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It’s not Thanksgiving without Sausage and Sage Stuffing! With hearty sourdough bread, flavorful sausage, and earthy herbs, it’s the ultimate addition to your feast.
Growing up, my mom always made a rendition of this stuffing recipe and it was a personal favorite on the table for the holidays. It was a recipe that my grandma would always make and would include even more butter than I include here—which is definitely what made it so delicious! The inclusion of hot Italian sausage also makes this even more flavorful and exciting in my opinion.
And it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a little debate, which means we have to talk about stuffing vs. dressing. I talked about this on Instagram and did not realize how divisive the topic would be! I always thought stuffing was what actually went inside a turkey while dressing was the delicious bread, sausage, and veggie mixture I grew up loving. I thought maybe it was a regional thing because Cady was confused by me calling it dressing. But then, a lot of you said that the difference has to do with the type of bread you use. Honestly, I am still confused as I write this, but all I know is that this version is a must-have for your Thanksgiving spread.
ingredients:
- Sourdough Bread
- Unsalted Butter
- Yellow Onion
- Celery
- Garlic Cloves
- Fresh Thyme
- Kosher Salt
- Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Mild or Hot Italian Sausage
- Fresh Sage
- Dry White Wine
- Flat-Leaf Parsley
- Large Eggs
- Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
- Dried Sage
- Dried Thyme
step-by-step:
step one: preheat the oven and prep the baking dish
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter.
step two: dry the bread
Cut the bread into 1/2-inch cubes (around 12 cups total) and spread evenly across 2 large baking sheets. Transfer to the oven and bake until the bread is completely dry and beginning to crisp, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
step three: sauté the vegetables
Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat and melt 9 tablespoons of butter. Add the onions, celery, garlic, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the onions and celery are very tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
step four: cook the sausage
Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the sausage and sage. Cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the sausage is cooked through, about 6 minutes.
step five: add the wine
Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and toss until coated. Add the wine, stir, and cook until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the sausage mixture to the bowl with the onions and celery.
step six: assemble the stuffing
Add the toasted bread to the mixing bowl and toss until well combined. Add the chicken broth, eggs, parsley, dried sage, dried thyme, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Toss again to combine.
step seven: bake the stuffing
Transfer into the prepared baking dish and bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes until the bread is golden brown.
I love using hot Italian sausage but if your crowd is sensitive to spice, you can definitely use mild Italian sausage or even a pork-based breakfast sausage.
Of course! Use your favorite type of hearty, crusty gluten-free bread so that it doesn’t turn soggy.
Regardless if you call this stuffing or dressing, this Sausage and Sage Stuffing (Dressing) is a classic that I hope is on your Thanksgiving table for years to come!
looking for more Thanksgiving recipes? try these!
Caramelized Onion Scalloped Potatoes
Roasted Calabrian Chili Green Beans with Crispy Shallots
Sausage and Sage Stuffing
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
- 1 pound loaf of sourdough bread
- 2 cups finely diced yellow onions, (from about 1 large onion)
- 1 cup thinly sliced celery (from 3 to 4 stalks)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves (from about 8 sprigs of thyme)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 1 pound mild or hot Italian sausage
- 10 to 12 fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1/4 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 large eggs, beaten
- 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking dish with butter.
- Cut the bread into 1/2-inch cubes (around 12 cups total) and spread evenly across 2 large baking sheets. Transfer to the oven and bake until the bread is completely dry and beginning to crisp, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium heat and melt 9 tablespoons of butter. Add the onions, celery, garlic, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the onions and celery are very tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- Increase the heat to medium-high. Add the sausage and sage. Cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the sausage is cooked through, about 6 minutes.
- Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and toss until coated. Add the wine, stir, and cook until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the sausage mixture to the bowl with the onions and celery.
- Add the toasted bread to the mixing bowl and toss until well combined. Add the chicken broth, eggs, parsley, dried sage, dried thyme, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Toss again to combine.
- Transfer into the prepared baking dish and bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes until the bread is golden brown.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Food Photography and Styling by Eat Love Eats.
How do I make this a couple of days ahead of Thanksgiving? Should I pre-cook?
While I prefer fresh stuffing you could prep this all the day before (no earlier!) then bake on Thanksgiving. Prep it all the way through transferring it to a baking dish then cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil and store in fridge. When ready to bake, remove the stuffing from fridge and allow it to sit on counter while oven preheats to 350°F. You may need to add an extra 5-10 minutes to the cook time as the bread will be a little more moist!
I make this every year but making it today for a Friendsgiving. Can I premix it all including egg and refrigerate until this evening to cook?
Yes, that would work!
Can you make without eggs or with an egg substitute to accommodate an allergy?
I have not made this without an egg, but you could try the flaxseed “egg” trick by mixing 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed + 3 tablespoons of warm water. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes then mix in like you would with the egg. If anyone has tried this (or another egg-free trick), let us know!
Any substitutes for the white wine?
you can add more chicken broth instead!
If I want to add mushrooms, how do I adjust recipe?
You can add the mushrooms when you are almost done browning the sausage so they can soften. Other than that, you can keep the recipe measurements the same!
Any suggestions on gluten free substitutes?
Yum! This was a hit for my thanksgiving spread. Enjoyed by all.
If I over cooked the bread and it’s very dry and crispy (like croutons) will that ruin the dish or will the chicken broth make it soft enough? Should I start over?
Can you make this ahead of time
yes you can!!
I recommend baking in a 2 step process if doing ahead of time:The key is assembling and doing the first round of baking a day ahead so the bread doesn’t get overly soggy. Day off– really so all that’s left is to warm and crisp it up while your turkey rests. I recommending covering it with foil day of to make sure it gets warm all the way through- and finish uncovered to crisp it up on the top.
Hi Alex,
When making ahead, for the first round of baking – do you mean to follow the instructions all the way thru and only warm/crisp the recipe day of?
Was this confirmed on how to make it ahead?
Assemble it all and then just bake the next day?
That is what I like to do!
Can I stuff the turkey with this
absolutely!