Easy Stuffing Recipe

Turkey dressing with sage leaves garnish in a 9x13 casserole pan.

This classic stuffing recipe is simple and flavorful with golden crispy bread cubes on top while moist and tasty on the inside in a perfect blend of buttery herbs and celery.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1 30

Total Time 1 45

Servings

Calories 434kcal

Ingredients

1 (16 oz or 1 pound) French Bread or Italian Bread, cut into 1 inch cubes
2 slices thick bacon cut into thin strips
2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup)
2 cups celery chopped
1 large onion chopped
2 ½ tablespoons fresh sage remove from stem and chopped leaves
1 ½ tablespoons fresh rosemary remove from stem and chopped leaves
1 ½ tablespoons fresh thyme remove hard stem
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley chopped
½ teaspoon All spice
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock or 2 cups water with 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon powder
3 large eggs

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Prepare the bread a couple of days before making the stuffing. Cut bread into 1 inch cubes and place it in a baking sheet in 1 layer until dry like croutons. Otherwise, place it in the oven at 250 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, mixing it around occasionally to toast evenly.
Fry bacon until crisp over medium-low heat. Place in greased baking pan with bread.
Melt butter with bacon grease. Saute onion and celery for 5 - 7 minutes or until tender over medium heat.
Turn off heat. Add sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley, all spice, garlic powder, 2 cups broth, salt and pepper. Set aside and let the mixture cool about 15 minutes or so. This will also allow the flavors to meld together.
In the meantime, beat eggs in a small bowl then stir-in the broth. Set aside.
MAKING STUFFING ON THE SAME DAY: When herb mixture has cooled down, stir-in with bread cubes then pour egg mixture evenly.
Note: Make sure herb mixture is no longer hot before adding the egg mixture. Eggs can curdle when added.
MAKING STUFFING AHEAD OF TIME: In step #4, add ONLY 1 cup broth. Let the herb mixture cool before pouring over bread. Mix well and cover with foil and refrigerate. When ready to bake, beat eggs and add remaining broth (1 cup). Pour egg mixture over bread and mix.
Pre-heat oven at 350 degrees F and bake for 50-55 minutes covered with foil and another 15-20 minutes uncovered.
If desired, garnish with extra herbs and serve warm.

Notes

Bacon and chicken bouillon powder (if using instead of broth) are salty, so ½ teaspoon salt is enough to season stuffing or use low-sodium chicken broth.
Eggs and broth keeps stuffing moist. We don’t care for mushy bottom and prefer more eggs over broth. Eggs act as binder and holds the stuffing together. You can decrease the eggs to 2 and add more broth if you like.
If your turkey is done before making the stuffing, replace the broth with turkey drippings.
Store leftovers in an airtight container or wrap in heavy foil and refrigerate up to 3 days.
Freeze sliced leftover stuffing in heavy foil and zip lock bag up to a month. It is best to slice into portions (4 inches x 4 inches) and thaw only what you can eat in fridge overnight.
For crispier top, TOAST in toaster oven (if you have one) for 10 – 15 minutes or BAKE at 300 degrees F for 10 – 15 minutes otherwise use a microwave between 30-45 seconds. Microwaving will not yield a crispy top.
Refer to post above for ingredient substitutions and more tips.

Nutrition