Best Homemade Sausage Stuffing

Simple stuffing that brings everyone back for more, without taking your whole day to make. Loaded with tasty sausage and all the classic Thanksgiving or holiday flavors. If you don't fall in love with the aroma alone, you are bound to fall in love with the taste! This Best Homemade Sausage Stuffing is perfect for your holiday table this year.

Made from scratch, baked till golden brown, this stuffing is decadent and savory. I also love that this recipe can be easily made ahead of time to help with the meal prep crunch time. Homemade Sausage Stuffing really is the perfect side dish to any Thanksgiving feast.

Viva La Stuffing Revolution

But don't be fooled! This recipe is meant for enjoying year round. Most people make stuffing once a year. We want to change that ... a stuffing revolution if you will.

My mom is the magician behind this easy recipe. She crafted it one Thanksgiving, because she couldn't take another traditional stuffing made with giblets. I mean who can blame her? And so with that, this recipe was born. Simple, fast, and packed with flavor!

Making and eating stuffing are two of the coziest things you could do in my opinion. I personally make this stuffing every Christmas and Thanksgiving … birthday, Easter, or the occasional random Tuesday night. Okay, really it is perfect for any day!

Without a doubt though, the best time to make stuffing is on a crisp Fall day. There really is nothing better than warm, fragrant sausage stuffing to make all in this crazy world seem right, even if just for a few minutes. So, turn on that holiday music, start the fire, and thaw your sausage, you’re about to cook up some happiness.

Not Your Traditional Stuffing

If you’re a traditional stuffing maker, I will warn you, this is where I throw caution to the wind ... so brace yourself. While some consider not drying your bread before hand a cardinal sin, I don’t particularly care to. I mean if you are anything like me, you forget to do all the important prep steps, and when dinner time rolls around you just have to make due with what you've got and start cooking.

So again, full disclosure, this is definitely a grab and go type of recipe. But if you have your ducks in a row, drying out your bread slices prior to combining everything does have it's perks.

Now, when it comes to type of bread really anything will work. Naturally drier breads do seem to suck up the flavor and moisture better. But don't be afraid to get adventurous and experiment with different kinds of bread to find what you like best. Wheat, rye, cornbread, sourdough or dried white bread are all delicious.

The Secret is in the Soaking

Regardless of what kind of bread you go with you will want to breakup the entire loaf into pieces. Don't stress about size or shape. It makes it more rustic to have varying sizes and chunks.

As we have mentioned bread is a crucial ingredient. After sucking up the moisture like a sponge it begins to break down just enough that it becomes like a glue that holds everything together. A good bread will act as your binding agent.

When combining all your ingredients you want your stuffing to be moist enough that it clumps together but not so wet that there is excess fluid at the bottom of the bowl. Typically we find for every 4 cups of dry mixture, stuffing needs roughly a cup of liquid to achieve that perfect consistency, but it may take some playing with on your part.

Pro Chef - Mom Hack

It is important to remember that bread takes a little time to soak up moisture so be PATIENT. After stirring your mixture allow it to sit for a minute before checking to see if you need more liquid. If you find your stuffing is too wet add more bread. If your mixture is too dry or crumbly slowly add more broth till it just holds together. No one likes a mushy or soggy stuffing.

Make it Your Own

Once you've got your stuffing base you are good to go. You can fancy it up from here or keep it simple, as is. As always I am a huge advocate that in your kitchen, everyone plays by your rules. Which means that the kitchen is your place to get creative! Play around with your recipes, make them your own. Don't be afraid to add seasonings or extra ingredients you think will pair well in your best homemade sausage stuffing.

In this recipe we prefer to use regular sausage but if looking to add extra heat definitely go with a spicy sausage. For a warmer, earthy flavor add garlic to the onion when sautéing. Maybe try adding cranberries, celery, almonds, chestnuts, mushrooms, sage or thyme to your dish. The options truly are endless.

Perfect Pairings

If on the hunt for another delicious, cozy comfort food to pair with this yummy homemade sausage stuffing you cannot go wrong with our heavenly Cheesy Funeral Potatoes made with real potatoes. It is one of our most well known and loved recipes here at The Dashley's Kitchen and I promise, it does not disappoint! You can find the full recipe here.

Easy Homemade Sausage Stuffing

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Loaded with tasty sausage and all the classic Thanksgiving flavors. Savory and fragrant this side dish is the perfect recipe for every holiday table.

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Ingredients

• 16 ounces sausage
• 1 large onion
• ½ cup salted buter
• 1 loaf of bread
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3 teaspoons poultry seasoning

Instructions

1. Dice onion and add to large pan with butter, sautéing till soft and translucent. Set aside in a large mixing bowl.
2. Thoroughly cook sausage, draining off any excess fat and add to large mixing bowl.
3. Break the entire loaf of bread into bite-sized pieces and place in mixing bowl tossing together till combined.
4. Add one teaspoon of poultry seasoning at a time, stirring in between teaspoons to coat all pieces.
5. Slowly add 1 cup of chicken broth at a time to your mixture. Pour a little broth in, stir. Pour, stir. Repeat. If poured all at once the top pieces of bread will absorb too much liquid and the bottom pieces not enough.
6. When everything has been combined pour the stuffing mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Cover with foil being sure to seal the edges tightly.
7. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Remove foil and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
8. Once the top of the bread crumbs are crispy and golden, remove from the oven and serve hot!
   

Notes

• We prefer to use regular sausage but if looking to add extra heat go with spicy sausage.
• For a warmer, earthy flavor add garlic to the onion when sautéing.
• Feel free to dress it up and make it your own by adding cranberrys, celery, almonds, chesnuts, mushrooms, sage or thyme.
• Use a low or reduced sodium broth to keep your stuffing from becoming too salty. Bread, sausage and broth all contain plenty of salt, the broth is an easy way to keep the dish well balanced when it comes to sodium content.
• You want your stuffing to be moist enough that it clumps together but not wet enough that there is excess fluid at the bottom of the bowl. If too wet add more bread. If your mixture is too dry or crumbly slowly add more broth till it holds together.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 291Total Fat: 13gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 698mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 10g

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