery with the leaves, yellow onion and bay leaves to the broth to add flavor.
Salt and Pepper: Even using low-sodium broth I found I still needed to adjust the salt at the end. Add the pepper to taste.
About the turkey gizzards: This applies if you are making the stuffing with a whole Turkey. Remove the gizzards from the bag and chop fine and add to the sausage to cook.
How to make sausage stuffing
Prep the bread: Using a whole loaf of white bread, slice it into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes or tear the bread and place them in a single layer on two baking sheets. Set the oven to bake at 200°F and bake until they pretty much are lightly browned croutons. We want all the moisture out of the bread or your stuffing will be mushy when mixed. Once complete add the dried bread crumbs to a large mixing bowl.
Brown the sausage: In a skillet on medium heat add your sausage (also the chopped gizzards) and cook through until the sausage begins to brown. Using a slotted spoon remove the sausage from the pan to a plate and cover leaving all its drippings in the pan. Lower the heat to medium-low.
Add the butter to the pan: Cube the stick of butter and add it to the sausage drippings along with the teaspoon of oil. Melt the butter.
The vegetables: Wash the celery and trim the tops and bottoms. Dice the celery and chop the onions (chopping is just dicing in bigger pieces) and add them to the pan. Slow cook them, stirring occasionally until soft and the onion translucent. Add in your sage, thyme, poultry seasoning, rosemary and salt and pepper. Stir and mix to bring the flavors all together and cook until fragrant, then remove from the heat.
The broth: In a 2-quart saucepan on medium-low heat add four cups (one standard 32oz carton) of low-sodium chicken broth, the tops and leaves from the celery, 1/4 of yellow onion and the bay leaves to the pan and bring to a simmer. Then reduce heat to low.
Bring it together: Strain out the celery, onion and Bay leaf from the broth and discard. In the large mixing bowl of the dry bread, add the vegetable and sausage mix over the bread and fold the bread and mixture gently taking care not to crush the bread crumbs. Fold the stuffing mix until the vegetables and sausage are evenly distributed in the bread. Then slowly begin to add the broth. Continue to fold the bread mixture gently and continually allowing the broth to soak into the bread. Keep adding broth slowly until the bread is saturated. This should be a little less then the four cups of sauce. At this point, taste and adjust your seasonings.
Place in the dish: Using a 9 x 13 casserole dish or aluminum pan, spoon the stuffing into the dish spreading it evenly forming a rough top and do not tamp the top down.
Bake: Place your oven to bake on 350°F. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Then remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes to brown the top of the stuffing. You should have a lightly browned yet soft crust on top. Remove from the oven and serve. If delayed serving, seal the top with foil until serving.
Storage & Reheating
Storage: Store leftovers in a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Reheating: Reheat at room temperature covered with foil in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes, then uncover for 5 minutes to crisp up the top layer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I skip the sausage?
Yes, of course. If you prefer standard stuffing or are just not a fan of sausage you can skip it as well as the gizzards.
Can I use vegetable broth?
Yes. Using vegetable broth will change the flavor to a vegetable forward flavor so leave out the celery and onion when simmering the broth. pay attention to your seasoning when adjusting flavor.
Can I make the stuffing ahead of time?
Yes! In fact I do. As with many recipes, it tastes better the next day allowing all the flavors to marry overnight. Make your stuffing and bake skipping the browning portion of the cook and then seal tightly in foil and store in the refrigerator. Remove the next day and allow to come to room temp before baking. On Turkey day allow the stuffing to come to room temperature and place the covered stuffing in the oven for 20 minutes. Then remove the foil and continue to cook for 10-15 minutes to brown the top.
Can I Use prepackaged bread?
If you need to you can. But in my experience, due to preservatives in the bread, It gives an unpleasant taste to the stuffing. so I don’t do this. Also, the stuffing has always been mushy.
How dry should the bread be?
Drying the bread completely into crouton like texture removes all its moisture allowing it to be replaced by your broth.
Can I use dried herbs?
Yes. If you prefer the simpler step by all means use them. Always adjust your flavors before you bake the dish.
