When it comes down to it, the sides are really what makes a Thanksgiving meal so good. And this cornbread and sausage stuffing is no exception. Nothing against the turkey, but truth be told, that is the real side dish for our family. This recipe has been part of our Thanksgiving meals for so long, honestly, we’re not 100% sure where it came from. But at this point, we’ve started having it as a side for other family meals, simply because we love it so much. It is rich and savory. You can go for some of the crispy bits on top or make sure you get some from the center – no crispiness needed. Have it with a bite of cranberry sauce or cover with gravy. No matter what way you go, everyone finds the way they love it best.
Don’t let the great flavor fool you, this is actually fairly easy and the great thing about it is you can make it as complex as you like or really simplify it to save time – it’s up to you. Here are a few tips for making this your favorite stuffing too ~
- One of the easiest ways to save time is to pick up pre-chopped onions, celery, and carrots. This will save you time and tears during prep. 😊 Trader Joe’s has a great mirepoix that is perfect for this. But you can usually pre-chopped veggies in most produce sections.
- Can’t find pre-chopped carrots? Don’t be above going to the canned veggies for this. They work great for this recipe and we have used them when we can’t find pre-chopped…and also don’t want a entire bag of carrots laying around to throw out later.
- Much of the flavor is coming from the sage sausage. So if you don’t like sage, just pick another type of sausage and season accordingly.
- Although we use Pepperidge Farm Cornbread Stuffing, if you want to make your own cornbread, that works too. Just make sure you have dried it out before you start this.
- We use reduced sodium chicken broth since there is already plenty of salt in the sausage. But feel free to adjust to your family’s taste.
- On that note, it is intentional there is no salt or pepper listed in the ingredients (we didn’t just miss it 😉) Again, between the seasoning in the sausage and chicken broth, it really doesn’t need it. However, this is a personal thing, so no worries if you feel like you want to add to it.
- Not only can you make this ahead, but it will make it even tastier if you have it stay in the fridge overnight. Just follow the steps up to putting in a baking dish, cover it, and then bake the next day when you’re ready. Just pull out of the fridge about 30 minutes ahead of baking.
- Save a little chicken broth to add right before baking. If it looks like it has dried out a little, you can also add a bit more.
- If you have leftovers, you can easily freeze them for another meal. You can cut it in to portions and wrap in foil for later.
- What to pair this with something else other than turkey? Prime rib and pork chops are some of our other favorties!
Cornbread & Sausage Stuffing
This savory and rich cornbread has been part of our family for so long we can't remember a Thanksgiving without it. It's even started to appear other times of the year too!
Equipment
- 2 Large Skillets
- Large Bowl
- 9 x 11" Baking Pan
Ingredients
- 16 oz Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage Or your favorite brand
- 1 tbsp Butter
- 8 oz Chopped Yellow Onion
- 8 oz Chopped Celery
- 8 oz Chopped Carrots
- 1 Pkg Pepperidge Farm Cornbread Stuffing Or your favorite brand
- 32 oz Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth
Instructions
- Start by prepping all your vegetables. Chop all as close in size as possible. Depending on personal preference, you can chop to the size you like. Do not mix together at this point, you will need to sauté them for different lengths of time. See notes above to safe time on this step.
- Cook sausage in its own skillet. Make sure sausage is crumbled and cook it through completely. Once cooked, drain sausage and place in bowl and set aside.
- While the sausage is cooking, in the other large skillet, melt a tablespoon of butter. If you are using raw carrots, start with cooking them (they take a little longer to cook). If not, start to sauté onions, after a few minutes add in the celery. Just cook until lightly sautéed. You don't want them overcooked. The will cook more once you place stuffing in the oven. If you are using shelf stable carrots just add them in after the onions and celery are cooked. Since they are shelf stable, they are already cooked. Remove mixture from heat.
- Combine sausage with onion, celery, and carrot mixture. You may need to use 2 different skillets or large bowl since the mixture becomes quite a lot once you start to add in the stuffing mix.
- Start to add the stuffing to the mixture. Add a small amount and a time so you can blend the mixture well. As you are mixing, add in the chicken broth. Once again, a little at a time so you don't add too much liquid. You will only need about 3/4 of the chicken broth container. Save the rest for after you bake in case you want to add a little more once it is cooked. Add what you like, this is personal preference on how moist you like your stuffing.
- Once mixture is complete, place in a greased 9x11 dish or large casserole dish.
- At this stage, you can cover and put in the fridge until you're ready to bake. If you leave it overnight, just take it out about 30 minutes before you want to bake so it's not ice cold going into the oven.
- Bake for approximately 30-35 min at 350 degrees or until top of stuffing browns a bit. Keep the pan lightly covered for the first 20 minutes or so and then remove cover for the last few minutes so the top browns a bit. Since all items are cooked before baking, you don't have to worry about reaching a certain temperature, but you will want to make sure it is heated through.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
This is a really forgiving dish that will turn out yummy every time. It is definitely a bit of comfort on a plate. So don’t save it just for Thanksgiving! Enjoy!