Bonus Thanksgiving tip (The Turkey)
I like to have the dinner completely pre-cooked and only in need of re-warming the dishes come dinnertime. We all know how we see turkey served on TV and commercials. A whole turkey, beautifully browned, served on the table with it being Carved in slices from the breast one by one. In reality this does not happen in most homes. We take a very hot Turkey out of the oven. Rest it and attempt to get all the meat. So now we have a messy bird on the counter, juices dripping all over and a meat too hot to handle to get it all off the turkey. It seems we leave half the meat on the bird.
I cook the turkey the day before. Let it rest and cool to be able to handle it and start cleaning every bit of meat off the turkey. I yield more turkey than cutting it out of the oven on Thanksgiving day and save myself the mess while serving the meal. On Thanksgiving I break out two crock pots, add some broth to the bottom and add my separated light and dark meat and warm in the crock pots. I have been doing this for the past five years and everyone loves it. They select their meat, grab their sides and sit at the table. Everyone who I’ve told this to, who cooks at their home, has complimented me on solving a Thanksgiving hassle for them. If you are a traditionalist by all means serve the turkey as you wish.
Classic Thanksgiving Sausage Stuffing
Prep, Cook Times & Servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour
Servings: 8 to 10
Ingredients
1 lb sausage (in the tube either plain or sage)
Diced gizzards from the turkey (optional)
12 cups dried bread cubes (1 large loaf white bread cubed or torn and dried)
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
The tops of celery with leaves and 1/4 whole onion
2 bay leaves
1 stick unsalted butter
1 tsp vegetable oil
2 cups diced yellow onion
2 cups diced celery
1 tbsp fresh sage, finely chopped (to taste)
1 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped (to taste)
1 tbsp poultry seasoning (to taste)
1 tsp fresh rosemary
1 tsp kosher salt (to taste)
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Instructions
Heat the oven: Heat the oven to bake to 200°F. Using 2 large baking pans from the cabinet, place them on the counter.
The bread: Take out the bread you are using and cut into 1 to 1 1/2 inch cubes or tear the bread rough. Place the bread in a single layer on the pans and place them side by side in the oven (standard electric oven they will fit) toast until dry and lightly toasted.
Prepare the veggies: Dice the celery and chop the onion. Measure out your fresh herbs and finely chop them (if using dried measure them out)
Brown the sausage: In a large skillet add your sausage from the tube to the pan and cook through until slightly browned. (add the gizzards whole from the turkey if using) Break up the sausage using a slotted wooden spatula until roughly crumbled, cooked through and browned. Using your spatula, remove to a plate reserving the rendered fat from the sausage in the pan.
The broth: While the sausage is sauteing. Using a 2-quart saucepan add 1 quart of the low-sodium chicken broth and add in the tops of the celery with leaves, The bay leaves and a separate 1/4 onion to the broth and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Saute the veggies: On medium-low heat cube the whole stick of unsalted butter. Place them in the pan with reserved sausage juices and add the vegetable oil. Melt the butter. Adjust the heat so the butter does not burn. Add in the onion and celery and cook until soft and onion translucent. Do not brown the veggies. Once cooked add in your herbs, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper and saute until fragrant. Remove from the heat.
In a large mixing bowl: Add your bread to the mixing bowl then top with the veggie/herb and sausage mix and fold the ingredients with the bread to avoid crushing the bread and mix all the ingredients well. Strain the broth and slowly add the broth in stages to the mix as you fold the bread evenly distributing the broth. Continue to fold the mixture until the bread is saturated (It should take a little less than 1 quart of broth. Taste and adjust your seasonings.
Bake: Turn your oven on to bake at 350°F. Place your stuffing mixture into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan allowing the top to look a bit rough, do not press down and flatten. Cover securely with foil and place your stuffing into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove the foil on top and bake for another 10-15 minutes to brown the top. Remove from the oven and serve.
Estimated Nutritional Information
Servings: 10
Calories: 320 kcal I Protein: 5g I Carbohydrates: 30g I Dietary Fiber: 2g I Sugars: 3g
Total Fat: 18gSaturated I Fat: 8g I Sodium: 780mg